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Gators Land 4-Star OL Fresh Off Win Over Ole Miss

Florida landed its third commit of the class in four-star tackle Samuel Bailey.
Cam Parker|
Four-star tackle Samuel Bailey has committed to Florida.
Four-star tackle Samuel Bailey has committed to Florida. | sb_temiii on Instagram

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The Florida Gators on Monday landed a surprise commitment from one of the top prospects in the 2028 recruiting class. 

Huntsville (Ala.) Mae Jemison four-star offensive lineman Samuel Bailey committed to Florida over Alabama, LSU, Ohio State and Ole Miss. He is rated as the No. 23 overall recruit and No. 4 offensive tackle in the 2028 cycle, according to Rivals.

Bailey (6-6, 305 pounds) cited his connection with the staff and the program’s direction as key reasons for choosing the Gators, according to Rivals’ Chad Simmons. 

“I really believe in what Coach Sumrall is building at Florida,” he said.

Florida is now up to three commits in its 2028 class with Bailey, Hollywood (Fla.) Chaminade-Madonna four-star wide receiver Armani Strong and Blountstown (Fla.) four-star safety Cyion Smith, who committed on Saturday before the Gators’ 52-28 win over Ole Miss. 

After the win, which over 70 recruits from the 2027, 2028 and 2029 classes attended, head coach Jon Sumrall discussed how recruiting can help quickly turn the program around.

Bailey, Florida’s first offensive line commit of the 2028 class, was in attendance for the win. 

“We had some recruits here this weekend. I mean, a recruiting list that we get a lot of those guys to say yes, we're going to wake the beast up real fast,” he said. 

“We're going to wake it up with the guys we've got. I love the guys we've got. But we still have to reinforce our roster, the depth of our roster to look like maybe the top, top, top teams in the country. We still aren't, maybe just depth, where we can roll out the next guy and it's like there's very little drop-off.”

The Gators also currently hold predictions to land various recruits in the class, such as Sarasota (Fla.) four-star quarterback Hudson West, Venice (Fla.) four-star wide receiver Tyree Mannings Jr., Tampa (Fla.) Carrollwood Day's four-star wide receiver Derrell Hines Jr. and four-star edge Antonio Thomas Jr., Lakeland (Fla.) four-star cornerback Dominick Harris-Payne, Tallahassee (Fla.) Florida State University School four-star corner Izayah Vickers and four-star wide receiver Bubba Brown and Vero Beach (Fla.) three-star defensive tackle Josiah Taylor.

Albeit early in the cycle, the Gators' 2028 recruiting class currently ranks fourth nationally and third in the SEC in the Rivals Industry Composite and fifth nationally in the 247 Sports Composite.

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Cam Parker
CAM PARKER

Cam Parker is a reporter covering the Florida Gators, Auburn Tigers and Clemson Tigers with a degree in journalism from the University of Florida. He also covers and broadcasts Alachua County high school sports with The Prep Zone and Mainstreet Daily News. When he isn't writing, he enjoys listening to '70s music such as The Band or Lynyrd Skynyrd, binge-watching shows and playing with his cat, Chester, and dog, Rufus.

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