Florida Football gains prediction for top 100 overall recruit
![The SEC logo in orange and blue colors is painted on the field before the game between the Florida Gators and Arkansas Razorbacks at Steve Spurrier Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, November 4, 2023. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_5472,h_3078,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F213%2F01j3nbzgzv0bkxv1kvwd.jpg "The SEC logo in orange and blue colors is painted on the field before the game between the Florida Gators and Arkansas Razorbacks at Steve Spurrier Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, November 4, 2023. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]")
Recruiting has taken a different tone for Florida Football's class of 2025. Whereas last year, the Gators seemingly had their 2024 class locked up by June, only for it to come apart, Florida is taking a slow and steady approach this cycle.
However, for this approach to work, the Gators have to land two or three of the big targets on their board. Fortunately for Billy Napier and crew, they appear to be in the lead as one of the top 100 prospects on their board.
Florida Football: Family Over Everything
We have highlighted Ben Hanks Jr. a couple of times on the site. When he profiled him back in April, he was hovering around 150th in the overall composite rankings. Since then, his stock has seen his rise, and he is now a top 100 prospect in the On3 Industry Ranking.
When we profiled Hanks Jr. we said:
"On film, he tends to play deep off the ball, but he has such a good read of the game that he is able to explode and make interceptions. There are also cases where opponents will try to take advantage of his alignment and dial up a screen, only for Hanks to come downhill and still make the tackle behind the line of scrimmage."
Given Hanks Jr. is from Miami, luring him away from Coral Gables would always be a challenge. But much like the Gators had an advantage with Vernell Brown III being a legacy prospect, Hanks Jr. is the son of former Gator great Ben Hanks Sr.
That advantage looks like it will pay off, as Keith Niebuhr of On3 has logged an official prediction that Hanks Jr. will follow in his father's footsteps.
Florida insider @On3Keith has logged an expert prediction for the Gators to land Top-100 CB Ben Hanks🐊
— On3 Recruits (@On3Recruits) July 25, 2024
Intel: https://t.co/uNfDfTbgGf pic.twitter.com/M5YiF4Vu3g
Hanks Jr. doesn't have a formal commitment date set. According to 247, Florida still sits in 15th out of 16 in the SEC for their class of 2025. But, Hanks Jr. alone would allow the Gators to jump Ole Miss and Mississippi State, with the bulk of the rest of the SEC within striking distance.
feed