The Florida Gators secured yet another big commitment on Monday as Billy Napier and the Gators stay hot on the recruiting trail. Four-Star linebacker, Malik Morris announced on Monday that he is staying ‘home’ and has committed to the University of Florida.
Morris is a Lakeland, FL. native who had offers from Miami, Texas A&M Alabama, & Appalachian State. But the “Gator boys stay hot” as the 6’1”, 250lb linebacker from Lakeland High School has given his pledge and commitment to the Florida Gators.
“Florida is just Florida to me, man,” he said to Keith Niebuhr of On3's Gators Online. “If you’ve ever been to a Florida game, it’s 90,000 people just in there rocking. It’s the crib. I’m from Florida, so it’s right here. It’s crazy there, honestly,” he exclaimed.
He is ranked as 247 Sports as a 4-star composite athlete, the No. 32 player in Florida, and the No. 17 linebacker in the nation, with a 90 overall rating.
He is ranked by ESPN as their NO. 2 linebacker in the country.
Malik Morris was impressed with everything Florida showed him
“The visit was amazing,” said Morris to Cam Parker of Sports Illustrated. “You know, coming to this program, I already knew what was going on. I felt comfortable with it, and now it’s just a bigger step the next point of where we can go with this in the recruiting process,” said Morris. “It (the visit) solidified everything. It solidified everything on why this place really stands with me.”
In his 2024 junior senior season, Morris, ranked as the No. 25 player overall by USA Today’s Florida Top 100, had 95 tackles, nine sacks, three forced fumbles, and one interception. He’s a true tank in the trenches. He also averaged eight yards per carry, with five scores on 19 touches as a ball carrier, using his size to plow his way through the offensive line and find some open field.
He was named the 2024 Lakeland Ledger Big School’s Defensive Player of the year.
According to 247 Sports Director of Scouting, Andrew Ivins, Morris is a ‘Pitbull’ of a linebacker. As described above, he has a great ability to plow through the line of scrimmage and make plays happen with hard contact. He can change course well and has a good read for the game. He is expected to be used primarily as an inside linebacker that can be utilized for tackles and creating chaos in the backfield.
Morris was a multi-sport athlete in high school, playing basketball at the prep level, as well as participating in track & field with specialty in shot put. He won the county title in shotput his sophomore season and placed third at the regional meet.
Morris becomes the 15th player from the class of 2026 to commit to Florida and the ninth in-state prospect.
Prior to committing to the Gators, he had made at least nine trips to UF and continued to build relationships with the staff and coaches.
Now, it’s his time to shine in the Swamp as he prepares to join the University of Florida as a Gator.