Gators' CB Kamar Wilcoxson Enrolls, Could Play Early If Opportunity Arises
After signing his letter of intent last weekend, cornerback Kamar Wilcoxson has officially reclassified and enrolled at the University of Florida, head coach Dan Mullen confirmed on Saturday.
Wilcoxson, 17, was one of Florida's top commits in the class of 2021, a class in which the Gators have emphasized bolstering the secondary. Wilcoxson gets a jump-start on learning the system compared to his 2021 peers, as he will begin practicing this week.
With just under a month until Florida kicks its season off at Ole Miss, however, could Wilcoxson realistically come along quickly enough to earn playing time as a freshman likely the youngest player on the team?
"Well, he could," Mullen said on Saturday. "One of the nice things is, especially like a skill position on the edge, you can create some things."
Of course, Wilcoxson has a lot to make up. He wasn't a part if the offseason training program or the team's first ten fall practices, although the team is still relatively fresh to camp-style practices after going a year without them, as Mullen has acknowledged multiple times during camp. Perhaps Wilcoxson isn't as far behind the team as he would be in a normal year, but he still has some catching up to do.
"He's missed the walkthroughs and missed ten practices, is he going to know everything? I can't expect him to do that, but we've got to see," said Mullen. "We'll get him out there, we'll start him practicing, we'll see what he does well, how fast he can pick things up.
"But a guy at a skill position, you certainly can create a package and some things for him to do on the field if the opportunity presents itself."
Wilcoxson primarily played safety in high school but has spent time at outside and slot cornerback as well, projecting outside in UF's secondary. Below, you can find a snippet of Wilcoxson's Sports Illustrated All-American scouting report.
Polish: Reads quarterbacks’ eyes when playing free safety like he’s 30 years old. When the football first touches a wide receiver, that’s when Wilcoxson delivers a blow. Reads run and pass equally well.
Bottom Line: Wilcoxson could play cornerback or safety at the college level. With his speed and power, he’s adept at playing off the football and making game-changing plays. Wilcoxson’s athleticism will allow him to play multiple positions in the defensive backfield before all is said and done.