Signing Day Has Come and Gone; A Look at Florida and USF

Signing Day was here. And then it was gone. A flurry of emails were traded between me and friends. Work meetings got in the way. New recruits signed. Past commits left. There were ups. There were downs. In the end, if you are a fan of Florida or USF, you should be relatively happy.

Both schools were able to bring in solid classes and address some needs along the way. For the Gators, it was about quality over quantity. Take a look at the rankings and Florida might not be sitting as high as you would like. But take a look at the quality and the Gators are looking awfully good. According to Rivals.com, Florida finished with an average star ranking of 3.94, which equates to the best in Urban Meyer’s tenure with the team. For USF, it was a little of both. The Bulls ended up signing 30 prospects and brought in more four-star players than they ever have before.

Florida ended the day with 16 signees, led by five-star prospects Gary Brown, Andre Debose, and Jelani Jenkins. Brown is a powerful defensive tackle who climbed the charts throughout his senior year. He could see time in the line rotation right away. Debose is one to watch as he figures to be a game changer. People are already comparing him to Percy Harvin, and while I won’t go that far, I’m fine with other people saying it. Although not much of a surprise – many people had him pegged to pick the Gators – pulling in Jenkins on signing day was huge.

The rest of the Gators’ class shaped up nicely. Florida picked up a quarterback with Tim Tebow size that Meyer absolutely loves in Jordan Reed. Joining Debose, are running back Mike Gillislee and tight end Desmond Parks. Gillislee is one of the nation’s top all-purpose backs and Parks is thought of as a sleeper at tight end. The offensive line is a unit to be very happy with when talking about the Gators. Florida picked up five commitments along the line, led by Nick Alajajian and Xavier Nixon. Keep an eye on Jonotthan Harrison, who joins his former high school teammate Jeff Demps at Florida.

Florida’s defense has the luxury of having every starter from last year’s national championship team return, as well as many of the top backups. But that didn’t stop the Gators from getting commitments from some of the nation’s top defenders. We’ve already mentioned Brown and Jenkins, but the instant TBG favorite is Jon Bostic. I’m drooling at the thought of watching him and Jenkins lead the defense in a few years. Although he was also a member of last year’s class, being able to keep Dee Finley after a year at prep school was big for Florida. I let you figure out the Reggie Nelson similarities for yourself. People are already comparing Josh Evans to Will Hill. Not as highly rated as Hill of course, but we always like guys that are compared up and not down.

If you’re a Florida fan and are looking for another reason to dislike new Tennessee head coach Lane Kiffin, look no further. Kiffin was able to sway Nu’Keese Richardson and Marsalis Teague. Both had been committed to Florida, but dropped the Gators for the Vols on signing day. I don’t like to say too much negative about a recruit and his choice, after all, these kids have to make the decision that’s best for them, but everything that went on regarding Richardson over the last few days was rather bothersome. As for Teague, many assumed he was a goner weeks ago.

I’ve never been one to sit down and figure out exactly how many players a certain school can bring in during a given year and still be under the scholarship limit, but I have to think USF has some work to do. 30! 30 kids signed with the Bulls. Anthony Hill was already enrolled, but that still leaves USF with 29. I’m guessing there might have to be some creative roster shuffling going on.

The Bulls were led by two local kids – running back Adaris Bellamy and defensive end Ryne Giddins – and athlete Bradley Battles. Bellamy has been committed for nearly a year and USF did a great job of keeping him on board. Giddins was thought to be headed to Florida, but the Bulls were able to keep him out of the Gators’ grasp. Battles could play on either side of the ball. He looks like he could be a star with the ball in his hands, but he might be able to help USF in the secondary almost right away.

Although the Bulls didn’t sign a player listed solely as a quarterback, athlete Victor Marc did play QB in high school and may get a shot to continue to in college. Local running back Lindsey Lamar will be joined by two speedsters at wide receiver – high school teammates Sterling Griffin and Derrick Hopkins. USF reloaded across the offensive line with five signees, including 6’7” monster Carlos Savala.

The defense is headed up by two junior college transfers and a prep school prospect. Fort Scott CC defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul and linebacker Jacquain Williams were two of the most sought after juco prospects in the nation. Defensive tackle Kyrhi Thornton was thought to be headed to FSU after a semester at prep school, but the Seminoles’ loss is the Bulls’ gain. Joining Pace teammates Griffin and Hopkins, a signing day commitment from Kayvon Webster was big news given that he had offers from a number of other schools.

In the end, it was a good day for both schools, but unfortunately, as fans, we’ve entered a dead zone. We’re two months away from the spring games, so the waiting begins. But Gator fans stay alert. There’s still a recruit out there that could end up at Florida. Orson Charles.