Photo via Gavin Hill
The Gators’ 2023 recruiting class is beginning to heat up with local native Gavin Hill becoming Florida’s second commitment of the week. And there’s a common theme that’s developing here.
Hill, a consensus four star defensive end out of Gainesville’s Buchholz High School, announced his commitment on twitter a mere ten days after he was initially offered by Billy Napier’s staff at the Gators’ camp. He also held offers from Mississippi State, Auburn, Miami, West Virginia, and Kentucky.
Hill’s commitment is no surprise following his hard-earned offer from Napier’s staff. He had long before had interest in the Gators (naturally, as a Gainesville native). He unofficially visited Florida several times before finally garnering that offer, most notably on Thanksgiving weekend for Florida’s 24-21 victory over FSU as well as this past March. He also visited Florida multiple times unofficially while Dan Mullen was in charge.
You can watch his tape here.
The most notable part about Hill’s game is his athleticism. He also plays basketball for Buchholz, and you can see that natural talent on his tape as a defensive lineman. He’s strong and quick with good play recognition and a nose for the football, resulting in several critical tackles behind the line of scrimmage and forced fumbles on Buchholz’s run to the semifinals of Florida’s 7A State Tournament.
Gavin Hill also has a history on the offensive side of the ball as a tight end, something that’s worth noting with the way that Dante Zanders and Noah Keeter both underwent the transformation from the DL to tight end. Hill projects much more strongly as a defensive lineman at the college level, but he does have that experience across the ball that could come in handy in a pinch.
Hill’s commitment is another feather in Napier’s cap as he attempts to demonstrate what it means to build the trenches. He’s Florida’s second four star commitment on the defensive line this week after Isaiah Nixon flipped from Central Florida.
With the addition of Hill, Florida’s class jumped up from 40th to 34th in the 247Sports composite rankings.
