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Mainland (Daytona Beach, Fla.) High defensive lineman LJ McCray traveled to Gainesville as part of the first batch of official visitors in the 2024 class on Friday.

Spending 48 hours on campus, the most time he's spent at UF as a Gators target, McCray got a personal look at the program and the surrounding college town. The experience itself set a bar for his subsequent official visits.

However, the bond he built with other prospective talent and players currently donning orange and blue threads highlighted his stay.

"It was definitely a very cool experience. I liked it a lot. We learned a lot," McCray told media about the multi-day stay. "The biggest part I probably took away was spending time with the players. I was basically a college student almost for two days. It was really cool experience."

Hosted by Gators defensive lineman Justus Boone, who he said took him under his wing and will appear in the same spot Florida looks to fill with McCray, he picked the veteran's brain about the program after over one year under Billy Napier at Florida.

He voiced appreciation for Boone's genuineness in the conversations as his responses aligned almost perfectly with the staff's depiction, specifically about the culture, thus far.

"Just getting a better understanding of truly how they're working because, you know, everybody can say this and that, but they definitely had everything planned out."

Simply put, the Gators walked it how they talked it.

On the football front, the increased knowledge of his fit in the defense arose as an extensive talking point for McCray post-visit.

Getting an opportunity to indulge in discussions about the newly reconstructed defensive end roles, as the edge rushers and strongside defensive ends combined into one unit, McCray liked what he heard and saw from the trio of coaches — Mike Peterson, Sean Spencer and Austin Armstrong — who stayed close to his side throughout the weekend.

Notably, the staff helped him decipher the difference between the JACK and 'F' positions that possess similarities despite falling within the larger umbrella of Peterson's edges and Spencer's defensive line, respectively.

The JACK, headlined by Princely Umanmielen currently, is a standup edge rusher often categorized as an outside linebacker in base 3-4 defenses. The F, a new concept in the defense following the minuscule schematical changes after Patrick Toney's departure this offseason, matches traditional defensive line responsibilities as a five-technique with his hand in the dirt. But it comes with a twist.

"The 'F' is like a more versatile end," McCray shared. "They've told me before, but today, I really got to see it from both coaches. I'll definitely be coached by both Coach Spence and Coach Pete as a hybrid guy.

He'd align primarily at the 'F' spot under Spencer, giving the Gators a disruptive five-tech on early downs against the rush and pass. However, on later downs or depending on personnel packages in the multiple fronts Armstrong deploys, McCray can rush the passer out of a two-point stance.

"I definitely like the versatility of it," he said. "I feel like we talked a lot about the playbook and different schemes and things that I can move around and things like that. ... I can play both inside and outside."

The pitched movement along the trenches is a welcomed sight for the Mainland prospect and could aid the Gators in pursuing one of the top DL talents this cycle.

McCray will take three more official visits in the coming weeks, with dates for Miami (June 9-11), Auburn (June 16-18) and Georgia (June 23-25). He'll take a fifth to FSU October 7-9. He shared that those programs are in the top tier of schools he included in his recently released top 11

Barring an unforeseen emergence from an outside contender, McCray plans to limit himself to those five trips before mulling over his awaited decision in the fall.

After setting the bar high, with the visit and role projection, the Gators are in a promising position for his pledge when the time comes.

"I definitely felt like a priority the whole weekend. It's going to be a sight to see everybody trying to beat out this weekend."

Florida hopes to get him back on campus multiple times before the day arrives. Notably, McCray teased a late July date for a return visit to Gainesville, but nothing is set in stone at this time.


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