Florida football: Can Blue Chip Billy steal Keon Keeley from Nick Saban?
By Will Thomas
Just when it seemed like the recruit pool that Napier was still looking at for his 2023 class was slimming down, a new target has emerged.
5 star DL Keon Keeley de-committed from Notre Dame last night, and is reportedly considering Florida, Ohio St, and Alabama, with the Tide being the current favorite.
In years past, when Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide where leading in a player’s recruitment, that meant it was over. Now, there’s a new player in town, and he’s turning Florida football into a premier program for recruits.
The whole nation thinks that Keeley is a lock to go to Alabama, but can Blue Chip Billy snag Keon for the Gators?
If you follow recruiting, you know that nothing is certain until pen meets paper. And even after that some guys change their minds.
Crystal balls don’t mean anything to recruiters, so they shouldn’t mean too much to fans either. Keeley is from Tampa, Florida, and Napier has done an elite job of recruiting in state talent since he got to Gainesville.
We detailed his in-state recruiting strategy a few weeks ago.
Nobody in the state of Florida is safe from Billy Napier and his army of recruiters. You better believe that Keeley will be hearing from just about every member of the Florida football staff, and will most certainly make a visit to The Swamp before he makes a decision.
He’ll also get to see a fully functional James W. “Bill” Heavener Football Training Center, a facility that has been in the works for years and is finally here. It seems to be worth all the hype that’s been surrounding it.
Not to mention the coaches he’ll be able to learn under. Sean Spencer and Patrick Toney, the co-defensive coordinators for UF are elite, and Spencer is also the d-line coach. Both of these guys are highly regarded nationally, and can get anyone who puts on the orange and blue to the next level.
I personally wouldn’t be as optimistic as I am about UF’s chances with Keeley if Napier hadn’t already shown he can land a surprise recruit.
Last year, 5 star safety Kamari Wilson was heavily favored to go to UGA. Why would he choose to go to the struggling Gators and their first year coach?
Well, he did end up putting on the Gator hat, because he believed in what Napier is doing in Gainesville. There’s no reason why Napier can’t do the same thing to Keeley as he did to Wilson.
Billy has already shown us that we can never count him out of a recruiting battle. While the Gators may not be able to match Bama’s NIL deals (UF is still working to land Cormani McClain) his vision and values could be enough to earn Keeley’s signature.
And when Napier does that, the whole country will be on notice.
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