The Florida Gators doubled up on 2013 linebackers Thursday, receiving a commitment from James Hearns (Tallahassee, FL) just over an hour after it was announced that Daniel McMillian (Jacksonville, FL) pledged to join the Gators.

Another player who took part in Florida’s Junior Day last weekend, Hearns is the second Lincoln High School player to commit to the Gators in as many days. His teammate and three-star wide receiver Raphael Andrades (Tallahassee, FL) was a surprise addition to Florida’s 2012 signing class on Wednesday.

At 6’3” and 230 lbs., Hearns was one of two Lincoln players – the other being WR Reggie Davis (Tallahassee, FL) – to visit the Gators last weekend. Both took a number of tours and met with the coaching staff, which told Hearns they were fond of his athleticism but wanted to look over his film early in the week after he missed most of the 2011 season due to a knee injury.

“He always liked Florida. He always liked 3-4 teams like Florida and Alabama,” former UF receiver and Lincoln’s offensive coordinator Jacquez Green told OGGOA. “When I took him down to Junior Day Saturday, he got a chance to really see [Will] Muschamp, and he sat with Coach [D.J.] Durkin at the game and got a chance to talk to him.

“It was the one-on-ones, the attention he got and the fact that Florida is down and [he and Andrades] feel they can help get Florida back up to where it used to be.”

Like McMillian who also committed Thursday, Hearns has an impressive offer list with Alabama, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Notre Dame, South Carolina and Tennessee as some of the standout schools.

Read the rest of this story and watch a highlight tape of Hearns after the break.
Continue Reading » LB Hearns makes it four 2013 commits for Florida

Tags: Adam Lane, Caleb Brantley, Daniel McMillian, Jacquez Green, James Hearns, Raphael Andrades

Less than 24 hours after hauling in 17 new recruits on 2012 National Signing Day, the Florida Gators have added a third player to their 2013 recruiting class by securing a verbal commitment Thursday afternoon from linebacker Daniel McMillian (Jacksonville, FL), according to InsidetheGators.com‘s Bryan Holt.

McMillian is listed on ESPNU’s recently released “top 100 prospects of 2013” and is considered by the recruiting service to be a four-star player. He was originally planning on announcing his commitment during the 2013 U.S. Army All-American Game but wanted to make his plans official now instead.

Florida did not host 2012 recruits on the final weekend before the dark period but instead brought a number of extremely talented juniors to campus.

McMillian was one of those juniors and has reportedly decided to make his call for the Gators despite carrying a number of other impressive offers from schools like Alabama, Arkansas, Clemson, Florida State, Ohio State and South Carolina.

Read the rest of this story and watch a highlight tape of Hearns after the break.
Continue Reading » LB McMillian becomes Gators’ third 2013 commit

Tags: Adam Lane, Caleb Brantley, Daniel McMillian

1 » Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow was a guest on NBC‘s Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Wednesday night/Thursday morning and sat down with the host to talk about the Tebowing phenomenon, Fallon’s parody of Tebow and David Bowie – “Tebowie,” and the charitable work he is doing. Tebow was introduced by The Roots playing “On Bended Knee” by Boyz II Men and concluded his segment by shooting a signed jersey into the crowd with at T-shirt gun.

2 » Speaking of television clips of Tebow, ESPN2‘s First Take has continued to make him a topic of conversation long after Denver’s season ended. This week the show featured singer/songwriter John Legend remixing one of his own tunes to create a song called “Extra-Ordinary Tebow.”

Continue Reading » FOUR Video BITS: Tebow, Legend, Diggs, Miller

Tags: Denver Broncos, Miami Heat, Mike Miller, National Signing Day, Stefon Diggs, Tim Tebow, Udonis Haslem

Courtesy of the University of Florida‘s University Athletic Association:

EARLY ENROLLEES

Willie Bailey • Safety
6-1 • 167
Hallandale, FL • Hallandale H.S.

Enrolled at UF in January of 2012… PRIOR TO FLORIDA: Three-star recruit…Attended Hallandale High School…Rated the No. 24 cornerback in the country by ESPN…Selected as the No. 77 high school player in the state of Florida by Rivals.com…Selected to the AP Class 5A All-State Second Team as a defensive back…Talented defensive back with good size…Led Hallandale to a 6-4 record as a senior…Chose Florida over Miami, North Carolina and USF…Coached by Dameon Jones.

Jessamen Dunker • Offensive Line
6-4 • 320
Boynton Beach, FL • Boynton Beach Community H.S.

Enrolled at UF in January 2012… PRIOR TO FLORIDA: Consensus four-star recruit…Selected as the No. 46 recruit in the ESPN 150…Ranked the No. 4 offensive guard in the country by ESPN…Listed as the No. 20 recruit in the state of Florida by Rivals.com…Named a PARADE High School All-American and 2011 Under Armour All-American…Named to the Press-Register’s 120 List…Selected to play in the 2011 FACA All-State Game…Selected to the AP Class 5A All-State First Team…Transferred to Boynton Beach High School as a junior after moving to Florida from Georgia…Did not play football until his junior year of high school…Began playing football as a high school junior…Chose Florida over Auburn, LSU, Alabama, Georgia, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, South Carolina, Baylor, Florida State and Notre Dame…Coached by Rick Swain.

D.J. Humphries • Offensive Line
6-6 • 271
Charlotte, NC • Mallard Creek H.S.

Enrolled at UF in January 2012… PRIOR TO FLORIDA: A consensus five-star and top-20 recruit…Rated as the No. 2 prospect by Rivals.com, the No. 7 prospect by ESPN and the No. 11 prospect by Scout.com…The No. 1 recruit out of the state of North Carolina according to Rivals.com…Named a first-team high school All-American by USA Today, ESPN, Rivals.com, MaxPreps and Sports Illustrated…Has started since his freshman season and hasn’t allowed a sack since his freshman season…Led Mallard Creek to a 13-1 record and berth in the NCHSAA Class 4AA State Semifinals…Mallard Creek finished No. 47 in the nation in the final POWERADE FAB 50 rankings…An AP All-State first team selection…Selected to participate in the 2012 U.S. Army All-America Bowl…Coached by Michael Palmieri…Father, D.J., played football at Presbyterian College and in the Arena Football League.

Continue Reading » Florida Gators 2012 National Signing Day bios

Tags: Alex McCalister, Antonio Morrison, Austin Hardin, Brian Poole, Bryan Cox, Colin Thompson, D.J. Humphries, Damien Jacobs, Dante Fowler, Dante Phillips, Jafar Mann, Jeremi Powell, Jessamen Dunker, Jonathan Bullard, Kent Taylor, Latroy Pittman, Marcus Maye, Matt Jones, National Signing Day, Quinteze Williams, Raphael Andrades, Rhaheim Ledbetter, Skyler Mornhinweg, Willie Bailey

A Florida State Seminoles commitment since Dec. 5, 2010, five-star defensive end Dante Fowler, Jr. (St. Petersburg, FL) surprised many during National Signing Day on Wednesday by switching his pledge to the Florida Gators.

Expected to play Buck linebacker for the Gators, a position of high importance in the defensive system of head coach Will Muschamp and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, Fowler was heavily pursued by Florida throughout the year and visited the school a half-a-dozen times unofficially.

Though he said he remained solid to Florida State following those visits, he admitted that he had some thinking to do after much of the coaching staff met him in his home last week (see picture above). One day later, Fowler again reiterated that he was “100 percent” going to commit to the Seminoles.

At 6’3” and 232 lbs., he is considered the No. 28 overall player in the nation and the third-best at his position according to Rivals. ESPNU ranks Fowler as a four-star recruit, the No. 71 player in the country and 10th-best defensive end.

He is the eighth defensive lineman to join the Gators’ 2012 class but is just the third expected to be in line for a shot at the Buck linebacker position with three-stars Bryan Cox, Jr. (Fort Lauderdale, FL) and Alex McCalister (Clemmons, NC) also vying for a spot on the depth chart.

Fowler becomes the 23rd member of the Gators’ 2012 signing class and is the second player to join the team on this year’s National Signing Day.

Tags: Alex McCalister, Bryan Cox, Dan Quinn, Dante Fowler, Florida State Seminoles, Will Muschamp

After missing out on their first two targets on National Signing Day, the Florida Gators received some good news with back-to-back commitments, the first of which coming from three-star wide receiver Raphael Andrades (Tallahassee, FL).

With offers from Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Stanford and Vanderbilt on the table, Andrades was not sure what his future would hold. In fact, he wanted to play for Florida so bad that he was considering walking on to the team.

Things became clearer when Gators head coach Will Muschamp called him on Tuesday evening and extended an official offer for him to join the program. His position coach at Lincoln High School (and former Florida WR) Jacquez Green explained to OGGOA on Wednesday how the situation unfolded.

“It was a maybe-type thing for a while, but he wanted to go to Florida,” Green said. “He even told me he would walk on at Florida because he knew he had something to bring to the school anyway. He turned down a lot of other offers out there. He just waited it out and was willing to go into signing day to see what would happen with [Nelson] Agholor.

“He was thinking about walking on and he was dead serious. He was like, ‘I want to play for Florida.’”

At 6’0” and 190 lbs., Andrades has a frame large enough to add additional size and strength. With a 40-yard-dash speed somewhere in the 4.5-4.7-second range, he can also improve his speed. Green believes those improvements will be easy for him to make because he already has the most important trait of a wide receiver.

“The way he catches the ball is something that can’t be taught. A lot of receivers just can’t catch. That’s one of his biggest strengths – just catching the football,” he explained. “He was a solid route runner in high school. He can get a little faster but he will get faster because now he only has to worry about football. I know he will get faster.

“His strength is overall size and the way he catches the football, and he understands the game. He’s a real smart guy. He understands route concepts. He understands why one receiver has to clear out in order to get another receiver open. Things like that are things guys in the pros understand, and he’s just in high school right now.”

Green said Andrades’s hand-eye coordination “is so high because of his baseball background;” he plays outfielder and was a highly-recruited baseball prospect.

Though he is a former player with the Gators, Green added that he did not have any influence on his Andrades’s decision-making process. In fact, he suggested he attend another institution before learning of Florida’s official offer on Tuesday.

“Ralph is a smart guy. He knows about football. He knows about teams and coaches. He’s very smart,” he said. “I never really had an influence on him. I let guys go wherever they want to. Actually during the recruiting process, I told him that I thought Arkansas was a good school for him. I don’t try to push them one way or another, I just try to help them make the best decision.”

The No. 99-ranked pass catcher by Rivals.com, Andrades is also considered a three-star recruit by ESPNU. He is Florida’s second wide receiver commitment of the 2012 cycle, joining four-star LaTroy Pittman (Citra, FL), and the Gators’ 22nd overall recruit.

Tags: Jacquez Green, Latroy Pittman, National Signing Day, Raphael Andrades

Twenty-one members strong, the Florida Gators’ 2012 recruiting class is hoping to expand by a name or two when the vast majority of uncommitted high school football players across the country announce their decisions on National Signing Day. While a handful of others will make their decisions known before or after the date, all but two of Florida’s remaining targets will be involved in ceremonies Wednesday.

Be sure to visit OGGOA’s live coverage of National Signing Day beginning Wednesday morning at 8 a.m. It will feature a live chat and be constantly updated throughout the day with every signed letter of intent (LOI) and new commitment.

Below OGGOA breaks down who the Gators are still waiting to hear from, when they will learn of their decision and some of the latest insights on each player.

Wide receiver Stefon Diggs (Olney, MD)
Accolades: Rivals – No. 8 overall (No. 2 WR); ESPNU – No. 13 overall (No. 3 WR)
Leaders: Florida, Ohio State
Contenders: Auburn, Maryland
Skinny: Diggs was favoring the Gators for quite some time until offensive coordinator Charlie Weis left for Kansas. However, when new OC Brent Pease took over, Florida was back in his good graces and stepped up to the top of the pack once again. The Gators desperately need a top wide receiver to fill out their 2012 class and Diggs is the primary target. Though he took a trip to Ohio State last weekend and enjoyed himself, it was his first time looking at the program and meeting head coach Urban Meyer. Diggs has said previously that he wants to play in a pro-style offense, and he has likely developed a much stronger relationship with Florida’s coaching staff.
Announcement: Friday, Feb. 10 (nine days after NSD)

Cornerback Tracy Howard (Miramar, FL)
Accolades: Rivals – No. 13 overall (No. 1 CB); ESPNU – No. 18 overall (No. 1 CB)
Leaders: Florida, Miami
Contenders: Florida State
Skinny: A long-time UF lean, Howard was all but signed, sealed and delivered to the Gators. That is until he took an official visit to Miami last weekend that may very well have flipped his recruitment on its heels. Closer to his home, family and good friends, Miami is an attractive destination for Howard and is believed to be the new leader for his services even though Florida’s coaching staff has been there for him all along. Whether he decides to stick with what he knows the best (the Gators) or stay closer to home is something only his family truly knows at this point.
Announcement: 9:35 a.m. live on ESPNU

Continue Reading » Florida Gators recruits and targets to watch on 2012 National Signing Day (and beyond)

Tags: Avery Young, D.J. Humphries, Dante Fowler, Darius Hamilton, Jake Meador, Josh Harvey-Clemons, Junior Gnonkonde, Kyron Samuels, Leonard Williams, National Signing Day, Nelson Agholor, Shyler Miles, Stefon Diggs, Tracy Howard, Vincent Valentine

1 » Former Florida Gators striker Abby Wambach is at it again for the U.S. Women’s National Team, leading the United States to a 4-0 win over Canada in the 2012 CONCACAF championship game. Though both teams had already qualified for the 2012 London Olympics, the Americans wanted to end the event on a high note and did just that thanks to a pair of goals each by Wambach and forward Alex Morgan. Wambach also had the assist on one of Morgan’s goals, and Morgan returned the favor with a pair of assists on her scores. The 2012 World Cup star has moved into second all-time on the international scoring list with 131 goals but is still shy of tying Mia Hamm at 158.

2 » Now you can look just like the Florida basketball players will against Tennessee by owning the brand new Nike Hyper Elite Platinum jersey and shorts set from the OGGOA Store. The products, available in limited quantities, were just added to the store on Tuesday but are now for sale. Just click here to go to the store and scroll down to see the items on the front page. Get them delivered by Feb. 6 and root on the Gators while also supporting this site at the same time!

3 » In addition to being a featured guest on NBC’s Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on Wednesday, Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow will also visit ESPN2’s First Take on Friday for an interview with Skip Bayless. He will probably wind up making other appearances as well, but Tebow is set to conclude his week of spots in Indianapolis, IN by showing up for the inaugural NFL Honors post-season award show, which airs Saturday at 9 p.m. on NBC.

4 » Despite having concerns about his academics, four-star Florida linebacker commit Jeremi Powell does indeed plan on signing with the Gators on Wednesday and not with Marshall, the school he visited over the weekend. ESPN has posted a new feature on Powell, which focuses not on his abilities as a football player but rather the fact that he “has survived homelessness and the resulting anger that almost consumed him.”

Tags: Abby Wambach, Denver Broncos, Jeremi Powell, Nike, Olympics, soccer, Tim Tebow