Florida Football Recruiting Updates: Gators Welcome Star Visitors

Marcell Harris, a safety prospect out of Dr. Phillips High School (FL), signed with the Florida Gators. Harris considered Texas and Florida State, among others, and he kept his announcement interesting back in November. He had some help from his brother, who came to the announcement wearing gear from three different schools.

Harris is one of the top prospects in the class of 2013 -- Rivals considers him the eighth-best safety in the nation and No. 67 overall player. He is rated similarly by 247Sports.

Hargreaves gave his verbal commitment to Florida in late July. He then spent his senior season racking up accolades. Hargreaves was the Florida Dairy Farmers Class 8A Player of the Year, Tampa Bay Times Defensive Player of the Year, and a USA Today First Team All-American. He received five-star ratings from all of the scouting agencies, was named the unanimous top cornerback prospect in the nation, and garnered spots in the national top 5 from practically every scout. He also was named Player of the Game at the Under Armour All-America Game.

Early on, Hargreaves was viewed as untouchable given his ties to South Florida. In an interview with Antoya English of the Tampa Bay Times, he talked of visiting Miami, where his dad was an assistant when he was a small child:

Anzalone was once an Ohio State commit, but broke it off after SB Nation’s Land-Grant Holy Land revealed a registered sex offender had been granted access to Buckeyes recruits, including Anzalone. In July, he committed to Notre Dame over Penn State and Florida, but decommitted on Jan. 10, pledged to the Gators that same day, and enrolled in school on Jan. 11. He’s thus reminded us multiple times why you shouldn’t bother recruits on Twitter.

Anzalone gives Will Muschamp’s defense one of the best linebackers in the class of 2013 -- he is considered the second-best player at his position by Rivals and the No. 28 overall prospect in the class. As for how he’ll fit in at Florida, let’s turn to SB Nation’s Alligator Army:

Matt Rolin, a linebacker prospect from Briar Woods High School in Virginia, is an early enrollee at Florida. Rolin was once a South Carolina commitment, but he flipped from the Gamecocks to the Gators on Dec. 9. He had originally committed to South Carolina in May of last year.

The move was very surprising, though Rolin did have an affinity for the Florida Gators throughout the process. Interestingly, Rolin had his knee surgery done at the University of South Carolina just shortly before committing to Florida, which had many South Carolina fans plenty angry with him.

Demarcus Robinson, one of the top wide receiver prospects in the class of 2013, is one of several early enrollees at Florida. Robinson had an eventful ride on the recruiting trail in December -- he decommitted from Clemson, committed to Florida and then re-committed to Clemson in less than a week. But he ultimately decided that Florida was the place for him, re-committing to the Gators on Jan. 7 and enrolling the next day.

Robinson caught 48 passes for 960 yards and 12 touchdowns as a senior in 2012. He went for 1,024 yards on 53 receptions in his junior season.

Elite 2013 linebacker prospect Daniel McMillian enrolled at Florida for the spring semester, and he’ll be able to participate in spring drills. McMillian has been a Florida commitment for a long time -- he picked the Gators over Florida State and Alabama, among others, in February of last year.

McMillian’s recruitment was a bit of a surprise, because star players from Jacksonville (Fla.) First Coast High School have routinely decided to play for the Rival Florida State Seminoles. McMillian grew up a fan of the Gators, however, and never really wavered in his commitment to Florida.

Kelvin Taylor, son of former NFL running back Fred Taylor, has signed his letter of intent to play at Florida. Taylor is following in the footsteps of his father, who also played football for the Gators. Taylor held offers from most SEC programs, as well as in-state schools Florida State, Miami, and South Florida. Despite all those options, it seemed that the younger Taylor was destined for Gainesville, as he committed to the school during his junior year.

Taylor has the potential to be a workhorse for the Gators. He is strong and stays low to the ground, allowing him to pick up yardage after contact. Taylor was the offense at Glades Day High School, amassing an absurd 2,423 yards and 41 touchdowns on 237 carries during his senior season. He actually played five seasons of high school ball, earning All-State honors as an eighth grader.

Clark took an unofficial visit to Gainesville back on Jan. 6, so this won’t be his first time visiting with the Gators. In the past month, he’s taken official visits at Nebraska and Clemson, and is scheduled to be in Columbus to see Ohio State on Jan. 25.

The Gators have 26 commits in their 2013 recruiting class, but seven have already enrolled and are taking classes. If Florida can seal the deal with Clark, they will have an impressive wide receiver haul in their 2013 class, which also includes four-star prospects Ahmad Fulwood, Alvin Bailey, and Demarcus Robinson. Wide receiver has been a bit of a problem spot for the Gators over the past few years, so the Florida staff has done a lot to help rectify that situation with this class.

Top 2013 recruit Robert Nkemdiche is taking an official visit to Ole Miss this weekend -- it will be the third time he’s been on campus in Oxford since last November -- and there are rumors that he might end his recruitment and commit to the Rebels during the trip. Nkemdiche is thought by many to already be privately committed to Ole Miss.

Nkemdiche originally committed to Clemson, but he decommitted on Nov. 8 of last year. Since then, much of the talk surrounding his recruitment has focused on Ole Miss, since his brother Denzel is a linebacker for the Rebels. At one point Denzel told reporters that Robert would make his college choice in December, but that did not happen.

Florida is expecting to welcome a nice group of official visitors this weekend as it tries to wrap up its 2013 recruiting class.

The biggest name visiting is Robert Nkemdiche, a consensus five-star defensive end and the No. 1 player in the class from Loganville, Ga., Grayson High School. Nkemdiche also has an upcoming visit to Ole Miss on Jan. 25.

Will Muschamp’s third class at Florida is arguably his best yet, as the Gators bring in a group considered the second-best in the country by some analysts.

The Gators were one win away from the conference championship this past season, losing only to Georgia, and entered their bowl as the No. 3 team in the country. From there, it seems like the Gators can only trend upward: Muschamp’s first class at Florida in the wake of Urban Meyer’s then-retirement wasn’t a particularly strong one, but he stepped it up with a class considered No. 3 in the country by Rivals and No. 4 by ESPN. This year, both have the Gators at No. 2. Scout is a bit more pessimistic, but still acknowledges the strong nature of the class with a No. 7 ranking.

Montravius Adams, the nation’s top defensive tackle recruit, has set his final four visits, and the schools receiving visits are about who you’d expect if you have been following his recruitment.

Clemson has long been considered a favorite to land Adams. The Tigers have a rich history of producing top defensive linemen, and can offer immediate playing time.

Robinson stars for Fort Valley (Ga.) Peach County High School. He is a consensus four-star recruit, and one of the top receivers in the country. At 6’2 and 200 pounds, Robinson is far too much for most high school defensive backs to handle, and he has true college-ready size as a high school senior. With that, Robinson combines excellent body control.

The addition of new receivers coach Joker Phillips, formerly the head coach of Kentucky, appeared to seal the deal for the Gators, but Clemson did not give up, and the long-standing relationships Robinson has with Clemson’s staff may have played a role in the flip.

Demarcus Robinson, one of the best receiver recruits in the class of 2013, has decommitted from Clemson and committed to Florida.

Robinson stars for Fort Valley (Ga.) Peach County High School. He is a consensus four-star recruit, and one of the top receivers in the country. At 6’2 and 200 pounds, Robinson is far too much for most high school defensive backs to handle, and he has true college-ready size as a high school senior. With that, Robinson combines excellent body control.

The timing of the decommitment is interesting, as Powell, a star linebacker out of Daytona (Fla.) Mainland High School, posted the following statement on his Facebook page Sunday evening after visiting Gainesville.

To prevent all these people from blowing me up! My comments about the UF this weekend is... “I had a great time, everything was set up very nicely and I thank God for giving me the chance to experience that”His decommitment follows the commitment of South Carolina’s Matt Rolin to the Gators.

Harris is no stranger to the Florida Gators, as his father played for Florida in the early-1990s. Harris is one of the top safety recruits in the country and is considered by most to be a heavy lean to Florida, though Florida State and a few other schools are technically in the mix. Harris looks like a linebacker, and may not be the most fluid safety in the country, but the Orlando (Fla.) Dr. Phillips star hits well and shows good instincts in pass coverage. After initially thinking he would need to move to linebacker, I now am convinced Harris can stay at safety – provided he is in the right system.

Another star defender, Trey Johnson, will also take in the game. The Auburn linebacker commitment out of Lawrenceville (Ga.) Central Gwinnett told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he would stay committed to Auburn “as long as there’s not a catastrophe.” Considering the fact that Auburn is an underdog of a touchdown at Vanderbilt this weekend, Johnson’s recruitment might become open very soon.

The star visitor is offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil of Lake City (Fla.) Columbia High School. Tunsil has excellent size and athleticism. More details on Tunsil’s visit can be found here. Needless to say, but a five-star offensive tackle would be a great get for any SEC team. Tunsil is currently believed to favor Georgia and Alabama, with Florida still somewhat in the picture.

Also making the trip to Gainesville is superstar defensive tackle recruit Montravius Adams. Out of Dooly County (Ga.) High School, Adams, holds offers from most every major program in the country. Adams has not mentioned Florida much during his recruitment, and is thought to favor Auburn and Clemson. But with a player who is firm in wanting to wait until after the season to make his choice, Florida has plenty of time to get in this race.

Florida’s football season is off to a great 3-0 start after wins in tough road games over SEC foes Texas A&M and Tennessee. This week, the Gators return home to host Kentucky in what projects as a blowout. While it’s important for the Gators to win, the work done off the field will be just as important, as Florida is hosting some of the top recruits in the country. And one pair in particular will be very important.

The headliner of the group is defensive back Jalen Ramsey, an elite player out of Tennessee currently committed to USC. That Florida has earned a visit here, however, shows that Ramsey definitely has interest in the Gators. Helping to convince Ramsey to visit Florida is his teammate Max Staver, Florida’s QB commitment.

That’s the issue SB Nation’s Alligator Army examined late Wednesday, in the wake of receiver recruit Rodney Adams decommitting (not unexpectedly) and the scoop from ESPN that Bailey wants to make a decision by September 1.

Bailey stars for Seffner (Fla.) Armwood High School. He offers excellent quickness with solid speed. Ideally, he profiles in the slot. And while Bailey is far from a polished receiver having played quarterback for Armwood’s state title team (now forfeited for using ineligible players), he is not as raw as one might think. He could fit nicely in the slot for the Gators.

Adams stars for St. Pete (Fla.) Lakewood High School, and had committed to Florida in the spring. He is rated a three or four-star recruit, depending on service.

It’s been a very tough week for Adams, who posted on his Facebook that he was not able to play football this year because doctors think he might have a hole in his heart. Later, Adams did seem a bit more optimistic, stating that his doctors said he cannot play football “right now.”

Andy Hutchins of Alligator Army has a great look at Florida’s dealings with former cornerback commitment Tre Bell, who switched his commitment to Vanderbilt after the Gators cut ties.

My understanding of the situation, which of course Florida cannot officially comment on, is that the Gators accepted Bell’s commitment contingent on him working out at one of their camps. Bell recently visited for Florida’s Friday Night Lights Camp, but did not work out, reportedly because his coach did not want him to work out this close to his high school season, for fear of injury.

His commitment was not unexpected. After an excellent spring game performance, other programs, including Florida State, began heavily pursuing the big line prospect.

Then, Florida wide receivers coach Aubrey Hill, Johnson’s area recruiter who was tied in by Yahoo!‘s reporting on the Miami/Nevin Shapiro NCAA scandal saga, resigned his position. Johnson wavered on his commitment back on August 3, and the relationship with Florida apparently did not improve.

Hill was thought of as a poor position coach but a good recruiter. As of this morning, we now have the reactions of two of Florida’s four-star receivers in Ahmad Fulwood and Rodney Adams.

Adams, however, has elected to open up his recruitment and look around, though he was quick to note that he remains a Gator commitment.

Sherit spoke with Derek Tyson of ESPN about his commitment:

Sherit is a longtime friend of fellow Gator commitment Vernon Hargreaves. He will likely play the buck position, both from a two- and three-point stance.

Our friend Scott Kennedy of Scout filmed some great videos of prospect at Nike’s The Opening.

Here is an HD look some of the Florida commitments. The Gators had one of the biggest presences at the event.