Florida football makes the top-12 for 5-star wideout Caleb Cunningham
By Will Thomas
Florida football is looking to do in 2025 what it couldn't do in 2024: finish with one of the top recruiting classes in the country.
To do that, they'll have to go out and win recruiting battles against elite schools to land some of the top talent in the country.
They have a chance to go do that with Caleb Cunningham, a 5-star receiver in 2025 out of Ackerman, Mississippi.
Cunningham released his top twelve schools earlier today, and the Gators made the cut alongside teams like Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, and others.
Florida football: Elite explosiveness
Cunningham has rare abilities out wide at 6'3'', and is one of, if not the most explosive receiver in the country already.
In his junior season, he caught 48 passes for 1,138 yards (23.7 YPC) and 14 touchdowns. This past fall was his breakout season after his freshman and sophomore year saw him reel in a total of 66 passes for 1,012 yards and 16 touchdowns.
On3's Industry Ranking has Cunningham ranked as the 11th-best player in the country, the No. 2 wide receiver in the class, and the top player coming out of Mississippi.
Caleb has already made one trip to Gainesville in October of last year, but Billy Napier and his staff know that it will take much more than one visit to get him to put on the Orange and Blue.
The in-state Mississippi St Bulldogs currently have a big lead in Cunningham's recruitment per On3 with an 87.5% chance to land the 5-star, followed by Ole Miss, Alabama, and LSU.
The Gators have a lot of ground to make up if they want to be a true contender for Caleb's signature when the 2025 signing day rolls around. We'll see if they're up to the challenge.