Florida football recruiting turned upside down after a busy weekend

A lot has changed on the football recruiting trail in Florida after a busy weekend full of commitments and official visits.

Georgia Tech, Nebraska and Colorado had big wins in Florida, Maryland flipped a top-50 player, and Liberty had a pair of impact commitments from the Sunshine State.

The second weekend of official visits is in the books, with several of Florida's notable high school football players announcing their college decision.

SEMINOLE ISSUES: FSU football loses another top recruit. Why does this keep happening?

USA TODAY Florida Network recruiting reporters Jon Santucci and Nick Wilson gave their takeaways from the first weekend in June.

Who was the weekend's biggest winner?

Santucci: It's a toss-up between Georgia Tech and Nebraska, which is interesting since Georgia Tech flipped former Nebraska commit Kaden Howard. Really like the Yellow Jackets landing West Boca standout defensive lineman Jamar Thompson and Howard, a playmaking wide receiver from Miami Palmetto. Thompson is an athletic big man who has been a key piece of the Bulls back-to-back state championship teams and is a nice addition to Tech's 2027 class. Nebraska getting Western cornerback Bryce Williams and Tampa Bay Tech defensive lineman Errol Demontagnac were both nice wins. Williams is a long corner at 6-foot-2 and is the kind of player who should compete for immediate playing time at the next level.

Wilson: UConn came up with an enormous commitment on Saturday, landing Carol City safety Alan Blackshere, the No. 80 overall player in the state and is a composite 3-star. He named the Huskies over Oklahoma, Missouri and Oregon and is UConn's highest rated football commit since 2008. Georgia Tech closing on Thompson was also noteworthy, considering they beat Ohio State and Texas for the No. 2 defensive tackle in the state. Colorado got back on track in Florida after 3-stars Zaquan Linton (Palm Beach Central offensive tackle) and Samari Howard (St. Thomas Aquinas cornerback) committed over the weekend. Honorable mention to Kansas, which flipped Palmetto safety Nazir Pitchford away from Kansas State while landing a commitment from Manatee wide receiver Tavares Powell.

What's your favorite commitment from June 5-7?

Santucci: West Boca safety Damari Jerry to Liberty. The Flames got two impact players from Florida this weekend in Jerry and Hawthorne wide receiver Dominick Harvey. But having seen Jerry is person multiple times the past two seasons, I can say he's a big play waiting to happen. He can play multiple spots in the back seven and he is a difference maker. He should be able to get on the field early at Liberty. It's not the most high profile commitment of the weekend, but it's a really good fit for a quality player.

Wilson: Nebraska has always evaluated and closed on Florida defensive backs at an elite level, and it they've done so again with Western cornerback Bryce Williams. Williams (No. 28) is the No. 5 corner in the USA TODAY Florida Top 100 and is one of the more polished DBs in this class with impressive length and mobility. He named the Huskers over North Carolina and Oklahoma.

What schools are trending in the right direction?

Santucci: Kentucky and Maryland. Kentucky landed St. Thomas Aquinas wide receiver Austin Cole over the weekend. That's another South Florida playmaker to go along with American Heritage tight end Trae Proctor and Santaluces running back Kelsey Gerald. Maryland flipped IMG safety Chuck Roberts from North Carolina. Last week, the Terrapins landed a commitment from Evans quarterback William Jackson. Those are two good building blocks for Maryland's class.

Wilson: This may be a cop-out answer, but Texas A&M is on fire in Florida right now. After already holding commitments from the No. 1 and No. 2 overall players in the class, they landed a commitment from Jones EDGE Fred Ards III (No. 31) and remain in the hunt for several elite players. Florida continues its upward trajectory after a big weekend of visits, and still in the the front of the pack for elite players like Eric McFarland III (No. 5) and Bam Whitfield (No. 26).

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida football recruiting: A big weekend for out-of-state schools