Florida football recruiting: Where do the Gators stand with Fletcher Westphal?

Florida football recruiting, as we’ve chronicled plenty on this site, is putting together one of the country’s best recruiting classes in the 2024 cycle.

They have four players ranked top five at their respective positions, and are bringing in one of the best LB hauls ever.

But one position that Florida is still looking to add a body to is the offensive line, which is why Fletcher Westphal has become an important name in Gainesville.

Where do the Gators stand with the 4-star OL as his commitment nears?

Florida football recruiting: Tight race to the finish

Normally as a prospect nears his commitment date, we start to see one particular school emerge from the pack as the favorite.

But just over a week away from Westphal’s decision, that isn’t the case.

The current leader per On3’s RPM is Clemson, but their chances are only 14.6%, followed by Georgia at 11.2%, and Arkansas at 9.6%.

The Gators sit in a 4th-place tie with Virginia Tech and Maryland at 5.7%, but with the odds so spread out it feels like it’s anybody’s race.

When you look at the official visits he’s taken, it separates the Gators from those two schools they’re tied with. He’s seen Gainesville, Clemson, Georgia, and Arkansas, with his most recent stop being in Fayetteville.

His trip to Florida was the weekend of June 16th, when the Gators went on a spree and landed seven commits in just a few days, so seeing all of that excitement in person must have had an effect on Fletcher.

But why is Westphal such an important guy for the Gators to get?

When you look at the offensive linemen that Florida currently has committed, the highest-rated of the bunch is Marcus Mascoll, who’s the 42nd-best OL in the 2024 class.

Now I’m not getting down on the players that Florida has committed, but you would like to have a guy like Fletcher, who is the 19th-best OT in the class, on board.

So the Gators may need a few things to go their way in the next week if they’re to land Westphal, but they aren’t out of it by any means.