Florida Recruiting Wars, UCF Joins the Fray with UF, FSU and Miami

ORLANDO - With the 2022 recruiting class wrapped up, there are several points to ponder with how it not only turned out, but also how it projects for the next five to ten years. Keep in mind, there’s no long-tenured head coach inside the state of Florida. All of them are battling for recruiting supremacy, and the next couple of recruiting cycles will establish a hierarchy within the Sunshine State.

Here are a few examples of how the in-state programs showed they can once again be dominant by competing for local and out-of-state prospects, plus UCF adding itself to the fold of programs that were once in the national spotlight.

With a Head Coach like Mario Cristobal at Miami that’s a long way from completing his assistant coaching staff, it’s amazing that he brought in four additional signees like big-time running back TreVonte’ Citizen from Lake Charles (La.) Lake Charles College Prep. Texas A&M, LSU and Auburn were all after him longer and with bigger coaching staffs.

RB TreVonte' Citizen signs with Miami over Florida, LSU and Auburn. Impressive pickup for the Hurricanes.https://t.co/gSLosMiFpl
— All Gators (@AllGatorsOnFN) February 2, 2022

At Florida, Head Coach Billy Napier landed talented offensive lineman Jalen Farmer from Covington (Ga.) Eastside on National Signing Day despite the fact that he visited Alabama, Kentucky and Auburn down the recruiting stretch. The Gators needed added size and athleticism to compete with the likes of Georgia and Alabama between the white lines on Saturdays, and Farmer is that type of player at a listed 6’5”, 325-pounds (might be even bigger).

Florida State had already wrapped up its class, but with the excellent additions in the Transfer Portal (much like UCF) and a high school class that includes all-around athlete Sam McCall from Lakeland (Fla.) Lake Gibson, the Seminoles fared very well. McCall had over 30 offers, including just about every major program down South like Florida, Georgia and Alabama.

As for the newcomers, UCF staved off efforts from Alabama, Texas, Miami and other programs for top Lakeland (Fla.) High School defensive end Keahnist Thompson. Few outside the football offices at UCF truly expected the Knights to land Thompson when his recruitment began. Thompson's recruitment showed that UCF was moving up the ladder, and then the Knights also signed three defensive backs with national offers, plus quarterback Thomas Castellanos with offers across the South.

Can the Knights now start signing the better part of 10 players within one recruiting class that were coveted nationally like Thompson? That's the goal. There's no reason to believe it will not happen either. This UCF coaching staff has been all-in with recruiting. That's another reason that the recruiting wars will be better than ever.

Who’s ready to truly go all-in with the Florida recruiting wars? The class of 2023 is already being built by all four of these teams, and signing top Sunshine State talent is not going to be very easy. All of these teams are going to bump heads with one another, and programs like LSU, Georgia and Alabama are not going to stop invading Florida for top prep talent either.

Looking at Miami and Florida's Signing Day Results, How it Impacts UCF #Florida #Miami #UCF #ChargeOn https://t.co/CG0iTdwoW1
— Inside The Knights (@UCF_FanNation) February 3, 2022

One thing is for sure, and that’s the fact that it’s going to be a blast to see all of these programs competing for talent with coaches that truly get after it along the recruiting trail. Speaking of, look for some recruiting information to start flowing in over the course of the next few days.

Inside The Knights will be previewing some of the top Florida prospects before, during and after the DRSportz seven-on-seven tournament this weekend in Davenport, Fla. Many of the prospects that each of UCF, Miami, Florida and Florida State offer, or already offered, are playing there this weekend. Along with additional help from @ucf_weekly and @RealNews102, there will be interviews, photographs and videos of players with offers like elite linebacker Troy Bowles and wide receiver Ahmari Borden.

Event starts in less than 3 days! Looking forward to seeing some old friends/making new friends. Have some young scouts that will be on the lookout as well! @TroyBowles23 @TeamTampa813 @DijonJohnson13 @ZaquanBryan @TroyFordJr2 @tightaction @AhmariBorden @Kam_Davis24 @DRSportz_ pic.twitter.com/eCrCNUopBr
— Brian Smith (@fbscout_florida) February 3, 2022