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5-Star WR Eric McFarland Sets Commitment Date, Gators Among Finalists

Five-star receiver Eric McFarland has Florida among his final three schools.
Dylan Olive|
Five-star receiver Eric McFarland has Florida among his final three schools.
Five-star receiver Eric McFarland has Florida among his final three schools. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Florida Gators

After hosting five-star wide receiver target Eric McFarland for an official visit over the weekend, the Florida Gators have made the elite prospect's final three schools he announced Sunday, with a decision date set for June 28.

McFarland, the composite 25th best player in the 2027 class and a top-five receiver, saw a strong push from Florida over the weekend, with the Gators seemingly earning serious consideration despite not originally being seen as a true contender.

"It was great," McFarland said of the visit, via Inside the Gators. "What I really liked about it, it's a new coaching staff, so I'm still building my relationship with them. Getting to connect with the coaches more."

Although Jon Sumrall and the Gators seemed to be playing from behind, Florida is now firmly in the mix amongst other finalists of Texas A&M and Georgia after the strong visit, expected to be his last OV before his decision. The program will have just 21 days to continue to make ground and possibly add the exciting prospect to an already top-five ranked class.

The Gators receiving class this cycle currently consists of three four-star prospects: Elias Pearl, Tramond Collins and Anthony Jennings. While Florida is believed to be only looking to add four wideouts this cycle, there has been consistent buzz that the staff would take five if they were able to land one of their big fish targets, which has seemingly narrowed to McFarland along with top-10 prospect Easton Royal.

As it stands, Florida has impressively managed to establish themselves amongst both elite prospects’ final three options, with big pushes from the Gators helping overcome strong initial leads in their recruitments by big time programs.

For the IMG Academy product McFarland specifically, Texas A&M has been considered the leader for the Florida playmaker for some time, while Georgia has continued to push hard along with multiple other programs.

At 5-foot-8 and 176 pounds, the explosive McFarland has remained one of the more touted and coveted wideouts this cycle despite reclassifying, originally being a part of the 2028 class. Albeit a younger prospect, the All-American speedster has continued to prove himself amongst the best prospects in the country, recently earning the 2026 Polyensian Bowl MVP after recording over 100 total yards and a touchdown against some of the best talent in the nation.

The Gators have now established themselves as a true contender for the elite in-state talent, with the staff now having the next couple of weeks to capitalize on the momentum they have built and possibly add another difference maker to an already exciting haul on the trail.

Florida Gators 2027 Recruiting Class

Florida Gators on SI is tracking all of the Gators' moves in the 2027 recruiting class in our official tracker. Florida's 2027 recruiting class is ranked as high as third nationally, according to the 247 Sports Composite, with a strong chance to push for a top-two class over the summer.

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Dylan Olive
DYLAN OLIVE

Dylan Olive. Bio: Dylan Olive is a contributing writer at Florida Gators on SI from Key West, FL. He is a recent graduate from the University of Florida. When not writing, he is likely spending time with his wife and dog or watching the New York Yankees or Giants. Twitter: @DylanOlive_UF

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