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Florida hosting another group of recruits ahead of 2022 national signing day

David Rosenberg
·5 min read
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Another week, another group of recruits headed to Florida on official visits for the weekend.

After hosting a large group of players last week, the Gators have seven official visitors planned for the penultimate weekend of the class of 2022 recruiting season. A handful of the names in town are signees who have yet to visit Gainesville with Billy Napier at the helm. Jacoby Mathews, one of the top safeties in the country, leads the list of uncommitted recruits visiting.

Some unexpected names turned up last week, so this list may grow as the weekend goes on. Gators Wire will update any new names that show up in Gainesville over the weekend.

4-star S Jacoby Mathews - Ponchatoula, Louisiana

Michael DeMocker/For The Daily Advertiser/USA TODAY NETWORK

247Sports: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 64 Natl., No. 8 S)

Rivals: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 28 Natl., No. 2 S)

ESPN: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 51 Natl., No. 3 S)

On3: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 31 Natl., No. 1 S)

Mathews planned on visiting last weekend, but he changed his date at the last second. Co-defensive coordinator Patrick Toney and cornerbacks coach Corey Raymond have been recruiting Mathews hard along with Napier. LSU is Florida’s main competition, and the Tigers will get the last word with Mathews next week.

Florida already has two elite safeties in the class, Kamari Wilson and Devin Moore, but adding a third would take it to the next-level.

3-star QB Max Brown - Tulsa, Oklahoma

247Sports: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 76 QB, No. 23 OK)

Rivals: ⭐⭐ (N/A, N/A)

ESPN: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 39 DQB, No. 28 OK)

On3: ⭐⭐⭐ (N/A, N/A)

Max Brown committed to Central Michigan in July, but he didn’t sign during the early period. Napier and his staff have been talking to Brown since they got to Florida but haven’t officially offered a scholarship yet.

The Gators did add Ohio State transfer Jack Miller, but no high school quarterback has committed to Florida’s class of 2022 so far. Brown is also being courted by Washington and will visit the Huskies next week before deciding whether or not to flip from CMU.

3-star DL Jayson Jenkins - Trenton, New Jersey

247Sports: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 182 DL, No. 26 NJ)

Rivals: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 24 NJ)

ESPN: N/A

On3: ⭐⭐⭐ (N/A, N/A)

Jenkins received some late attention in his recruitment, which caused him to push back his signing. Napier’s staff has been after him since arriving in Gainesville, and a group of coaches flew out to New Jersey earlier in the week to meet him before his official visit. He’ll be in Tennessee next weekend.

3-star TE Hayden Hansen - Weatherford, Texas

247Sports: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 124 TE, No. 253 TX)

Rivals: ⭐⭐ (N/A, N/A)

ESPN: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 47 TE, No. 225 TX)

On3: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 82 TE, No. 203 TX)

Hayden Hansen backed off his commitment from the University of Lousiana after Billy Napier left, but he’s not giving up on a future with the Gators’ new coach. An offer this weekend from Florida would be far better than the ones he received from Sam Houston and Washington State after opening his recruitment back up.

4-star LB Shemar James - Mobile, Alabama

247Sports: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 91 Natl., No. 6 LB)Rivals: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 13 Natl., No. 1 LB)

ESPN: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 111 Natl., No. 11 LB)

On3: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 107 Natl., No. 8 LB)

James has already signed his letter of intent, but he hasn’t visited Gainesville yet with Napier in charge. That will change this weekend, and he’ll be able to get to know his new coaches and teammates better. James was going to visit last weekend, but he had to reschedule the visit.

4-star OL/TE Tony Livingston - Tampa, Florida

247Sports: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 57 OT, No. 85 FL)

Rivals: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 33 OT, No. 51 FL)

ESPN: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (No. 224 Natl., No. 20 OT, No. 28 FL)

On3: ⭐⭐⭐ (No. 76 IOL, No. 108 FL)

Gators signee Tony Livingston never made it on an official visit to Florida despite being a commit since March. He made two unofficial visits during the summer and another in September for the Alabama game. He’ll use his official one this weekend, but it’ll be far from the first time he’s in the Swamp.

Napier appears to want him at tight end for the Gators, so they’ll get an opportunity to discuss the position change in person.

3-star K Trey Smack - Severna Park, Maryland

247Sports: ⭐⭐ (No. 7 K, No. 37 MD)

Rivals: ⭐⭐ (N/A, N/A)

ESPN: N/A

On3: ⭐⭐⭐ (N/A, N/A)

Smack was another signee set to visit last weekend that had to reschedule. He stayed committed to Florida through the coaching change and has a shot to be the team’s kicker if neither Chris Howard nor Jace Christmann decides to use their extra year of eligibility granted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Napier just added Chris Couch to the staff as Florida’s Special Teams Coordinator (a.k.a Gamechanger Coordinator). Smack’s visit being delayed gives him a chance to meet one of his new coaches.

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