OL Payton Kirkland Enjoys 'Surreal' Official Visit With Florida Gators
Photo: Payton Kirkland; Credit: Zach Goodall
It's a bit different for players when they take their official visits to programs, including to the Florida Gators as Dr. Phillips HS (Orlando, Fla.) offensive lineman Payton Kirkland realized following his three-day affair with the program, able to take in all that Florida has to offer before making his final decision on where to go on July 23.
Kirkland and fellow 2023 recruiting class, classmate LB Malik Bryant will be announcing their commitment on the same day. The event will give everyone in attendance an idea of what went into their decisions while celebrating their commitments at the same time.
Prior to that, though, are official visits with various programs. He's already made an official visit with Oklahoma, with Michigan State and Miami still on the horizon. A new school that hasn't been mentioned much, though, Texas A&M is potentially entering the mix as Kirkland continues his recruitment forward.
"The offensive line coach has a great relationship with my offensive line coach at my school because they were here at Florida together," Kirkland said on Sunday, shortly following his visit to Florida when asked about the Aggies potentially entering the fray.
Kirkland is referring to, of course, Texas A&M offensive line coach Steve Addazio, who coached at Florida from 2005-10 in various roles, including OL coach and TE coach. His current OL coach at Dr. Phillips, Adam Sitter, was a quality control coach at Florida alongside Addazio at that time.
Still, this visit was all about Florida, ultimately, and it gave Kirkland an opportunity to show his Mom, Veronica, the school in-depth. The experience was different, able to see the coaches in their natural habitat as part of the "surreal" experience, Kirkland shared.
"It's just seeing coaches in their natural habitats rather than them being at school in your face and watching practice and being able to sit down and have a tough conversation," Kirkland said. "This process is a tough process and tough conversations need to be had. And that's something that a lot of kids slip up on is having those tough conversations."
At 6-foot-6, 345 pounds, Kirkland projects as a tackle at the next level, specifically a left tackle. Florida, however, sees him as more than just that, knowing that he has the ability to play all five positions along the offensive line. One thing's for certain, Kirkland said, the Gators have a plan for him.
"They see me coming in and being an impact, truly as a left tackle," he said. "They see me, regardless of grade, they feel like I'm a very talented player, and I've made myself valuable of being able to play all five positions on the offensive line. So, if there's a senior ahead of me at left tackle, they'll put me at guard, next year they'll bump me up to tackle."
Kirkland isn't necessarily undervalued, however, coming in as the No. 23 offensive tackle in the nation, according to On3 consensus and the No. 279 overall player in the nation. That's not too bad, but the logic is sound, making himself as valuable as possible will only add to what teams can see him being and doing within their program.
Florida having a plan for Kirkland is "amazing," he added. It's something that has stuck out to him as he continues forward with the process.
"A lot of guys, they have uncommittable offers, this, that and the third. You know, regardless of what the ranking says, teaching and film doesn't lie. So, it's a lot of guys who are highly ranked that don't have the teaching and they don't have the resources that I do," Kirkland explained.
"So, you know, I feel I have a step ahead of everybody in my class when it comes down to a mental aspect, the physical aspect and fundamental aspects."
That is part of the reason why Kirkland has ye to be denied a spot. He has the traits that translate to the next part level, something that not every recruit might have, regardless of their current "ranking."
Specifically, when it comes to Florida, the staff being genuine has been one of the things that have stood out. No matter when he comes to the program, having already visited several times on unofficial visits over the past few months, they are consistent, nothing that head coach Billy Napier has done everything that he said he's going to do since he arrived on campus.
"It's the fact that everything stays the same. The message stays the same, the people stay the same, and the attitudes stay the same. The coaches, they're pretty open with the players, they're pretty open with the recruits as well, you know, nothing changes here."
There's still plenty to do between now and July 23. Kirkland will return home after all of his visits this month and sit down with his Mom to decide what might be best for him moving forward. Florida is squarely in the mix, but make no mistake, no team that's currently on his radar has been eliminated, nor will be at this moment.
"I already know what it is in Florida, you know, it's just a matter of figuring out where I want to go."
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