Florida Gators recruiting mailbag October 8th edition

Florida Gators recruiting is doing well and this week’s recruiting mailbag had a lot of great questions about how prospects liked the Florida Gators dominated the Ole Miss Rebels on Saturday night.

As you have noticed Gator Country and Andrew Spivey have mixed things up and we have taken our Florida Gators recruiting mailbag to podcast form, as well as continuing the written version of the mailbag.

Make sure to listen as Andrew answer’s everyone’s questions from this mailbag and don’t forget to get your questions in every week so he can answer your question next time on all things Florida Gators recruiting.

Here’s the written version of this week’s Florida Gators recruiting mailbag:

Firefightingator: Who do you like better DE Hall or De Clayton as far as talent goes?

AS: Antoneous Clayton is more of a rush end that can stand up or play in a three-point stance. Terrell Hall is more a strong side defensive end and he’s a bigger player much like Jonathan Bullard. I think both are good players but I don’t think Florida gets both.

Texasgator94: % chance of landing the following in Florida’s ’16 WR class on NSD (while acknowledging it’s still early in this class) ex. 60/40: Swain, NCM, Bruce, & Hammond.

AS: Good shot at Freddie Swain on Friday. Florida is trending up for Nate Craig-Myers and are holding strong with Miami Hurricanes commit Sam Bruce. I’ve always thought that Josh Hammond would stick with the Florida Gators despite him taking trips.

Firefightinggator: are we going to turn up the heat on Zach McCloud and Ja’Quain Blakely?

AS: Florida has always wanted Miami Hurricanes linebacker commit Zach McCloud and they are turning up the heat on Tennessee Volunteers linebacker commit Jay Blakely as of late. I think Florida has a shot at Blakely and I think McCloud is going to Florida State if he flips.

Dfalco2: AS how many LB’s do we sign? I know the LB class is not strong and given our numbers at the position it does worry me, who do u see signing with the good guys? I know Freddie plans on committing on Friday do you see him hoping on the Mac train? As always thanks for all you do

AS: Florida wants three linebackers in the class. I think Florida is trending up for Jay Blakely and Mack Wilson. Wilson loves the early playing time at Florida plus the opportunity to play with his good friend Jeawon Taylor. Yes, I see Freddie Swain to the good guys on Friday.

Ufgatordad: With the Gators’ success thus far in the season, it’s expected that we are starting to get on the radar of some of the top recruits in the nation, but it seems like certain names are starting to come out of nowhere (guys like Mack Wilson and John Simpson)! Can you list some of the guys we are starting to gain momentum with that we might not have heard of up until now, and do we have a legitimate shot at landing them, or is it more hype than true interest? Mack Wilson, for example, is the #1 LB in the 2016 class, and he named us his leader!! Thanks Andrew!!

AS: John Simpson has always been on the Florida Gators recruiting board and he visited Florida this summer but I think it’s either Clemson or South Carolina for him. I think Florida has a legit shot at Mack Wilson too. As far as other guys, I think we have talked about everyone that has legit interest in Florida but if I’m missing a guy that you know of then just let me know.

Gator_nica: Come on man, let us know what is going on behind the scenes. Who is showing interest? Who is being talked to?

AS: I feel like I keep you guys up to date as much as I can. There is nothing really that I’m hiding from you guys but you have a question about someone then let me know.

Churst33: Which current commits or prospects on our big board could come in day one and have an immediate impact on the program, much like Callaway and Cece are right now and what is the likelihood of those individuals being a part of this class come NSD?

AS: I think Mark Thompson can play early. I think Mack Wilson can play early. I think Josh Hammond can play early, Branton Autry and probably Chauncey Gardner as well. More names will added as the commit list grows.

Firefightinggator: Any news on Demetris Robertson or have we cooled?

AS: He’s not in a financial situation to visit many games but right now I believe it’s either Notre Dame or Stanford.

Dhainer24: I am going to try to look at this logically and not with O & B colored glasses….but with our success it is hard. So, let’s say we don’t get everyone we are leading on (shocker!) but we do get one DT (either Manuel or Lawrence), one or two DE (either Burns, Clayton, Polite or Robinson), Mack Wilson (he seems to be talking the talk), NCM, Swain and Bruce. What if we could add Nauta? I personally think Manual and Clayton for the 2 DL, but wanted your insider opinion. Ultimately, which high profile guys do you give us the best shot at and where do you think that leads as far as class ranking? I guess I am sort of asking for a mock class, which has already been asked, so please AS?!?!?!?!!

AS: I think Florida has a good shot at Clayton and a decent shot at Florida State Seminoles commit Janarius Robinson. If Florida pushes hard for Jachai Polite then I think Florida can get him. I think Florida gets one of Dexter Lawrence or Shavar Manuel and maybe both if Lawrence visits the Gators again.

Southgator: We seem to have a bunch of defensive backs committed. How many are we going to take?

AS: Florida would like to five or six in the class. They would like to add one of JUCO cornerback Jamarcus King or Kristian Fulton. King has some academics things to work out but if those things get fixed then I think the Florida Gators recruiting efforts win out here.

Macbgator: Who will we have on signing day as our offensive lineman in this class !!!!

AS: Branton Autry, Brett Heggie, Stone Forsythe are solid and I think they add Marcus Tatum and one more JUCO offensive lineman in the class.

Ufgators32: How is UF looking for Burns and Eubanks since they have not visited yet this season?

AS: I think the Georgia Bulldogs gets defensive end Brian Burns and I think Florida or Alabama get tight end Nick Eubanks. I think the Gators can get Eubanks because of the use of the tight ends this year.

Gatordon: Will we recruit a kicker? If no, why not?

AS: Alabama Crimson Tide commit Eddy Pineiro visited Florida on Saturday and I think the Gators can flip him but if he doesn’t flip then I don’t think they get a kicker in 2016.

Gatordon: Will we receive good news Friday from Swain?
Do you see any surprise flips going our way?

AS: I think they receive good news on Freddie Swain and I think it’s possible for some flips before national signing day.

Gatordon: Do the coaches advise recruits of players they anticipate leaving early at their position?

AS: They keep prospects informed on guys that could leave early for the NFL. It helps in the Florida Gators recruiting efforts.

Ol2ange: Would you prefer Eubanks or Jacob Mathis if you had to choose one for TE?

AS: I think both are good players but I think Eubanks has the higher upside to be a really good player in college and I think he’s a perfect fit for the Florida Gators offense.

Ol2ange: Are there any highly recruited players who are just coming onto Florida’s radar now (with the recent success)? Any idea who these players might be?

AS: Not really because the Florida Gators have done such a good job of getting a lot of highly rated guys on campus so far. Some new names will appear on the board I’m sure but right now the board is pretty set.

Ufgatordad: With the big UM/FSU showdown this week-end, would a win in either direction benefit us more in regards to their commits that we are recruiting hard (i.e. Sam Bruce and Janarius Robinson)?

AS: The Florida Gators recruiting efforts won’t be affected by this game but more affected by how the Gators continue to do this season. That’s the good thing about winning games and looking good.

SVSqueek7: Let’s see those Spivey Senses put to work…Name one offensive recruit and one defensive recruit not on our radar now that could be a shock going forward if this staff continues its lights out approach…

AS: Tough to say because like I said Florida is in on a lot of good prospects already but if I had to say then I would say TE Isaac Nauta on offense and on defense I would say Mack Wilson. Both are on the board but I think winning has boosted their interest in the Florida Gators.

Gatorjim: We had a de-commit this week, do expect many more? No names but over/under?

AS: Yes, I expect a few more names to be dropped from the Florida Gators recruiting commit’s list.

TheGator: How many do we add to the class? Out of the current class, how many decommit or go elsewhere?

AS: I think the number is 28 and, like I said above, I think a few more guys will be dropped off the list.

Easypeasey: Any other JUCO offers going out soon?
Are we done with Oline if Tatum and Julious commit?

AS: Unless Ashton Julious goes elsewhere soon then I think they are done with JUCO offers for the class of 2016. Yes if they get both of them then they would be done with the offensive line.

GatorNation6868: AS, any chance that Trask will be forced to move on and not be in this class? With the need for scholarships and him bei g a project – shouldn’t we drop him and just take a 1QB in this class (a better ranked QB). Also, what are the chances that Franks will be in this class? Another site claims to have inside info indicating that he will be in this class. Like you – I am not impressed with him.

AS: Florida wants Kyle Trask in the class and right now I’ll believe that Feliepe Franks goes anywhere besides LSU when he decommits. I’ve heard these rumors on him for too long and nothing has happened there.

Navagator: Sort of along the lines as GatorNation…. But, who do you think we end up with in 16 at the QB position? Also, what happens in the event we continue to win and more and more recruits become interested, how will they go about asking people to look elsewhere. I was a basketball recruit and this never happened where I initially signed (Bama) and I am interested in how that works with a 25+ person recruiting class…

AS: I honestly have no idea on the quarterback right now because even the staff is trying to get that answer. And Jim McElwain will simply talk to a prospect and tell him that they are going in a different direction.

Daswamp: Will QB Trask stick with this class?

AS: I believe so at this time.