Florida's Top 2021 Recruiting Targets By Position
With a massive Junior Day coming up on March 7th, we've decided to compile a list of Florida's top 2021 recruiting targets with their high school, state, and some background of where UF stands in their recruitment.
Obviously, Florida will not land each of these prospects and will pursue some harder than others. But, this list should help get fans familiar with names they should be hearing over the next year as Florida looks to put together a top 2021 recruiting class.
Quarterback
With the commitment of Carlos Del Rio (Grayson - Loganville, GA), I don't see Florida pursuing another quarterback for this cycle, but there was interest in Texas QB Jalen Milroe before he committed to Texas.
Running back
Cody Brown (Parkview, GA)
The four-star from Georgia is a back that Florida has had its sights set on for a while now as he is one of the top 2021 running backs in the nation. Brown has taken a multitude of visits to many high profile schools including Florida, Auburn, Georgia, Ohio State, and Alabama. Brown made a trip to Gainesville for Florida's 24-13 win against Auburn last season. A decision may be a while out, but Auburn seems to be the team to beat early on.
Lovasea Carroll (IMG Academy, FL)
Although Florida hasn't pulled many players from IMG, Florida is a contender for the four-star all-purpose back. Caroll has visited Florida on multiple occasions and is scheduled to take his first official visit to Auburn in April. Caroll released a top five of Georgia, Florida, Auburn, Ohio State, and South Carolina back in January.
Wide receiver
Mario Williams (Plant City, FL)
The talented 5-9, 165-pound receiver from Plant City is one the Florida staff has been after heavily and Williams has been on campus multiple times the past few months. Even though the Gators are pushing hard, it seems that Williams could be leaving the state as his other top schools include LSU, Oklahoma, Texas, Clemson, Georgia, and Alabama.
Marcus Burke (Trinity Christian Academy, FL)
Marcus Burke, a four-star from powerhouse Trinity Christian Academy, is another WR target that is high on UF. The Duval prospect will be making the short trip to Gainesville on March 7th and is planning to spend more time with his possible future position coach in Billy Gonzales. Burke is also considering other schools such as FSU, Georgia, and Georgia Tech to take his talents to the next level.
Latrell Neville (Hightower, TX)
With Florida picking up steam in the state of Texas, many top prospects in the state have had an interest in joining the Gators, including Princely Unmanielen, Jahari Rogers, and Avery Helm, who all signed in the 2020 class.
This has carried over to the 2021 class with a top receiver, Latrelle Neville, scheduling two trips to Gainesville for UF's Junior Days. Although Neville has many teams vying for his services, Florida and Oklahoma are the early leaders.
Bralon Brown (Chaminade-Madonna College Prep, FL)
Although Brown doesn't currently hold an offer from Florida, his interest is high in the program Dan Mullen is building, and he will be in attendance for the next UF Junior Day. The track star is also drawing interesting from Penn State, Ole Miss, Ohio State, Maryland, Miami, and West Virginia. Brown teased at a commitment coming soon earlier this month.
Romello Brinson (Miami Northwestern, FL)
The 6-2, 180 lb. WR from Miami Northwestern has been hearing from many schools recently, which led him to cut it down to ten schools in early January. Among the ten was Florida, Texas A&M, Nebraska, Alabama, Tennesee, Miami, Clemson, Penn State, LSU, and Georgia. Brinson should be in Gainesville on the 7th.
Destyn Pazon (Edna Karr, LA)
With another cycle going by, Lousiana continues to pump out high profile WR targets. Pazon is the next elite receiver to come out of the Boot, and his interest in UF is high after being offered on January 23rd. Only eight days after being offered, Pazon was in Gainesville for an unofficial visit to Florida's first Junior Day. The top receiver in Lousiana is also considering FSU, Alabama, and obviously LSU is in the hunt for Pazon.
Tight end
Gage Wilcox (Jefferson, FL)
The four-star TE from Jefferson High School in Tampa Bay may be the first prospect on this list to commit to Florida, as Wilcox has set his commitment date to this Friday, February 28th. Wilcox's top three contains Georgia, Alabama, and Florida, but many believe the talented tight end will choose the Gators. With the loss of area recruiter Larry Scott to Howard, Tim Brewster stepped right in on Wilcox's recruitment and won him over quickly.
Should Wilcox commit to Florida, I expect the Gators to only take one more tight end for this cycle considering the current depth of the tight end room. If the Gators do look for other 2021 prospects at the position, expect the name the Nick Elksnis to pop up.
Offensive line
Micah Morris (Camden County, GA)
Morris is one of Florida's top OL prospects for the class of 2021 and he has made it on campus quite a few times over the past few months. The 6-4, 316-pound tackle has also been hearing from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, FSU, and South Carolina.
Amarius Mims (Bleckley County, GA)
Although Mims is a serious UGA lean, he will be visiting UF on March 7th. The 6-8, 315-pound offensive tackle is ranked as the top OT in the 2021 class. Mims has also taken recent visits to Alabama, Auburn, and Tennessee.
Defensive tackle
Leonard Taylor (Miami Palmetto, FL)
With the uptick in talent at Miami Palmetto this past season, Florida has made its efforts to establish a pipeline to the in-state school, already adding running back Brashard Smith to their commit list for the 2021 class. The Gators are also pushing five-star Leonard Taylor, who is the consensus No. 5 defensive player in Florida for the 2021 cycle. Other Schools after the 6-5, 275 lb. DT are LSU, Auburn, Georgia, and Tennessee, among others.
Desmond Watson (Armwood, FL)
The 6-4, 350 lb. defensive tackle is one of Florida's top targets in the trenches among an already stacked 2021 DL class. Although he is bigger than many other defensive linemen, he is very agile for his size.
Florida will need to replace Kyree Campbell and Tedarrell Slaton after the 2020 season, and Watson could plug right into the middle of Florida's defense at nose tackle. Florida tends to be the most consistent program in Watson's recruitment, and I have my eye on him after one more trip to Gainesville in March. His top six included the likes of Florida, LSU, Georgia, Alabama, Texas A&M, and Ohio State.
Savion Collins (Miami Palmetto, FL)
Yet another Palmetto attendee appears on this list, this time big DT Savion Collins. The four-star was a consistent visitor to Gainesville last year, making multiple trips to UF despite being committed to Miami. Collins will again be in attendance for UF's Junior Day on March 7th. Due to the familiarity with UF, this may be one to keep an eye on moving forward as well.
Maason Smith (Terrebonne, LA)
Ranked as the No. 1 defensive tackle target in the nation, Maason Smith has been a hot commodity to many top teams, including in-state LSU, UF, Alabama, Georgia, and Texas A&M. The top target has a great relationship with defensive line coach David Turner, who is Smith's main recruiter. Smith is also close with UF signee Jalen Lee, who also played his high school football in Louisiana.
Victory Vaka (Westlake, CA)
Although Vaka lives across the country in California, he is not concerned with the possible move to Florida. Instead, he is looking for a program that best suits his needs on and off the field, as Vaka told AllGators last week. Vaka will visit Florida on April 18th, for the Gators' spring game. Other schools in consideration include LSU, Mississippi State, Michigan, and Tennessee.
Weakside defensive end
Bryce Langston (Vanguard, FL)
The Former Florida commit has been in frequent contact with Christian Robinson and many other UF coaches since his de-commitment last May. Langston dropped a top five with UF included last October, with his other top schools consisting of Penn State, Georgia, LSU, and Oregon. Despite de-committing, Langston has been a common visitor to Florida, but will not visit the Gators on March 7th.
Strongside defensive end
Tunmise Adeleye (IMG Academy, FL)
The five star from Katy, Texas has recently made the move to the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, and has taken advantage of the close proximity to Gainesville by visiting multiple times. Adeleye will return to Florida on March 7th and is also being recruited heavily by Ohio State, Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, and many others.
For what it's worth, the five-star was recently seen throwing up a Gator chomp, decked out in UF wristbands at the Rivals camp in Orlando a few weekends ago. The mutual interest is sky-high and Florida has to feel good about their chances at landing this special talent from a top school where they haven't landed much of anything recently.
Keeshawn Silver (Rocky Mount, NC)
David Turner has had a major impact on Silver as he has made multiple trips to UF since Turner has been assigned to recruit him. North Carolina has the advantage due to proximity to home, but the Gators have been pushing heavy for the big-bodied S-DE. Silver recently dropped a top 15 with many top schools in the SEC, and is scheduled to be in Gainesville on March 7th.
Shambre Jackson (Boone, FL)
The Orlando prospect has been receiving interest from many SEC schools recently including Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Auburn. Outside of the SEC schools showing Jackson some attention, FSU and Ohio State have also made their mark on the gifted strongside defensive end. Jackson visited Florida's last Junior Day and will be at Alabama on March 7th.
Keanu Koht (Vero Beach, FL)
The Vero Beach standout is another that the Gators' have kept tabs on for a while now, as Koht has found his way to Gainesville on multiple occasions. Koht is also considering Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, with recent offers coming from LSU and Oklahoma. The Gators will welcome Koht to campus on March 7th.
Outside linebacker
Terrence Lewis (Chaminade-Madonna College Prep, FL)
Although he de-committed from Florida last year, Lewis has also been back to The Swamp on multiple occasions and will be back for yet another Junior Day in March. The five-star recently transferred to Chaminade-Madonna Prep after playing his high school ball for Miami Northwestern, where many other Florida targets still play. Lewis' top schools include Florida, Texas A&M, Nebraska, Georgia, Ole Miss, and Tennessee.
Dallas Turner (St. Thomas Aquinas, FL)
As Florida continues to rebuild relationships with the top high schools in Florida, getting back into STA will pay dividends for the Gators. Florida already has a commitment from 21 DE Tyreak Sapp, but they are not done recruiting the position as they will also try to add Turner. The four-star OLB/DE is also being courted by Alabama and Georgia.
Cornerback
Jason Marshall (Miami Palmetto, FL)
Marshall is another top in-state DB that is drawing interest from the Gators and many other top schools throughout the southeast. The five-star prospect also has interest in LSU, FSU, UGA, and Clemson. The Palmetto prospect should join his teammates to take the trip to UF Junior Day on March 7th.
Ga'Quincy McKinstry (Pinson Valley, AL)
The star two-sport athlete is one that has offers from both Florida football and basketball to play at the collegiate level. Despite being a five star in football, he is putting his recruitment on hold to fully focus on his basketball season, as he told SI's John Garcia Jr. in a recent interview. His top eight includes LSU, Clemson, Alabama, Florida, Ohio State, Miami, Georgia, and Auburn. McKinstry would like to play both basketball and football at the next level.
Markevious Brown (IMG Academy, FL)
The Gators are squarely in the mix for the IMG four-star as Brown was on campus for Florida's February Junior Day. Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham is the main recruiter on Brown as Grantham is responsible for all defensive prospects at IMG. Brown is also looking into other schools such as Virginia Tech, Auburn, Tennesee, Penn State, Alabama, Miami, and Georgia.
Safety
Ahmari Harvey (Florida State University School, FL)
Harvey, one of the top safeties in the 2021 class, resides in FSU's backyard and attends Florida State University school. Although he lives in the heart of Tallahassee, Harvey already has begun building strong relationships with many of UF staff members. Although Harvey does not have a commitment date, this may work in Florida's favor as the highly touted safety target is going to be returning to Gainesville once again for Junior Day on March 7th.
Corey Collier Jr. (Miami Palmetto, FL)
Free Safety Corey Collier is one of the best DBs in the entire 2021 class and once again UF has established itself as a top school. The Palmetto defensive back will be in town with many of his teammates on March 7th. Collier is also considering LSU, Clemson, Alabama, Ohio State, and Georgia, just to name a few schools.
Dakota Mitchell (Winter Park, FL)
The three-star safety from Winter Park is another target that Florida will be looking into adding to their 2021 class. Mitchell is a former teammate of UF enrollee Ethan Pouncey, who has been in Mitchell's ear about joining the Gators. Mitchell's top six schools included Alabama, Clemson, Miami, UF, LSU, and Georgia.
Kamren Kinchens (Miami Northwestern, FL)
The 5-10, 185-pound safety from Miami has been feeling the love from many schools, including the hometown Miami Hurricanes and Florida Gators. Ohio State, Oregon, LSU, and Texas A&M are also after the talented south Florida prospect. The Northwestern safety will be in the Swamp on the 7th.
Athlete
Xavian Sorey (Graceville, FL)
The four-star from Graceville is an active defensive presence who plays anywhere from outside linebacker to running back. Sorey is a two-sport athlete who is a star on the basketball court as well as he can jump out of the gym with his athleticism. Auburn seems to have the early edge so far but Florida, FSU, and Alabama are also in the mix.
Charles Montgomery Jr. (Armwood, FL)
The Armwood standout is a prospect that has been very high on Florida since receiving an offer on January 9th and has already made his way to Gainesville for Florida's first junior day earlier this year. Montgomery should return to see Florida once again before his commitment date of May 24th, along with taking visits to other schools such as Ohio State, Nebraska, Georgia, and Maryland. The Valrico talent is one to keep an eye on as the timeline shrinks to his announcement.
Christian Leary (Edgewater, FL)
The gifted Edgewater athlete has recently gotten a large bump in the rankings and he is currently ranked as a four-star. Leary was a sight to see through the Florida State Playoff, including an outstanding performance against the State Champion St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders. Leary is considering many schools including Florida, FSU, USC, Texas, Ole Miss, Auburn, South Carolina, Tennessee, Arizona State, Penn State, West Virginia, and Nebraska.
