Florida Gators

Five-star safety/cornerback prospect Nick Washington talks about his commitment to Florida with GatorNation's Derek Tyson on Saturday.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Make it a six-pack for Florida's Bradley Beal.

The 6-foot-3 guard was named the Southeastern Conference's Freshman of the Week for the sixth time this season on Monday. Beal averaged 17.4 points and 8.5 rebounds per game in the Gators' road victories over Alabama and Arkansas last week. He had 14 points and eight rebounds against the Crimson Tide and 21 points and nine rebounds against the Razorbacks.

No other freshman in the SEC has won the award more than three times.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida received a verbal commitment from ESPNU 150 Watch List safety Keanu Neal (Bushnell, Fla./South Sumter).

"I talked T-Rob [Florida defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson]. He has a defensive scheme that fits perfect for me," Neal said. "He has it where the safety, which would be me, moves down in to the box and plays almost like a linebacker. I have done that in the past, so that fits perfectly for me. I can also drop back in pass coverage."

Neal, who became Florida's sixth commitment of the day, chose Florida over offers from South Carolina, South Florida and Georgia Tech among many others.

"It felt like home," he said. "I talked to the coaches and they welcomed with with open arms, and I can see myself fitting in there for the next few years."

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- A great recruiting day for Florida got even better on Saturday night when the Gators landed linebacker Dillan Lawson from Crestview (Fla.) Crestview HS.

The 6-foot-4, 215-pound athlete posted on Facebook: "Just left the University of Florida in Gainesville. And yes I committed to be a Gator."

Lawson, joins Quinton Powell, James Hearns and Daniel McMillian in Florida's linebacker class.

Florida now has five verbal commitments on junior day and nine overall for its class of 2013.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The Florida Gators continued their hot streak in recruiting on Saturday, as five-star safety prospect Nick Washington (Jacksonville, Fla./Trinity Christian) committed to the Gators while on an unofficial visit to Florida for its junior day.

The 6-foot, 185-pound ESPNU 150 Watch List prospect said that after visiting Alabama, Auburn, South Carolina, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia and Georgia Tech this offseason he realized Florida is where he wants to be.

"Florida has always been the school I wanted to play for," Washington said. "I always watched them when I was young, and I just feel like this is the place for me. I've visited every school that I had in my top schools, and I definitely feel like Florida is the one for me."

Washington said his relationship with Florida defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson also played a role in his decision to commit to the Gators.

"I have a great relationship with coach T-Rob, and they have a good atmosphere, and they have a family-based team," Washington said. "They play a lot of DBs. They have a good campus. It's just everything about them."

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida picked up commitment No. 3 on the day when ESPNU 150 Watch List linebacker Quinton Powell (Daytona Beach, Fla./Mainland) committed to the Gators during junior day on Saturday.

At 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds, Powell is being recruited to play outside linebacker for the Gators. He chose the Gators after considering offers from Clemson, Miami and South Carolina.

"It was a good experience out here," Powell said. "I actually verbally committed to the Gators. It was a great experience. I saw a lot of different things I had questions for and it was good. I wanted to see how their academic process is, and I saw that it was good. They've got their act together with that, so I liked it."

Powell, who does not plan to take any other visits, said that he also liked the family atmosphere at UF.

"They feel like they're my brothers," he said. "They're already showing me love, and I like that. Looking forward to another family when I get here."

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The Florida Gators received a verbal commitment from wide receiver Rodney Adams (St. Petersberg, Fla./Lakewood) on Saturday.

The 6-foot-1, 173-pound athlete chose Florida over USF, FSU, Oklahoma and Vanderbilt. Adams said the family atmosphere is what won him over on the Florida program.

"I committed to Florida," Adams said. "It just feels like a family down there, I love the people there. I fit in to the offense, and I love the coaches. It just feels like home there."

Adam's teammate last season Dante Fowler Jr., made a surprising switch on signing day when he signed with Florida after being committed to Florida State for more than a year. Adams said that helped solidify his decision, but his mind was made up before Fowler switched.

"It does help, because now I have someone there with me from my hometown," Adams said. "I kind of chose Florida before he did, but it is great that he went there also."

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The start of spring practice is less than a month away for Florida, and it can’t get here soon enough for Will Muschamp.

His first season as Florida’s coach is in the books, and it wasn’t what anybody in the Gator Nation wanted -- and that includes the Head Gator.

Florida was forced to play a pair of true freshman quarterbacks during the teeth of the schedule, and there was very little depth to speak of in the line of scrimmage. Muschamp has also conceded that the chemistry on the team was poor and that players were pulling in different directions.

The result was a 7-6 finish, including an 0-6 record against teams that finished the season with a winning record, not to mention losses to Eastern Division rivals Georgia and South Carolina in the same season for the first time since the Gamecocks joined the league in 1992.

If that’s not enough, it was only the second time in the past 30-plus years that Florida had lost six games in a season. They finished 6-6 in 1987.

So forgive Muschamp if his focus is on the future, although that doesn’t mean he’s oblivious to what went wrong in Year 1.

He knows exactly what has to change if the Gators are going to go from a 7-6 team to a team that has a chance to be in Atlanta playing for the SEC championship in 2012.

“The No. 1 thing defensively is that we have to create some turnovers,” Muschamp said. “We were probably the worst in the country for whatever reason. I’ve been the worst and the best, so I’ve got to figure out what we did that year we were the best at Texas. That’s the first thing.”

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida's junior day got started with an early bang on Saturday, as the Gators secured a verbal commitment from five-star running back and Florida legacy Kelvin Taylor (Belle Glades, Fla./Glades Day).

Taylor, who surpassed Emmit Smith as the all-time leading rusher in the state of Florida this past season with 9,698 yards, said Florida is where he feels best.

"They just have a great program and great coaching staff. I feel so comfortable around their coaching staff," Taylor said. "It's closer to home and they have great tradition."

Originally, Taylor was planning to wait until national signing day to make his decision, but after careful consideration he decided to end the process early.

"I just wanted to go ahead and get it out of the way," Taylor said. "I felt more comfortable at Florida, and I wanted to focus more on my high school career, so I just wanted to get it done with. I also want to enroll in January, so that's another reason I decided to make the decision early."

Taylor said he plans to enroll early in January 2013.