Over the last two weeks, plenty has been going on with the Florida Gators as far as recruiting for the 2011 season is concerned. Since June 10, the Gators have received in four commitments, including four-star wide receiver Javares McRoy (Lakeland, FL) [article], three-star fullback Hunter Joyer (Tampa, FL) [article], three-star offensive lineman Tommy Jordan (Ridgefield, CT) [article], four-star linebacker Ryan Shazier (Plantaiton, FL) [article].

Additionally, the team got a commitment without an official offer from three-star LB Rahim Cassell (Lakewood, CA) [article], and 2012 WR Latroy Pittman (Citra, FL) [article] is all but ready to pick Florida before his junior year of high school even begins.

However, the Gators still have plenty of work to do in order to enhance the current eight-person 2011 class, and the team made a lot of headway as recruits participated in football camps and took visits to the University of Florida in recent weeks.

Update yourself on some of the top 2011 recruits and targets…after the break!
Continue Reading » Going camping: Top recruits visit Florida in June

Tags: Aaron Lynch, Andre Debose, Chris Johnson, Friday Night Lights, Hunter Joyer, James Wilder, Javares McRoy, Jeff Driskel, Jerrard Randall, John Theus, Jordan Montgomery, Kelvin Benjamin, Kent Turene, Lamar Dawson, Latroy Pittman, Louchiez Purifoy, Mack Brown, Mike Blakely, Nathan Theus, Nick Waisome, Percy Harvin, Rahim Cassell, Ray Drew, Ryan Shazier, Tim Jernigan, Tommy Jordan, Tony Steward, Trip Thurman, Univeristy of Florida, Urban Meyer, Willie Snead, Zach Azzinari

Three-star linebacker Rahim Cassell (Lakewood, CA) committed to the Florida Gators on Thursday, but a conflicting report states that Florida is hesitant to officially accept his commitment.

“I’m stoked,” Cassell told Chris Hays of the Orlando Sentinel about his decision. “They were my first choice all along, them and Oregon, but I was more leaning toward Florida all along.”

Cassell said that he committed to tight ends coach Brian White over the phone and expected to speak with the remainder of the coaching staff – including head coach Urban Meyer – Thursday evening. He has yet to visit Gainesville, FL, and will not until Friday Night Lights camp at the end of July.

Though he has not seen the University of Florida for himself, Cassell admitted that he was influenced to jump on board by USC’s 2010 five-star quarterback commitment Jesse Scroggins, who raved about the time he had at UF.

“[Scroggins] just told me so many good things about when they went down there to visit that it just sounded perfect for me,” Cassell said. “I’m glad I got this done and committed to Florida. Coaches are starting to hit me up and trying to have me take all these unofficial visits and I can’t visit everywhere. I’m really happy that I committed.”

While Cassell may have made his mind up, Mark Wheeler of Rivals is reporting that the Gators will not be accepting his “commitment” right now. The program may be making this decision simply because the coaches have yet to see him workout at one of their camps, or Florida may believe that there are better players they are in the running for to take a scholarship at the same position.

Cassell told the Sentinel that he is ready to move on from recruiting and is so sure of his decision that he is starting to decline offers.

“I’m just beginning to tell [the other schools] now through e-mail. I haven’t spoken with any of them yet,” Cassell added.

UPDATE: The Sentinel caught up with Cassell late on Friday after reports of his commitment not being accepted surfaced across various websites including OGGOA. He somewhat confirmed these findings, noting that while the Gators did not come out and say his commitment was not accepted, Florida is taking a wait-and-see approach until he visits campus and meets with Meyer.

“[White] didn’t say I wasn’t committed, but they do want to form more of a relationship with me,” Cassell told the paper. “When I spoke with him [on Thursday], he did not let me know of this. But I’m guessing they are not accepting my commitment just yet because I did not get to visit the school. I just tried to get in contact with [linebackers] coach [D.J.] Durkin, unfortunately he did not answer so I left a message.”

Though Cassell “did not get the chance to talk to Urban Meyer because of the time difference between here and Florida,” he calls his decision “a for-sure commitment.”

Photo Credit: Rivals

Tags: Brian White, Friday Night Lights, Jesse Scroggins, Rahim Cassell, Urban Meyer

Recruiting contributor Zach Abolverdi in his first submission to OGGOA…

Now that football recruiting for the 2010 term is in the books and Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer has assembled one of the best classes of all-time, OGGOA brings you a look ahead to the Gators’ (in our opinion) top 20 targets for 2011. These are prospects that the coaching staff has already targeted and is pursuing the hardest as of press time. Perhaps even more important, the 20 targets listed below have a mutually high level of interest in Florida. [Preliminary star ratings provided by Scout.com.]

1. DT Tim Jernigan (Lake City, FL) – 6’2” 275 lbs.
Nicknamed “Hercules” for his superior size and strength, Jernigan also runs a remarkable 4.6 in the forty yard dash. He received his very first scholarship offer from Florida as a ninth grader and has visited on several occasions including this past summer when he dominated at the Urban Meyer Football Camp. In an interview with The Gainesville Sun following National Signing Day, Jernigan revealed that if he had to sign his letter of intent now, the Gators would be the recipient of his highly sought after signature.

2. ATH James Wilder, Jr. (Tampa, FL) – 6’2” 223 lbs.
Rivals’ “Junior of the Year,” Wilder, Jr. is the 2011 version of Ronald Powell with the athletic ability to play running back, linebacker and defensive end at the next level. He favors the Miami Hurricanes at the moment because they are recruiting him at running back, the position his father played in the NFL and his position of choice. However, most recruiting analysts project Wilder as an outside linebacker, and Florida is his leader if he chooses to play on defense in college.

Check out 18 more 2011 recruits the Florida Gators are targeting after the jump!
Continue Reading » Twenty recruits the Gators are eyeing for 2011

Tags: Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Bobby Hart, Brandon Fulse, Brian White, Charon Peake, Christian Lemay, Christian Westerman, Curt Maggitt, Dan McCarney, Friday Night Lights, Jack Nicklaus, James Vaughters, James Wilder, Jaylen Watkins, Jeff Driskel, Junior Day, Kelvin Benjamin, LaMichael Fanning, Lonnie Gosha, Mike Bellamy, Nick O'Leary, Nick Waisome, Sammy Watkins, Scot Loeffler, SEC, Stacey Lemay, Teddy Bridgewater, Tim Jernigan, Urban Meyer, Wayne Lyons, Zach Azzanni

Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer spoke with members of the media after receiving all 28 letters of intent for his team’s unanimous No. 1-ranked 2010 recruiting class. The following is a transcript of the press conference, courtesy of the University of Florida’s University Athletic Association.
Continue Reading » Urban Meyer on Florida’s 2010 recruiting class

Tags: Adrian Coxson, Chris Dunkley, Darrin Kitchens, Dominique Easley, Friday Night Lights, Gerald Christian, Jordan Reed, Leon Orr, Lynden Trail, Mack Brown, Matt Elam, Michael McFarland, Michael Taylor, National Signing Day, Office of Student Life, Quinton Dunbar, Ronald Powell, Sharrif Floyd, Solomon Patton, Steve Addazio, Tyler Murphy, Urban Meyer

The Florida Gators may have lost their prize commitment of the 2010 cycle in five-star safety Matt Elam (West Palm Beach, FL), but the Orange and Blue gained declarations from two of the top players in the country on Saturday during the 2010 Under Armour All-American Game. Four-star wide receiver Chris Dunkley (Pahokee, FL) and four-star defensive tackle Dominique Easley (Staten Island, NY) both put on Gators hats to the delight of Gator Nation.

Though Dunkley had long been considered a Florida lean and possible silent commitment, he had been toying with the idea of committing to the Alabama Crimson Tide and was slightly taken aback by the announcements from Gators head coach Urban Meyer this week. Instead, he said that he was a mama’s boy, wanted to stay in-state and loved the program. “I was real, real, real happy and revealed to make my decision to play for the University of Florida,” Dunkley said after the game. “There was a moment [I wavered],” Dunkley said. “I know [Meyer]‘s working to take care of himself. I’ve got to do what’s right for me.”

“I’ve built a relationship with almost everybody on the team,” Dunkley told ESPN. So it’s like me going, basically, back to a home away from home. All the teammates are like my brothers, so everything feels comfortable there. I have been waiting to get this off of my chest for a long time. I fit in perfect. [Freshman WR Andre] Debose and I both do. I have gotten to know him well and we talk all the time. I talk to John Brantley all the time, too. Like I said, it’s like I’ve been on the team for a while. I am going in to compete. All the coaches at Florida know that. All of the players know that.”