Today is the day in which Florida Gators commits become Florida Gators. (Photo credit: Matt Stamey, Associated Press)
Welcome to the 2022 In All Kinds Of Weather Early Signing Day tracker!
As we’ve done for several years now, we’ve created this page to keep y’all up to date on every recruiting development that involves the Florida Gators. Every commit who sends in his letter of intent, every commitment that the Gators have a hat on the table for, and any weird stuff that may go down in the eleventh hour, this will be the place to track it. Here’s hoping we have good news to bring you!
As things unfold, we’ll begin rolling out the updates in chronological order. So, pin or bookmark this page tonight, and refresh the page throughout the day as updates begin to happen. We’ll see you tomorrow morning!
(Updates begin below.)
UPDATE 7:18am: DL TJ Searcy has sent in his letter of intent, thus becoming the first Gator commit to transform into a Gator signee. Welcome, TJ!
UPDATE 7:37am: OT Bryce Lovett has sent in his letter of intent. Welcome, Bryce!
UPDATE 7:47am: CB Sharif Denson has sent in his letter of intent. There was never a particularly high chance of this, bur Denson was getting some late looks from Alabama, and because of what Alabama has built as a program, it’s never truly over with Nick Saban involved until it’s over. And given the way it feels today might play out, we have to take our wins when we can get them. Welcome, Sharif!
UPDATE 7:56am: DB Jordan Castell has sent in his letter of intent. Welcome, Jordan!
UPDATE 8:15am: rumors began swirling late last night that Florida was going to take Wisconsin QB transfer Graham Mertz. This page is a running list of updates that are official, so if/when something official comes out about that, we’ll have more to share there.
UPDATE 8:18am: DL Kelby Collins— a high four-star prospect from Alabama who grew up a Crimson Tide fan that Billy Napier poached from Nick Saban— has sent in his letter of intent. This is a big one! Welcome, Kelby!
UPDATE 8:27am: DL Will Norman has sent in his letter of intent. The Gators have six committed defensive linemen in this class, all of consensus four star caliber (although Florida is expected to lose one of them, Isaiah Nixon, that’s still five) and three of them have sent in their letters of intent. That defensive line class is starting to take shape! Welcome, Will!
UPDATE 9:02am: there are two potentially bad developments to watch out for today as it pertains to currently-committed-but-not-signed Gators. One involves Isaiah Nixon, who is supposedly leaning towards flipping to Central Florida, where he was initially committed- but then Florida grabbed five other DL commitments, which would greatly weaken the impact of this loss if it happens. The other involves WR Andy Jean, who is rumored to be leaning to FSU. This one would sting a lot more; Florida does have Aidan Mizell and Eugene Wilson solidly onboard the class (though not signed yet, they’re expected to) but Jean was a rare big victory for Florida over Miami on the recruiting trail, and was deemed to be a solid third WR in the class. Nothing official has happened with either of them, but those are the two we’ve got our eyes on.
UPDATE 9:12am: LB Jaden Robinson has sent in his letter of intent, thus officially completing the flip from South Carolina. Welcome, Jaden!
UPDATE 9:17am: DL Gavin Hill has sent in his letter of intent. That’s four of Florida’s expected five defensive line commits to sign. Welcome, Gavin!
UPDATE 9:47am: we’ve got an interesting development brewing with Miami DB commit Cormani McClain: his mother says he isn’t going to sign today. McClain, of course, was the unanimous five star DB recruit who many thought would come to Florida before Miami swooped in and poached him. This delay could mean nothing, but it’s also worth keeping an eye on as it continues to play out. (Remember how Napier grabbed Kamari Wilson away from Georgia out of nowhere last Signing Day?)
UPDATE 9:57am: S Bryce Thornton has sent in his letter of intent. Welcome, Bryce!
UPDATE 10:07am: OL Knijeah Harris has sent in his letter of intent. Welcome, Knijeah!
Mid-morning assessment 10:23am: So far, no nasty surprises. We continue to watch for the potential flips away from Florida in WR Andy Jean and DL Isaiah Nixon, both of which I believe are fairly likely. There are also several uncommitted recruits set to make their announcements soon with Florida hats on the table, although I do not believe Florida is a real player for any of them.
UPDATE 10:31am: As expected, DL Isaiah Nixon has flipped away from Florida to Central Florida. As we mentioned earlier, it’s worth keeping in mind that Nixon was one of six defensive line commits for Florida in this class. There are not six spots on the defensive line. He likely wanted to be guaranteed playing time, knew he could not be guaranteed this at Florida, and returned to the Knights’ class after flipping from Central Florida to Florida a few months ago.
UPDATE 10:42am: RB Treyaun Webb has sent in his letter of intent. Webb has quickly become a fan-favorite for his recruiting skills and infectious energy on social media; as such, there was never a doubt that he would sign, but it’s still nice to see pen hit paper. Welcome, Treyaun!
UPDATE 10:46am: A wave of signing ceremonies are coming at the 11am hour, including Florida commits Ja’Keem Jackson, Roderick Kearney, and… Andy Jean, who we have earmarked as a potential flip away to FSU. Also, a number of commitments that will feature Gator hats on the table, including Qua Russaw, Jordan Hall, and Desmond Ricks, are coming up over the course of the next few hours, so we’ll keep updates coming on those, too.
UPDATE 11:04am: OL Roderick Kearney has sent in his letter of intent, thus completing the flip from archrival FSU. Welcome, Rod!
UPDATE 11:11am: DL Kamran James has sent in his letter of intent. That means that all five defensive linemen that Florida was anticipating signing today— Will Norman, Kelby Collins, Gavin Hill, TJ Searcy and now James— have signed, nullifying any sting that some fans might want to feel in the wake of Nixon’s flip. Welcome, Kamran!
UPDATE 11:19am: WR Andy Jean is sticking with the Gators after all! There were rumors of him flipping to FSU, but that’s not going to happen; he’s sent in his letter of intent to Florida. Welcome, Andy!
UPDATE 11:36am: DB Ja’Keem Jackson has sent in his letter of intent. There were whispers of smoke rising throughout the fall that the Miami Hurricanes were trying to flip him; although we do not believe the threat was ever a serious one, it’s still nice to see pen hit paper. Welcome, Ja’Keem!
UPDATE 11:41am: WR Aidan Mizell has sent in his letter of intent. Mizell may actually be the dark horse candidate for biggest impact playmaker in the class; Florida’s lack of production at wide receiver in 2022 put a large emphasis on landing playmaking receivers in this class, and Mizell certainly qualifies for that with great footwork and route running skills and the speed needed to take the top off a defense. And now he’s in. Welcome, Aidan!
Noon assessment: Of the 21 commits that Florida was expecting to sign today (the 22 commits minus Isaiah Nixon, who Florida was not expecting to sign), Florida has signed 17 before the clock struck noon. Florida also kept Andy Jean, who was a coin-flip proposition as of this morning; he was included in that tally. The four commits that Florida is expecting to sign who have not yet signed are QB Jaden Rashada, ATH Aaron Gates, WR Eugene Wilson III, and DB Dijon Johnson.
UPDATE 12:23pm: four uncommitted recruits will be making their final decisions soon: DE Qua Russaw, DE James Smith, CB Desmond Ricks and DE Jordan Hall. We do not expect Florida to land any of them, but the Gators will at least have hats on the table for them.
UPDATE 1:08pm: after a delicious lunch in downtown Charlotte for yours truly, it’s time to get back down to business. Defensive ends Qua Russaw and James Smith are expected to announce their college decisions shortly on ESPN. Florida will have a hat on the table for both of them, so it’s worth paying attention, but the Gators are not expected to land either. There is, however, the faintest, slightest morsel of buzz surrounding DB Desmond Ricks, who was thought to be an LSU lean, second-guessing his decision. That will be the one to really pay attention to.
UPDATE 1:15pm: WR Eugene Wilson III has sent in his letter of intent. Welcome, Eugene (aka Tre)!
UPDATE 1:29pm: Ohio State linebacker Teradja Mitchell is set to transfer to Florida, according to the Orlando Sentinel. He will have at least two years of eligibility, beginning in 2023. Welcome, Teradja!
UPDATE 1:55pm: Defensive ends James Smith and Qua Russaw are about to make their announcements at the top of the hour. The entire In All Kinds Of Weather staff— Neil, Chris, and Dustin— all have both of them going to Alabama. If either of them picks Florida, it would be about as stunning as when Cormani McClain picked Miami over Florida.
UPDATE 2:05pm: Defensive ends James Smith and Qua Russaw have both selected Alabama, to nobody’s surprise.
UPDATE 2:14pm: Florida has added WR Brian Green Jr. (Orange Park HS) as a preferred walk-on. Green is a high school teammate and good friend of offensive line signee Roderick Kearney. Welcome, Brian!
UPDATE 2:26pm: The only three outstanding letters of intent are from QB Jaden Rashada, ATH Aaron Gates, and DB Dijon Johnson. There are currently no alarm bells with any of the three that indicate that they will not sign.
UPDATE 3:50pm: DB Dijon Johnson has sent in his letter of intent. Welcome, Dijon!
UPDATE 4:12pm: ATH Aaron Gates has sent in his letter of intent. That leaves Jaden in Rashada as the last remaining commit to not make it official. Welcome, Aaron!
UPDATE 5:13pm: QB Jaden Rashada has sent in his letter of intent, thus completing the Gators’ 2023 recruiting class. Welcome, Jaden!
UPDATE 7:10pm: as we discussed this morning, former Wisconsin QB Graham Mertz has made it official, and transferred to Florida. Welcome, Graham!
UPDATE 7:15pm: TE Tony Livingston (Class of 2022) and Louisville transfer DL Caleb Banks have signed their letters of intent to Florida. Welcome Tony and Caleb! It’s never too late to join the Gator Nation!
