2022 OT Recaps Florida Gators Offer, Wants to Officially Visit
Image credit: University of Florida Athletic Association
After just receiving an offer to play football for the Florida Gators, 2022 Whitehaven (Memphis, Tenn.) offensive tackle Aliou Bah already has his eyes set on Gainesville for one of his five official visits.
Bah, 6-6, 316 lbs., has known Gators defensive line coach David Turner through his trainer for some time, allowing Turner to introduce Bah to the program and meet fellow coaches. Bah has since built a relationship with Gators offensive line coach John Hevesy, who sent an offer his way on September 1st, the first day 2022 prospects could hear from college coaches.
"[Hevesy] sent me a fire edit, probably one of the best that I got today," Bah told Sports Illustrated-AllGators on September 1st. "It was so clean, you can use it for the story. It's that fire.
"He sent me a little paragraph and it was great, motivational, just telling me a lot about the program and stuff, how they'd love to have me. Then later on today I got a chance to talk with him again, man, he was just fired up about me, and he wanted to offer me a full scholarship."
Bah and Hevesy had been building their relationship for a few weeks up until that point, and have continued to do so since he received his offer, speaking every day and "getting to know each other more."
Discussions have yet to circle around Bah's fit on Florida's offensive line - they've been more personal - but he projects as a true offensive tackle in Florida's scheme with great length and movement skills to pair with developing power. Bah plays left tackle for Whitehaven.
"It's the SEC," said Bah. "It's big-time football, you need big-time players, and of course, big, big players. "It'll most definitely come in the future, you know, getting closer and closer to the season, you want to see where you fit in with the team. I'm a versatile player, so I can see myself playing inside or outside."
Bah is a fan of Florida's offense for its pro-style concepts and how it prepares players for the NFL, he added.
"You might run a play at Florida that you might go run at the L.A. Rams, you know what I mean?" Bah asked. "You know, they're just versatile, running [an] NFL-type offense at the collegiate level, that's big time for sure."
Bah is familiar with the UF program beyond the success it has found under head coach Dan Mullen, having watched and appreciated the Urban Meyer era of Florida football when he was younger.
With Mullen back in-house after serving as Florida's offensive coordinator in the mid-to-late 2000s, Bah is impressed with what's been accomplished so far - back-to-back New Year's Six Bowl victories - and has high expectations for the Gators moving forward.
"The program is phenomenal, one of the best programs in the SEC," said Bah. "I expect to see great things from them this year. They're just always on top every year. And one thing that I was very surprised by the program was great academics. They have one of the top academics in the nation, and that's just something huge to me especially in making this decision."
Keen on what Florida has to offer, albeit it is very early in the 2022 recruiting process, Bah made it clear that when it comes time to start taking official visits - of course, at least after the NCAA lifts the recruiting moratorium in place amid the coronavirus pandemic, Gainesville will be one of his destinations.
"I want to go to Florida for sure," said Bah. "Southern Cal, man you've got to take an official to Southern Cal. And if I ever get the opportunity, I want to go to Oregon too. But yeah, Florida, Southern Cal, Texas A&M, Florida State, and, that's four right there, I have one more. Probably Ohio State. It's tough that they only give us five."