Whenever Florida coach Will Muschamp speaks, I listen. Then I take it with a grain of salt.
So when Muschamp was asked back in September about his recruiting philosophy, given his ties to Texas and other areas in the Southeast, I was all ears.
“We’re going to take care of the state of Florida,” Muschamp said. “That’s where we’re going to win championships, with the players from the state of Florida.”
When you look at the Gators’ current crop of recruits — a class that has 20 members, including six already enrolled in classes – half of the players currently committed to Muschamp’s first full recruiting class are from outside of the talent-rich state of Florida.
Of the 100 best prospects in the nation, as rated by Rivals.com, 18 are from the Sunshine State (more than any other state). Of those 18, only three are committed to UF.
Although Muschamp said he’s going to win with Florida players, I can’t fault him for the way he has recruited the state this year. He has done an admirable job building strong relationships in his first full year, and he is doing something with this class that it often seemed former coach Urban Meyer didn’t do: recruit the team’s needs.
While Meyer was focused on putting together the “fastest team in America” during his Florida tenure — at least nine of his 27 signees in 2010 reportedly ran a 4.5-second-or-better 40-yard dash — Muschamp is instead focused on assessing Florida’s needs. And some of those are best filled by going outside of Florida.
Linebackers and special teams coach D.J. Durkin has helped more than anyone in that regard. Durkin has essentially pillaged North Carolina, helping land four oral commitments from the state, three of whom help fill a major need on the line of scrimmage.
Defensive ends Jonathan Bullard (the No. 1 end in the nation) and Alex McCalister give the Gators added depth along a defensive line that struggled with numbers last season, while D.J. Humphries, the top offensive tackle in the nation, is the type of recruit that can start immediately at UF and help fill a gap on what was a makeshift offensive line in 2011.
The Gators also have three other out-of-state prospects that will help solidify the defensive line next season: four-star Mississippi JUCO defensive tackle transfer Damien Jacobs, who signed in December, and a pair of three-star recruits from Georgia in Quinteze Williams and JaFar Mann.
So while Muschamp may have just been firing up boosters and fans when he said he was going to win championships with players from Florida, he is staying true to something else he said last season.
“We need to get better on both lines of scrimmage,” Muschamp said, “because until you do that, it’s going to be very difficult to beat the teams in our league.”
With the job he has done this year, winning in his second year just got a little easier for Muschamp.
Contact Tom Green at tgreen@alligator.org.
