The Florida Gators are predicted to heat up the Florida vs Georgia rivalry in a huge way before the season begins, making the waters pretty swampy in Bulldog territory. Steve Wiltfong, Vice President of National College Football Recruiting and Transport Portal at Rivals and On3Sports has predicted Florida to win the commitment of four-star offensive tackle Heze Kent.
Back in June, Blake Alderman of Gators Online predicted Kent would land with the Gators, and now other analysts and scouts are following suit with their predictions, meaning Florida could land their next big recruit on Saturday.
Kent is a 6’6”, 310lb offensive tackle from Brunswick High School in Brunswick, Georgia. The four-star Georgia native has 25 offers on the table, including Florida, Miami, Georgia Tech, Texas, FSU, Alabama, Georgia, and others. He is expected to make his selection on or before Saturday, July 12th.
Heze Kent predicted to land with Florida
Being that he’s a Georgia native, you would think he would stay home and give his commitment to Georgia or Georgia Tech; however, Wiltfong on Thursday predicted otherwise, saying he could be the third prospect out of Georgia to commit to the Gators. They already received commitments from four-star running back Carsyn Baker and three-star offensive tackle Tyler Chukeyem. Kent would be the third prospect from Georgia to commit to moving south and the second offensive tackle.
Kent is a monster athlete at 6’6”, 310lbs. He has a huge blocking upside, and for his size, Hudson Standish of 247Sports describes the 2026 recruit as an athlete with quick movement and the ability to redirect and even find open field as a ball carrier. His size and athleticism will allow him to succeed on an offensive or defensive line at the next level, and scouts are already predicting him to be NFL material.
As Benjamin Henderson, Site Expert at Hail Florida Hail noted in June when Kent began to be a name that was on the horizon to become a Gator, he noted that during Kent’s junior season at Brunswick High School he rushed for 211 yards and eight touchdowns on 32 carries. Using his athleticism to jump vertically as well, he had 41 pass receptions for 983 yards and eight touchdowns. He led his team to the Georgia 5A state playoffs.
Kent is the No. 14 offensive tackle nationally and the No. 1 offensive tackle in the land of red and black, according to On3 Industry rankings for the class of 2026.
Right now Florida leads the recruiting pack with a 93.2 percent chance of him with Miami at a 2.1 percent chance and FSU with a one percent chance.
Should Kent sign with the Gators on Saturday, he would be the third offensive tackle in the class of 2026 for the Gators, with Chancellor Campbell and Javarii Luckas signing with Florida already as well.
Kent is expected to let the world know on Saturday where he is committing to play in 2026.