Florida Gators Enrollee Profile: Safety Kamari Wilson
Photo: Kamari Wilson; Credit: Alex Shepherd
Kamari Wilson, Safety
School: IMG Academy (Fla.)
Height/Weight: 6-foot, 209 pounds
SI All-American Ranking: No. 1 safety, No. 29 overall
Recruitment History
Though Wilson enrolled early at Florida, we opted to profile him, along with all of the other early enrollees at the university.
The Florida Gators earned a commitment from Wilson following the staff change and when he took an official visit to Florida on Dec. 10. He became the marquee signing for the 2022 recruiting class, enrolling early as one of the top safeties entering the building at the collegiate level.
Wilson was long recruited by the previous staff under then-head coach Dan Mullen. He took five unofficial visits to the university between 2019-2021 and was able to finally land the decision to join Florida over multiple Power 5 teams, including Florida State, Georgia, LSU And Texas A&M.
In fact, Wilson nearly joined the Bulldogs, a hated rival of the Gators, before a late-effort push by head coach Billy Napier, defensive backs coach Corey Raymond and analyst Jamar Chaney. But, they had a plan for him, Wilson said at the time.
"So, I felt comfortable, and I felt like I was going to be well taken care of and football-wise, I love the plan that they have for me," Wilson said not long after singing with the program. "So, when I got that table, I made a decision when I got the table. It felt like I was supposed to be there."
It was a visit from Napier to himself and his mom, showing Wilson and his family just how much he wanted the safety to join the program.
“I mean, Coach Napier, he really showed me how bad he wanted me. He saw me and told me the first day like, 'We have a plan for you. I just want to get a chance to show you.'
"And he’s a man of his word. He went to go see my mom, it was crazy. Because he wasn't even supposed to do that, he went out of the route to go do that so that was a big deal. So, it was just crazy.”
Where Wilson Fits
The program improved the minute Wilson stepped foot on campus. The top-tier safety from one of the best football prep schools in Florida was able to secure a spot as one of the top safeties in the nation. He is likely to vie for playing time early on, though isn't likely to start right away.
Currently, Florida has a couple of veteran safeties ahead of the freshman, including redshirt senior Trey Dean III and junior safety Rashad Torrence II. Both players are very likely to start this year after playing major roles at Florida just last season.
In fact, Dean made FanNation's 2022 Preseason All-SEC Team and placed on the second team for his group.
But, if there's a safety that has the prowess to make an impact right away, it likely would be Wilson, who is viewed highly by plenty of analysts, and of course the coaches already down in Gainesville.
You can find Sports Illustrated All-American's scouting report for Wilson below.
An explosive, physical enforcer who flashes against the run and the pass, Wilson has throwback strong safety traits with the athleticism to challenge for a versatile role. He is among the most comfortable in the class running the alley and finishing with force. The coverage instincts are strong in both reaction time, redirection and breaking downhill on the ball or ball carrier. Wilson may have been the best player on a star-studded IMG Academy defense in 2020, flashing the range and sideline to sideline ability to match his confidence.
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