Gators Target LB Grayson Howard Commits to South Carolina
It won't be the Florida Gators for Andrew Jackson (Fla.) linebacker Grayson Howard, who announced today that he will be committing to the South Carolina Gamecocks, a Southeastern Conference rival for Florida.
Howard announced his intentions to commit to the Gamecocks via social media earlier today.
Howard, 6-foot-3, 208 pounds, is graded as the No. 19 LB in the country, the No. 49 player in the state of Florida and the No. 247 player nationally. He was set to decide between Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, Clemson and Texas A&M.
Howard was being recruited heavily by both Florida linebacker coaches, Jay Bateman and Mike Peterson. Still, the Gators were unable to keep the standout LB in-state, as he opts to commit to the Gamecocks just a couple of days after taking an official visit with the program this past weekend.
Though Howard took an official visit to Florida earlier this month, it apparently wasn't enough to lure him away from South Carolina coach Beamer, who he praised in his talk with Sports Illustrated way back in Janurary this year.
"Coach Beamer is a phenomenal coach," Howard said of what stands out about the South Carolina program.
"It is obvious to see what he has done with the program in the last year. He is a family guy, so when I go up there, it is all built around family. From Coach Beamer to the GA's to the strength coach, Coach Day, I am family with everybody, and it is just a big family up there."
The Gators have now missed out on a couple of linebackers during the 2023 recruiting cycle, including Howard and IMG Academy LB Jordan Hall (Michigan State). Still, the program has its eyes set on a couple of other players such as Jones (Fla) LB Malik Bryant, Whitewater (Ga.) LB Raul Aguirre and Michigan Commit LB Raylen Wilson.
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