Florida football: Gators set to host 5-star prospect from IMG
By Will Thomas
Florida football and Billy Napier are in a position to make a lot of noise in the 2024 recruiting cycle. Having already landed elite talent like DJ Lagway and Adarius Hayes, as well as being in the mix for a lot of other elite prospects, the Gators have a chance to bring in their best recruiting class in a few years.
Now, Billy and his staff have their eyes set on a top-five prospect in the country out of IMG Academy.
5-star DL David Stone is set to make a visit to The Swamp on Thursday, according to Chad Simmons of On3.
Stone is widely regarded as one of the best players in the 2024 class. 247 Sports has him ranked as the 4th-best recruit in the county, the 2nd-best DL, and the top player coming out of Florida.
The Gators offered Stone in September of last year, and this will be his second visit to Gainesville.
It’s vital that the Gators wow Stone this week. As of now, he’s being predicted to schools like Oklahoma and Michigan State, with schools like Florida just being an afterthought. A good time in Gainesville can change that.
The recruitment of Stone could also be a chance to see what I am now going to call a “DJ Lagway Special”. Yes, I made that up literally as I was writing this. But I like it.
We’ve talked a lot about how good of a recruiter Lagway has been ever since he committed, and how he continues to work to bring in an elite recruiting class with him.
He won’t be there with Stone on Thursday, but if DJ can get into his ear he may be able to turn the tides in his recruitment all by himself.
The Gators haven’t been in the mix for a top-5 recruit like Stone in a long time. Getting him on board would create a lot of momentum on the trail, and speak volumes about the direction of Florida recruiting.
Keep up with Florida football at Hail Florida Hail.