Gulf Breeze Baseball: Dolphins' Brock Clayton headed to "dream school," commits to Florida

When athletes recall the time they first fell in love with a sport, many say they were around five or six years old.

For Brock Clayton and his love for baseball, sparks started to fly well before that.

“When he was one-and-a-half or two years old, he used to go to my brother-in-law’s house before he’d go to daycare. He’d play catch with him and throw with him,” said Bobby Clayton, Brock’s father. “We would throw and we would hit in the house with a little red wiffle-ball bat and a little foam ball. I knew he had a pretty good swing early and it just continued to develop.”

Brock Clayton still has some room to develop as his sophomore season with the Gulf Breeze High baseball team soon approaches. But with his arm strength and smooth, left-handed swing, the 6-foot-3, 185-pound versatile prospect has caught the attention of a particular premier school in Gainesville.

After receiving an official offer this past Monday, Brock Clayton announced his commitment to play baseball at the University of Florida on social media three days later.

“Florida has been my dream school since I was a little kid,” he said. “Going there to play baseball seems unreal right now. It hasn’t really fully sunk in, but I can’t wait till I get there.”

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The outfielder/catcher made his decision after receiving interest from the likes of Mississippi State, Southern Miss, Alabama, Auburn and the University of South Florida. However he chose to commit with the Gators because of the program’s facilities and the impression the “personable” coaches made on him.

“We are very excited for him as a family, our whole family has invested in this baseball endeavor since our son has been eight years old,” said Bobby Clayton, who is the Dolphins head football coach. “I’ve coached him all the way through till he hit high school. We traveled the countryside, we’ve played the biggest and best tournaments. We had him in some of the best situations we could put him in baseball-wise and we’re just extremely proud of him.”

Tearing the ball off the cover in junior varsity last season, Brock Clayton played six varsity games as a freshman, batting .300 with a home run, a double and six runs batted in. He earned a spot on Gulf Breeze’s postseason roster, helping the team finish with an 18-9 record and claim its second consecutive District 1-5A title.

“I think a lot of Brock Clayton,” Dolphins baseball head coach Travis Mattair said. “First and foremost, he’s an incredible human being and a great kid. He’s a hard worker. … He’s someone that brings a lot to the table. He’s a good energy guy, a great teammate and someone you want up at the plate with the game on the line.”

Following a season playing club baseball for the East Coast Sox out of Columbus, Miss., Brock Clayton first visited UF this past summer.

Hitting the road at 5 a.m., he and his family drove down to Gainesville for a prospect camp on Aug. 28. That was one night after the sophomore caught three passes for 23 yards to help the Gulf Breeze football team capture a 35-20 season-opening victory over Pensacola Catholic.

Brock Clayton would go on to have a solid fall on the gridiron, hauling in 34 catches for 485 yards and four touchdowns. However, baseball still remained part of his workload.

“He takes it seriously and he works his tail off. He spends countless hours extra hitting, throwing, fielding, working on his game,” Bobby Clayton said. “Even during the fall, even during football season two-to-three days a week, we’re in the batting cage and I’m throwing him (batting practice). He’s continued to work at it year-round because in his mind, there’s no off days.”

The Claytons returned to Gainesville for another camp on Jan. 15. The following week, the Gators came calling with an offer.

For as long as he can remember, Brock Clayton has wanted to play for Florida, a school that his grandparents attended. Now, that’s become a reality. You can say he’s talked it into existence.

“My family, we’ve always been Gators fans. These past couple of years, looking forward to going to college, I’ve always wanted to go to Florida.” he said.

“He told his little cousin, who looks up to him big time, that he couldn’t wait for the day that the University of Florida called and offered him a scholarship,” Bobby Clayton said. “That’s basically what happened on Monday night. That’s one of those surreal moments. … You almost pinch yourself and wonder did this happen or am I dreaming?”

In his immediate future, the sophomore will be an everyday starter for the Dolphins. Most of his starts will be in the outfield. He will also mix in occasional starts behind the plate.

“I’m really just looking forward to having fun and making memories with my teammates at Gulf Breeze,” Brock Clayton said. “Something I want to focus on is being relaxed, not trying to do too much. Not trying to prove anything, but just play relaxed and have fun.”

Patrick Bernadeau is a sports reporter for the Pensacola News Journal. He can be reached at (850) 503-3828, on Twitter @PatBernadeau or via email at pbernadeau@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Gulf Breeze outfielder Brock Clayton makes baseball commitment with UF