Recruit Reaction: Simple plays have to be made

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• Grading the Gators: An all-around failure
• Uncensored Soundoff

Inside the Gators asked Florida commitments and targets for their thoughts on the Gators’ 24-11 loss to No. 14 Utah. Find out what commits such as Kendall Jackson and TJ Abrams as well as targets such as Jameer Grimsley, and Koby Howard as well as others thought of the game.

• Four-star defensive line commit Kendall Jackson

I think we beat ourselves in that game. On my side of the ball, I think we did okay with the field position that Utah had.

• Four-star 2025 wide receiver target Koby Howard

I was disappointed because I really believed that UF was going to win the game. The offense was sloppy, they looked uninterested. I don’t remember seeing any explosive plays or big plays from the wideouts! It was a boring game, nothing to really get excited about. I want to see more creativity from the offense because right now the offense looks really boring and unprepared! It’s early and not too late to pick things up and look like a team that can compete for championships.

• Three-star 2025 receiver target Trey Brown III

Tough night for them. They looked like the young inexperienced team they are. Hopefully, it will get better as everyone gets more comfortable playing. I think the receivers played pretty well overall for the first game.

• Four-star 2025 receiver target Jayvan Boggs

My reaction to the game is I would say it was a tough game for UF and the offense started off slow and the offensive side has some things to work on and correct. They will bounce back and get some W’s.

• 2025 defensive line target Jarquez Carter

I think that the defensive line needed to get lined up faster on the ball.

• Four-star cornerback target Jameer Grimsley

It was disappointing to see a lot of crucial penalties that cost them the game. Simple plays have to be made. They should not have lost to Utah. The play from the secondary was okay, but too many big plays – especially their first play on offense, the 70-yard bomb over the top.

• Four-star 2025 offensive line target Ziyare Addison

Utah came ready to play and they looked great last night. I was surprised how they dominated the line of scrimmage. I think UF will bounce back. It’s a long season.

• 2025 receiver target Dane Jones

Utah just played a good game. That doesn’t define Florida though.

• Four-star receiver commit TJ Abrams

I think the game shouldn’t be looked at as a loss and more as a step forward in finding out what guys deserve to be where and what needs improvement. At wide receiver, I feel those guys played hard. Some missed blocks, but besides that, they balled out.

• Three-star PWO candidate Mark Faircloth

They played a really good team and once the season gets rolling I think it will start to pick up offensively once the run game gets established, then they will be electric.

• 2026 tight end target Julius Miles

Florida will bounce back like always, they’re a winning culture. For my position, I think they could have thrown it more to the tight end.

• Three-star 2025 offensive line target Mario Nash Jr.

I thought Florida played a good team last night, especially defensively. I thought that the offensive line could have communicated better as far as picking up the blitz. They played okay overall upfront. I think that the Gators will have a good season though when it all comes together.

• 2026 offensive line target Chancellor Barclay

Personally, for my position at the offensive line, I think they did pretty decent. They were getting movement up front and were giving a good amount of time to the quarterback in pass pro. For the most part, I believe their outside run game was working the most.

• 2026 quarterback target Dia Bell

Utah is a good team and a tough place to play! Penalties hurt the Gators, but there was some good stuff to build on. I thought Mertz looked good!

• 2025 four-star cornerback target Jett White

I knew going into the season they were young and anytime you have to replace a 1st rd draft pick at quarterback it’s like hitting the refresh button. They made some young mistakes, but they’re going to be just fine. They have some special young players that could be great with time. In football, you have to have a short memory to put this loss behind you and move on to game two.

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