With National Signing Day approaching on Feb. 3, five-star linebacker recruit Jordan Hicks (West Chester, OH) decided to end the speculation and announce his college commitment a few days early in front of friends and family. Hicks took the Florida Gators, Ohio State Buckeyes and Texas Longhorns down to the wire as his three finalists but ultimately declared that he would play college football in Austin, TX, beginning next season.

Unanimously considered the top LB in the nation, Hicks is ranked No. 4 overall on the ESPNU 150 and No. 16 on the Rivals100. The Gators will now focus on gaining a commitment from five-star LB Christian Jones (Winter Park, FL).

Photo Credit: Will Gallagher/Inside Texas

Tags: Christian Jones, Jordan Hicks, National Signing Day, Ohio State Buckeyes, Texas Longhorns

National Signing Day is approaching on Feb. 3, and the Florida Gators are looking to add to their consensus No. 1-ranked 2010 recruiting class. Seeing as high school football players across the country will begin making declarations as early as Friday afternoon, OGGOA has put together a comprehensive preview of the recruits the Gators are still attempting to gain commitments from. The top 10 players who Florida is after are listed below along with a short prediction at the end.

OT Seantrel Henderson (St. Paul, MN)
Rivals: No. 2 – ESPNU: No. 8
Also considering: Ohio State, Southern California, Notre Dame, Minnesota, Miami (FL)

His high school is a pipeline to Notre Dame, his last visit is to Miami, he’s been (reportedly) favoring Ohio State for quite some time, he’s from Minnesota and USC has been in his ear lately making a big push. Florida is considered a long-shot to land Henderson, one of the top overall recruits in the country and the consensus No. 1 offensive lineman.

Learn about the other nine recruits who you should keep an eye on after the jump!
Continue Reading » Ten recruits to watch on National Signing Day

Tags: Adrian Coxson, Charlie Strong, Chaz Green, Christian Jones, Da'Rick Rogers, Darrin Kitchens, Demar Dorsey, Dietrich Riley, Ivan McCartney, Jeremy Deering, Jordan Hicks, Kardon Boone, Markeith Ambles, Matt Elam, Morgan Moses, Seantrel Henderson, Telvin Smith, Urban Meyer

1 » A consensus top-five recruit in the country, five-star defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat (Plano, TX), was planning to visit the Florida Gators this weekend. Instead, Jeffcoat has canceled his trip and is removing Florida from his list of finalists. Chris Hays of the Orlando Sentinel speculates (correctly) that Jeffcoat’s decision likely comes on the heels of fellow five-star DE Ronald Powell (Moreno Valley, CA) committing to the Gators at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Florida remains in the running for top five-star recruits like offensive tackle Seantrel Henderson (St. Paul, MN) and linebacker Jordan Hicks (West Chester, OH), among others.

2 » Though sales of specialty license plates in the state of Florida “were down for the first time in years” on the whole, the University of Florida’s plate remained the state’s top seller. In 2009, UF sold 120,858 license plates, 7,296 more than just one year ago. The Gators accounted for 7.4 percent of total sales even though there are 112 other designs for residents to choose from.

Tags: All-American, Army, Jackson Jeffcoat, Jordan Hicks, Ronald Powell, Seantrel Henderson, University of Florida

Aside from having to hire a new head coach after Urban Meyer‘s shocking resignation, one of the most immediate issues facing the Florida Gators football program in 2010 is retaining recruits from one of the top incoming classes in the country. With 20 recruits currently verbally committed to the Gators and plenty more considering their commitment one way or another, losing Meyer will almost certainly a blow to the team’s recruiting – how big of a blow is yet to be determined. Numerous sources including Rivals, GatorCountry, the Palm Beach Post, the Orlando Sentinel, the Gainesville Sun and the Sporting News have spoken with these recruits over the past few hours, and OGGOA has compiled some information on where each of them stand.

Because the list is so long, it is best to view it after the jump!!!
Continue Reading » Meyer’s decision stuns Gators 2010 recruits

Tags: Chris Dunkley, Christian Green, Cody Riggs, Demar Dorsey, Gerald Christian, Gideon Ajagbe, Ian Silberman, Jack Daniels, Jaylen Watkins, Jordan Hicks, Joshua Shaw, Kenny Carter, Lynden Trail, Mack Brown, Matt Elam, Quinton Dunbar, Robert Clark, Seantrel Henderson, Solomon Patton, Trey Burton, Urban Meyer, Vance Bedford

1 » Discussing Southeastern Conference basketball in his latest column, ESPN’s Andy Katz paints the picture that the Florida Gators have a legitimate chance to overcome their recent woes. Calling the Gators the most surprising team in the SEC thus far, Katz says: “Even though Florida has struggled in its past three games (losing to South Alabama at home is rather inexcusable), the Gators are still a surprise overall in the conference. Beating Florida State wasn’t a total shock since the game was at home, but it’s still a quality win. And taking out then-No. 2 Michigan State in New Jersey was a stunner at the time. The Gators have proven that they can knock off big-time teams, and they’ll need to do that going forward in the SEC if they are to avoid a third straight NIT appearance.” Even so, Katz projects Florida as one of “at least five squads [from the SEC] in the Big Dance.”

2 » Though he is still trying to decide between the Gators, Texas Longhorns and Ohio State Buckeyes, four-star linebacker recruit Jordan Hicks (West Chester, OH), has decided to announce his college choice sometime in January instead of on National Signing Day, according to Bill Kurelic of ESPN. Hicks is believed to be favoring Texas at this point, but Kurelic predicts “Florida as the eventual winner in this tug of war. The Gators got the last official visit and Urban Meyer is assembling what some feel will be his best recruiting class ever. If in fact he can land Hicks, he will have the No. 2 prospect in the ESPNU 150 and the country’s top linebacker.”

Extra Bit » While reading a column by CBSSports.com’s national columnist Mike Freeman about the recent issues surrounding USC Trojans running back Joe McKnight, OGGOA came across this shot at the Gators that we found particularly disturbing and ridiculously exaggerated. Qualifying the magnitude of USC’s recent off-field issues, Freeman says, “The Trojans aren’t the Florida Gators, who are soaked in DUIs and gun toters, but it’s getting pretty bad out there in Trojanland.” Thoughts?

Tags: Joe McKnight, Jordan Hicks, March Madness, National Signing Day, Ohio State Buckeyes, SEC, Texas Longhorns, Urban Meyer, USC Trojans

It has been a slow weekend as far as Florida Gators news goes, but OGGOA has done its best Sunday morning to provide you with a few notes to wrap up the weekend. Expect more from us later in the day, so stay tuned!

1 » A dozen Gators commits and recruiting prospects including five-star safety Matt Elam (Fort Lauderdale, FL) visited Gainesville, FL, this weekend for official visits with Florida coaches, staff and current players. In what will be a crucial weekend for Gators’ recruiting after losing defensive coordinator Charlie Strong and wide receivers coach/recruiting coordinator Billy Gonzales to other schools, Florida hopes to secure commitments it has already received and establish new ones, possibly pulling players away from other teams. With National Signing Day approaching at the beginning of February and early enrollment for the spring semester (and spring practice) less than a month away, expect to hear a bunch of recruiting news come out over the next few days and weeks. Commits: Elam, four-star DE Neiron Ball (Jackson, GA), four-star OT Ian Silberman (Fleming Island, FL), four-star ATH Travon Van (New Berlin, NY), four-star CB Jaylen Watkins (Cape Coral, FL), three-star QB Trey Burton (Venice, FL) – Recruits: five-star LB Jordan Hicks (West Chester, OH), four-star WR Chris Dunkley (Pahokee, FL), four-star WR Justin Hunter (Virginia Beach, VA), four-star OT Morgan Moses (Fork Union, VA), four-star C Brandon Linder (Fort Lauderdale, FL), three-star CB Robert Clark (West Palm Beach, FL).

2 » Though senior quarterback Tim Tebow came in fifth in Saturday’s 2009 Heisman Trophy ceremony, two of his teammates were awarded honors of their own. Juniors cornerback Joe Haden and center Maurkice Pouncey were both named to the 2009 Football Writers Association of America All-America Team. Both are seemingly racking up All-America honors this season, which bodes well for them considering they are (likely) heading into the 2010 NFL Draft.

Tags: All-American, Billy Gonzales, Brandon Linder, Charlie Strong, Chris Dunkley, Draft, FWAA, Heisman Trophy, Ian Silberman, Jaylen Watkins, Joe Haden, Jordan Hicks, Justin Hunter, Matt Elam, Maurkice Pouncey, Morgan Moses, National Signing Day, Neiron Ball, NFL, Robert Clark, Tim Tebow, Travon Van, Trey Burton