DL Zavion Hardy Already Feels a "Bond" With Florida Gators Coaches
Photo: Zavion Hardy; Credit: Zach Goodall
There's no question that Tattnall Square Academy (Macon, Ga) defensive lineman Zavion Hardy has what it takes to compete at the next level. At 6-foot-4, 264 pounds, he is an aggressive player with quickness on the edge of a defense, but also has the ability to move inside on the front if need be.
That was seen during his workouts and practices during the Under Armour Next Atlanta camp last weekend, and his continued efforts will undoubtedly make him a player worth watching as college football programs around the country look to lock in their 2023 recruiting class.
Hardy already has multiple visits lined up, including to Florida this weekend on March 5, while he is slated to visit at least Ole Miss on March 26 and take a visit to South Carolina for the program's spring game. Currently, he told AllGators last Sunday, that Florida, Miami and Georgia are candidates for official visits, Miami as the certainty.
Though it's important to know how a program will use you on the gridiron, for Hardy, he said the most important facet of the program for him will be if it feels like a home, and if the team can develop him as not just a football player, but as a man too.
"A school that feels like home and where I can play my freshman year, and they can develop me as a player and a man, you know?" Hardy said when asked what he's looking for in his recruitment. "A place that feels like family."
Hardy has already begun that type of connection with the Gators and their coaching staff, indicating that it's been "unexplainable" the level of attention he's grabbed for them.
"We just been keeping in contact since the jump," he said of his recruitment to Florida. Hardy was originally offered by the program on Feb. 9, earlier this year. "They grabbed my attention off [the] rip. It's unexplainable. If I ever drop my last final [schools list], they'll for sure be in it."
His primary recruiters at Florida thus far have been co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach Sean Spencer and defensive analyst (ILB/OLB) Jamar Chaney, who has been one of the top recruiters on head coach Billy Napier's staff thus far in his tenure.
For Hardy, he's already developed a bond with the coaches, something that ought to help Florida in its recruitment of him down the line.
"Those are two [Spencer and Chaney] of the coolest coaches I've got recruiting me. We've just got that bond."
As for how Florida would like to use the young defensive lineman, Hardy indicated that the team sees him as a little bit of everything. Having the ability to rush off the edge or play on the interior as a defensive tackle. All of that, he says, "depends on my weight," for what they want to play him at.
As for what he likes? Being on the edge, and outside able to get after the passer from the boundary.
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