Florida gets expected but disappointing news from 4-star OL target that visited in May

Not all bad recruiting news is unexpected. In the case of four-star offensive lineman Antonio Berry, it was unlikely that he was going to commit to the Florida Gators and that turned out to be the case when he decided to stay close to home and pledge to Ole Miss.

Berry, a mammoth guard prospect from Tupelo, Mississippi that is listed at 6-foot-5 and 300 pounds, was a legitimate target for Jon Sumrall and Phil Trautwein. He took an official visit to Gainesville on the weekend of May 29, but as the official visit season continued on, it was clear that Florida was going to be on the outside looking in with Ole Miss, Kentucky and Alabama as the main schools, with the Rebels winning out.

READ MORE: Florida is swinging for another huge offensive line addition in 2027

4-star OL target Antonio Berry chooses Ole Miss over Florida and other SEC schools

Berry's decision, while not unexpected, adds to a disappointing short stretch for Sumrall and Trautwein with the final construction of the offensive line class. Things were looking fantastic when Florida landed the commitment of four-star offensive tackle Kennedee Jackson, but it took less than two weeks for Jackson to flip to Georgia after taking an official visit there. Compound this with the inability to get into Berry's final group and what could've been an all-time offensive ine class will probably just be very good. 

And there's no need to gloss over the very good part because it includes five-star prospect Maxwell Hiller, who is completely locked in to the Gators and, as one of the top-five prospects in the country, is the true centerpiece of Sumrall's first class that immediately brought the new coach a shot of credibility on the trail in the first few weeks of recruiting season. In addition to Hiller's commitment, the Gators have four-star interior player Peyton Miller, who is already being earmarked as the Gators' future center, and four-star offensive tackle Elijah Hutcheson in the fold. Overall, I think most fans would gladly take that. There's always a chance that more line prospects could emerge in the fall that could be intriguing late additions. 

READ MORE: 5-star Maxwell Hiller sends emphatic message to Florida fans on his future goals

What does Florida's 2027 recruiting class look like?

The loss of Jackson and the lack of recent blue-chip commits (excluding top-10 kicking prospect Aaron McWilliams) has seen the Gators class fall slightly. Florida's class is currently ranked sixth in the country on Rivals/On3 and ninth overall on 247Sports. On both sites, those numbers are still good enough to be top five in the SEC. With 24 commits in the fold, it seems like the class is mostly full. There remains hope that Florida can flip either five-star defensive lineman Jalen Brewster or five-star wide receiver Easton Royal. The final decisions in both of those recruitments are probably still a few weeks away. 

Overall, there's a lot to be happy about with this class and if Brewster and/or Royal come through, things can get even better. As it stands, the future looks very bright for the Gators. 

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