Florida targets a Georgia thumper who is quickly the center of a recruiting battle

One of the positions the Gators have done well to restock over the past few years has been at linebacker. To Billy Napier’s credit, Florida did have solid linebacker play during his time here, and he has left Jon Sumrall with some pieces to work with.

But with Sumrall being a former linebacker himself, you know he is going to value someone who is a hard hitter, and currently, Florida is going after a 2027 linebacker who should start to rise up the rankings quickly this offseason.

Florida lines up official visit with Joakim Gouda

Joakim Gouda is a linebacker out of Douglasville, GA, about 30 minutes outside of Atlanta. Listed at 6’3” and 225 pounds, Gouda is only ranked currently by 247, which has him as a lower-tier three-star. Rivals and ESPN have yet to rank Gouda.

But based on his film, one would have to imagine he is going to start to get some stars next to his name real soon. Gouda may not instantly fly downhill once a ball is snapped, but once he diagnoses a play, his burst to get to his spot jumps off the screen. Perhaps just as important, once he gets to a ball carrier, he delivers some vicious blows and has no problem rag-dolling someone down to the ground.

Gouda flies around the field, and he was credited with 100 total tackles in just nine games during his 2025 season.

He may be lower-ranked for now, but the SEC is lining up to recruit Gouda. In addition to Florida, schools like Georgia, Texas, Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, and Tennessee have all offered Gouda within the last month.

Over the weekend, he confirmed with 247 that he would be taking an official visit to Florida in June. As of right now, it is the only official visit he has publicly confirmed.

Don’t get fooled by his star ranking right now; Gouda is going to be pursued by the SEC, and this is going to be a fierce recruiting battle that is only getting started.