Jon Sumrall and Florida continue to rack up wins on the trail with 4-star LB commitment

Hey, it's a day that ends in 'y', which means it's another commitment for the Florida Gators. There isn't much else to say other than Jon Sumrall is cooking with fish grease right now. 

Four-star linebacker Ellis McGaskin made his pledge to the Gators on Saturday afternoon, choosing Florida over FSU and LSU. The Gators had been in the lead for the tackling machine from Mobile, Alabama and last week's official visit basically sealed the deal. McGaskin is the third commitment for Florida this weekend, joining four-star defensive lineman Cahron Wheeler and three-star defensive back Kamarion Jonnson. McGaskin had already canceled an official visit to Georgia and eliminated the Bulldogs,. Now he is expected to shut his recruitment down completely.

READ MORE: Florida's new commit had Jon Sumrall and staff going wild at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

McGaskin is another step in the Gators building out the linebacker position in this class. Last weekend, four-star linebacker Ja'Bios Smith committed. Smith is more of an off-ball player with the length and athleticism to move around the field and drop in coverage. McGaskin is a straight thumper. He's a physical player that gets his hands dirty and will shed off blockers to get to the ball carrier. 

READ MORE: Jon Sumrall and Florida are on the verge of adding a 4-star thumper to their top-5 class

Jon Sumrall gets another recruiting win with 4-star LB Ellis McGaskin

McGaskin's commitment came down to a few things, according to his comments to Tyler Harden at 247Sports. He liked what Florida had to offer to student-athletes on and off the field with their Gator Made program, which is a key aspect of educating players on potential life paths outside of football. 

"Florida is one of the top schools in the SEC with academics," McGaskin said. "I don't want to go to a school and just be another football player. It's a little bit more than football to me."

And, of course, it's the relationship with Sumrall and his staff. McGaskin mentioned how all the coaches, both on-field and support staff, knew his name, where he was coming from, his high school and other aspects of who he is and his personality. It's the kind of personal touch that explains why Sumrall is so good on the trail. It's one thing to say that a recruit is a priority, but it's another thing to make them feel like a priority. In the cast of McGaskin, it was that level of comfort that made his decision an easy one. 

What does Florida's 2027 recruiting class look like?

It looks very good and Sumrall has been building one of the Gators' high-ranked recruiting classes since the Will Muschamp days when he had a few classes ranked inside the top five. The centerpiece of this class remains five-star offensive lineman Maxwell Hiller, but the Gators are hitting nearly every position in this class, bringing in blue-chip players and high-upside prospects that they believe fit well based on their evaluations. 

With McGaskin's commitment, the Gators are now at 22 players total and have moved up to No. 3 nationally on 247Sports and fifth nationally on Rivals/On3. It's a credit to Sumrall and staff recognizing the guys that want, getting them on campus and sealing the deal.

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