Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The Florida Gators had a very memorable recruiting weekend. Florida hosted several visitors for their annual football awards banquet. The visitor list was comprised of mostly committed players and several 2014 recruits. But wasn't the visitors that stole the headlines on Sunday.

The biggest news of the weekend came from three prospects that weren't even on campus. Massive 6-foot-8, 340-pound offensive tackle Trenton Brown (Albany, Ga./Georgia Military College), former South Carolina linebacker commit Matt Rolin (Ashburn, Va./Briar Woods) and four-star offensive tackle Rod Johnson (Delray Beach, Fla./American Heritage) gave their pledges to Florida on Sunday.

Brown committed to Florida over Oklahoma and Florida State, Rolin switched his pledge from South Carolina to the Gators and Johnson recommitted to Florida after an in-home visit from Florida offensive line coach Tim Davis.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- With early offers from Penn State, South Carolina, N.C. State and Florida, 2014 defensive line prospect Bryson Allen-Williams (Ellenwood, Ga./Cedar Grove) is sure to be one of the top defensive ends in the southeast next year.

The 6-foot-3, 233-pound athlete visited Florida for their home game against Bowling Green on Saturday and came away impressed with what he saw from the Gators.

"I loved it," Allen-Williams said. "Great atmosphere, great fan base and the defense played very well. Just overall it was a great visit."

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Four-star wide receiver Demarcus Robinson (Fort Valley, Ga./Peach County) visited Florida on Saturday and came away impressed with the Gators. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound athlete said although his trip to Gainesville was short, he learned a lot about what Florida has to offer.

"It was pretty good," Robinson said. "It was quick, but it went well. I went in the stadium and walked around the weight room. They showed me around the campus like where the bats come out at night and where the alligators are."

Robinson, who also holds offers from Notre Dame, Clemson, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Georgia and Tennessee, had a chance to meet with Florida offensive coordinator Brent Pease while on his visit.

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Four-star defensive end Devin Washington (Orlando, Fla./Jones) committed on Thursday to play at South Carolina.

The 6-foot-3, 222-pound athlete announced his decision on his Twitter account, @D_W5: "JUST COMMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA! #GAMECOCKNATION"

Washington, who chose the Gamecocks over offers from Clemson, N.C. State, Missouri, Ole Miss, USF and UCF among others, said South Carolina was just the best situation for him.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Madison County (Fla.) Madison County HS offensive lineman Ira Denson has seen his stock increase dramatically since his standout performance at the Orlando NFTC on Sunday.

The 6-foot-4, 308-pound guard prospect had offers from Florida International, Western Kentucky and South Alabama heading in to the weekend, but that list will likely increase in the near future.

Denson said Odell Haggins from Florida State, Brian White from Florida and Jeff Stoutland from Alabama have all contacted him after his performance in Orlando.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- With no proven quarterbacks on Florida's roster, the position is an area of need in the 2013 class.

The Gators hosted Woodberry Forest (Va.) signal-caller Heys McMath and his father on Saturday. McMath said he enjoyed his time in Gainesville.

"It was great," he said. "All the coaches were good. They were all really active and talking to me. Practice was great. I was impressed with everything."

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ESPNU 150 defensive end Jonathan Bullard has decided to delay his college announcement.

The 6-foot-4, 255-pound four-star prospect from Shelby (N.C.) Crest was supposed to announce his decision on Wednesday but confirmed the delay via text message on Monday afternoon.

Bullard, who is ranked as the No. 11 defensive end in the country by the ESPNU 150, now says he is unsure of when he will announce his decision.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The 2012 Florida recruiting class isn’t even wrapped up yet, but the Gators are trying to get a jump on their 2013 class.

Florida verbally offered Lithonia (Ga.) Martin Luther King offensive lineman Joshua Outlaw (6-foot-4, 290-pounds) on Monday afternoon.

Outlaw's head coach, Mike Carson, said that Florida tight ends coach Derek Lewis came by the school and while he was there, Florida head coach Will Muschamp got on the phone and extended the offer.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Four-star defensive end Tyriq McCord (6-3/220, Tampa, Fla./Jefferson) visited The Swamp Saturday to watch Florida State beat in-state rival Florida 21-7.

McCord, who is ranked the No. 99 player in the country according to the ESPNU 150, said he enjoyed his time in Gainesville.

“The visit went pretty well,” McCord said. “That was a tough hard-fought defensive game. I’m not even looking at FSU, but it was great to see both teams go at it like that.”

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- William Likely III, one of the top 2013 defensive backs in the state, visited Saturday to watch Florida State defeat Florida 21-7.

For Likely, the visit wasn’t just to watch a rivalry game, it was a chance to assess two teams that he is considering early on in the recruiting process.

“It was cool to see both teams play this rivalry game,” Likely said. “Most the guys played against each other in high school, so it was cool to see the passion from both teams.”

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It’s time to dip in to the GatorNation recruiting mailbag and answer the questions you want to know. Because of the amount of questions we’ve received, we won’t be able to get to all of them today, but we encourage you to ask your questions on our Insider fan forum "The Chompions Club."

SECrocks2000: Which of the recruits will have the biggest impact when they first step on campus?

A: I’m tempted to say five-star offensive tackle D.J. Humphries. With Florida returning Xavier Nixon, Matt Patchan and Chaz Green, Humphries might not break the rotation immediately. He still needs to add weight to his 265-pound frame. So my answer is running back Mike Davis. With Florida losing speedsters Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey and returning two unproven backs in Mike Gillislee and Mack Brown, Davis will have a chance to compete for significant time immediately. Davis rushed for over 1,900 yards and 21 touchdowns as a senior and is a very good receiver out of the backfield. One way or another he will contribute early and often.

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On the field the Florida Gators have struggled to a 5-5 record. Off of the field is a different story. Florida has a top-five recruiting class according to ESPNU, and the Gators are bringing in a host of top prospects to watch them take on in-state rival Florida State.

Headlining the list of visitors on Thanksgiving weekend is Olney (Md.) Our Lady of Good Counsel athlete Stefon Diggs. Diggs is ranked the No. 2 athlete in the country by the ESPNU 150, but the Gators are recruiting him as a wide receiver. This unofficial visit to Florida will be his first to Gainesville since his standout performance at Florida’s Friday Night Lights camp in late July.

Four-star defensive end Jordan Jenkins (6-3/245, Hamilton, Ga./Harris Co.) will be making the trek down to Gainesville for an official visit. The Gators are recruiting Jenkins to play the Buck position, which is a hybrid defensive end/linebacker. Jenkins, who is ranked the No. 5 defensive end in the country in the ESPNU 150, is favoring Alabama slightly over Florida.

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