FLORIDA FOOTBALL & RECRUITING COVERAGE |
- Hawkins goes in-depth about his flip from Florida to Stanford
- Weekend Visitor Insider Recruiting Notebook
- Coach's Corner: Q&A with former UF assistant Red Anderson
- The Inside Scoop: Behind the scenes on Blades dismissal
- Former Florida Player Feedback: 10 Observations
- Inside the Gators: Mock Signing Class 5.0
- Former Florida Football Players share thoughts on the state of the program
- Florida's Terrific 10 Targets
- One-on-One with Steve Spurrier (Audio added)
- Where are they Now: Shane Matthews talks Florida Football
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Winter Garden (Fla.) West Orange four-star receiver Jayden Gibson became Florida's first Top 20 in-state commitment when the 6-foot-5, 190-pounder pledged to the Gators on Wednesday afternoon.
“I just want to say I appreciate all my coaches, all my friends, and my family members for supporting me,” said Gibson while in the process of making his announcement. “I wouldn't be here without y'all. I wouldn't be here without all the hard work, all the long nights and early mornings, just going hard. Without further ado, for the next three to four years I'll be taking my talents to the University of …… Florida. Baby.”
He also made sure that there was no mistaken where his commitment stands.
“I just feel like Florida’s my home. I’m all the way locked in for sure.”
Gibson told Inside the Gators late last month that he had already made his decision, he was just waiting to make his announcement.
During that interview, for the second time in two months he made mention that while Dan Mullen was a bit standoffish to begin with, he wanted to make it clear that he actually liked Mullen as a person.
When committing today, he singled Mullen out as a reason why.
“A huge amount,” replied Gibson when asked how much Mullen factored into his decision. “Coach Mullen, I feel like, is one of the smartest coaches, definitely one of the smartest offensive minds in football right now. I feel like that speaks for itself.”
Gibson spoke of the other reasons he picked the Gators.
“I feel like there's a great coaching staff already there with Coach Mullen and Coach Billy G [Billy Gonzales]. Two great coaches that I've really grown fond of, really grown to like. A program I feel like is on the up and coming. Great receivers that are already there, that we're going to be some of the best receivers in college football in the next couple of years. As well as a class coming in in 2022 that's full of great receivers that's already committed. I feel like with the quarterback as well, Nick Evers, we're going to be unstoppable.”
Gibson is the No. 170 ranked prospect in the nation according to the 247 Sports Composite and has 31 catches, 500-yards for 10 touchdowns this season.