After making his first trip to campus on Saturday, Macon (Ga.) Tattnall Square Academy four-star defensive lineman Zavion Hardy said that there were several things that made an impression on him.
"There were a lot of things that I really enjoyed," said Hardy. "Getting to go to the basketball game and they didn't have any players in there, but them giving us a demonstration in the weight room of the kind of workout their players do really stood out."
Though he said those two things stood out, it was his time with the coaches that was his highlight.
Hardy said he spent the most time around Jamar Chaney, Sean Spencer, and Billy Napier.
"The energy from the coaches was really different," explained Hardy. "I was with Coach Spencer and we went over some of my film and he pointed out some of the things he thinks I do really good and he showed me some things where he thinks he could develop me to be better."
With Napier himself playing his football in the Peach State, he has a natural kinship with Hardy.
"We just talked about the school and how I would fit with Florida," said Hardy. "We talked about my hometown [Macon] and how in those small Georgia towns not a lot of people make it out, but I have a shot to do big things."
Two weeks ago the 6-foot-5, 260-pounder released a top eight which included, Central Florida, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Jackson State, Miami, Ole Miss, and South Carolina.
TOP 8 ?‼️‼️ pic.twitter.com/3IP3E67SWy
— Zay Hardy (@hardy_zavion) February 22, 2022
On Tuesday night he wanted to clarify something.
"Those are the schools that communicate with me the most, but they aren't all the leaders," explained Hardy. "Florida was my first visit and I'm going to Ole Miss on the [March] 26th."
The obvious question is, where do the Gators stand after the weekend?
"I got that close bond with Florida, but I'm not releasing all that [if there are any leaders] yet," said Hardy.
Hardy is the No. 100 ranked prospect in the nation according to the On3 Consensus.
The Inside Scoop: He gave out a little laugh when he replied to the question of what the visit did for Florida's chances and replied that he wouldn't release that yet. I think that bodes well for saying that the Gators moved up his board. As always though, depending on how high up he is on their board, you always have to worry about Georgia when it comes to Peach State prospects, especially defensive linemen when you factor in that they may have three taken from the position in the first round of this next NFL draft.
UF dropped pics?? @GatorsFB pic.twitter.com/UV527NLtnw
— Zay Hardy (@hardy_zavion) March 8, 2022