Florida football recruiting: Gators in top twelve for IMG lineman

Florida football recruiting has been hard at work increasing its presence in other states on the trail, such as Georgia and Texas.

Amidst all of that out-of-state recruiting, however, the Gators still have eyes on in-state IMG Academy as they fill out their 2024 recruiting class.

On Monday, the Gators made the top twelve list for IMG d-lineman Jayden Jackson.

Other teams on the list include Ohio State, Oklahoma, Texas, and others.

247 Sports Composite Rankings have Jackson ranked as the 481st-best player in the country, the 46th-best DL in the 2024 cycle, and the 70th-best player coming out of Florida.

Jayden currently sits as a three-star recruit, but I think we’ll see him move up the rankings a bit before his recruitment is over.

One reason that Jackson is ranked a little lower is likely due to his height. He stands at 6’2”, while a lot of the high-level DL recruits are in the 6’4”-6’6” range.

His shorter frame hasn’t stopped him from bullying his way into opposing backfields. In fact, it may even help him.

For starters, his tape shows him walking offensive linemen into the backfield with ease, blowing up their blocking scheme, and disrupting the play from the start. His strength and power are undeniable.

As for his size, a shorter frame can actually be beneficial for Jackson. If he is able to increase his quickness and flexibility, he would be able to slip through holes in the OL easier and get to the backfield without much resistance.

He is currently 300 pounds, which helps to give him his power. If he wanted to go for the elusive, sneaky rushing route, he would probably have to lose some of his weight, but that could lead to him losing some power.

Jayden has a huge upside. If you don’t love his ranking, just look at the other schools recruiting him. Those teams don’t go after bad players.

Keep up with Florida football recruiting at Hail Florida Hail.