Florida Gators football fans should love Jon Sumrall's early recruiting

Spring football practices are underway statewide, which means college coaches will be crisscrossing the state looking for talent.

While it's still relatively early in the 2027 recruiting cycle — it tends to really pick up during the summer — things are heating up.

In the past two weeks, Louisville picked up commitments from USA TODAY Florida Network top 100 players Carrollwood Day athlete Brooklyn Maxey and Cardinal Mooney defensive lineman Kaleb Exume. LSU flipped Chaminade-Madonna wide receiver Ah'Mari Stevens from Miami and Notre Dame continued to load up on defensive backs from Florida with a commitment from Chaminade-Madonna safety John Gay.

USA TODAY Florida Network recruiting reporters Jon Santucci and Nick Wilson give their thoughts on where each of Florida's four Power 4 programs stand at the start of spring practices.

Florida

Total commits: Seven (three from Florida)

USA TODAY Florida Network top 100 commits: CB Amare Nugent (American Heritage, No. 11), QB Davin Davidson (Cardinal Mooney, No. 17), ATH Tramond Collins (Cottondale, No. 20), Dillard WR Anthony Jennings (No. 61)

Jon Santucci's thoughts: Recruits have been raving about new Gators coach Jon Sumrall and his staff for months, and the early returns are very encouraging. In addition to landing commitments from three of the top 20 players on the top 100, Florida has a commitment from Maxwell Hiller (Pennsylvania). The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Hiller is a five-star recruit, No. 1 offensive tackle and the No. 3 rated player in the nation on the 247Sports composite rankings. What they've done in Florida is impressive. Davidson is the No. 1 quarterback in the state, Nugent is the No. 3 cornerback, and Collins is the No. 1 athlete. Those are three strong building blocks for a class. St. Thomas Aquinas safety Zayden Gamble (No. 15), Coral Gables defensive tackle Stive-Bentley Keumajou Yondui (No. 21) and Port Charlotte wide receiver Elias Pearl (No. 32) are among the players with scheduled official visits.

Nick Wilson's thoughts: Recruits have been really drawn to how this coaching staff talks, but the biggest weapon the Gators have has been showing recruits how things are run at practice. Multiple high-end recruits in this cycle and the 2028 class have been blown away with how the program actually looks and feels in-person, and players are leaving Gainesville with the Gators higher up on their list than when they arrived. Landing Davidson was an impressive feat, considering every school in the country was applying pressure at the same time after a breakout camp circuit. Dillard WR Anthony Jennings (No. 61) is a talented speedster than named the Gators over Florida FSU and Auburn, and Florida is battling with Clemson and FSU for Tallahasee-native Jamarin Simmons (Godby WR, No. 9). There's a lot to like about this team's trajectory, as evidenced by the increased effectiveness on the recruiting trail.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida Gators football making good in-state recruiting impression