Former Gator commit makes shocking flip to in-state rival

Florida Gators football fans rejoiced back in early March when the team landed a top-100 overall recruit and top-3 linebacker, according to Rivals' industry rankings, in Izayia Williams.

It looked to be a big win for the program, seemingly stealing Williams from the Florida State Seminoles, who he was breifly committed to late in 2024.

But as it turned out The Gators were just a minor step in Williams' overall reccruitment, which has now featured six total commitments.

Williams initially committed to Louisville in Nov. 2023, holding the commitment for just two months before decommitting in Jan. 2024. He made another pledge in April 2024 to Syracuse, but walked it back in August. Then came a two-month stint as a Seminole commit, which ended in November.

Four months later, and he was a Gator. Then he flipped to Ole Miss in May.

And now, he's back in Tallahassee as a member of Florida State.

But considering his chaotic, inconsistent recruiting process, Florida State seems tentative to write his name in pen.

Who knows what the future holds, but if the Seminoles do retain Williams, they'd be getting a possible weapon. Here's what we said in our initial profile of the Leesburg, Florida native:

"The top 50 proclamation feels justified as Williams is a wrecking ball on the field. Williams is simply too fast and too strong for his opponents to be able to effectively game-plan against. Pulling guards can't get to him in time, tackles have no chance when he speed rushes, and good luck to any wide receiver who tries to block him on a screen."

At this point, though, questions about locker room fit have to be raised. Would the Gators even want a player who's shown the lack of commitment and volatility that Williams has had throughout his recruitment? Should they? Who knows.

For right now, it's an unfortunate boost to an in-state rival, but if there's one thing we've learned during Williams' recruitment, it's that we have no clue what will happen next.