2024 Rivals100 WR Debron Gatling talks top contenders

One of the top receivers in the 2024 cycle resides in Alpharetta, Ga.

Debron Gatling is emerging as one of the top pass-catchers in his class. The Milton High School product has over 30 offers, but favorites are beginning to emerge.

Gatling visited Alabama, Clemson, Ole Miss, Miami, and UCF this spring. Other programs such as Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas are in hot pursuit as well.

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CLASS OF 2023 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State

CLASS OF 2024 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State

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On Alabama's NFL Draft and how much he hears from the Crimson Tide: "I’ve been talking to (receivers coach Holman Wiggins) since my freshman year. I also just built a relationship with Coach (Travaris Robinson), the DB coach, I guess he’s recruiting Georgia now. So we’ve been talking for a while now. They’ve just been telling me, you see what they can do, you see what they produce, they produce some of the best receivers. That really caught my attention. (Running backs coach Robert Gillespie) too, I’ve been talking to all three of them. It makes me feel like I’m wanted. I really respect that."

On Clemson: "Really the receivers coach, Coach Tyler Grisham, because I know he can develop talent. He had my boy Dacari (Collins) down there, he developed him, Justyn Ross, kids like that. I know that they’re producing receivers."

On Miami: "(Offensive coordinator Josh Gattis) is actually the one that offered me at Michigan, so he came and offered me at Miami. I talk to about three or four coaches over there. They’ve been calling my mom and myself, well, we’ve been keeping in contact almost every week. I talk to (running backs coach Kevin Smith), Coach Gattis, and I talk to Coach (Mario) Cristobal.

On the vibe being built at Miami: "The vibe is awesome. When I went down there, I loved it. They made me feel like family. It’s like real tradition too, so everybody who played at Miami are the coaches over there. I really like that. They were just telling me about the tradition and if I go there, what will happen and how I always can come back and get a coaching job. Even if I’m retired from the league, I can come back. I really like that."

On Oklahoma: "(Receivers coach Cale Gundy), he’s been in contact with me almost every week, probably two or three times out of the week. He just offered me yesterday (May 3) because he saw me practice. He offered me after that. Been keeping in touch for like a month straight, two or three times out of the week. I really respect Coach Gundy as a receivers coach."

On being offered by a school with great receiver tradition like Oklahoma: "That means a lot. CeeDee Lamb, Hollywood Brown, all those guys came out of there. I know that Coach Gundy’s been there for a long time. He’s coached probably about every single receiver that’s in the league right now from Oklahoma. I know he can produce some real good talent."

On Ole Miss: "I talk to probably about five coaches on the coaching staff, offense and defense (receivers coach Derrick Nix, co-defensive coordinator Chris Partridge, defensive graduate assistant Buddy Brosky, cornerbacks coach Sam Carter, and analyst Aashon Larkins). They really want me. They’ve been keeping in contact with me and my mom also about two or three times out of the week. It really just means a lot to me."

On how important his mom is in the recruiting process: "She’s really important. She doesn’t want to send her son off to anywhere she can’t trust the person I’m going to be with. There coaches that are keeping in contact with me and my mom, that really sticks out to me because obviously they’re trying to learn me and my mom. That means a lot."

Gatling wants to play in a more open passing game in college. That seems to bode well for the schools such as Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Oklahoma if Brent Venables keeps up the offensive ways of Lincoln Riley. But the development of Alabama and Clemson, along with the culture at Miami, has those schools in strong contention as well. Right now this is a wide-open race with no true favorite. A summer full of visits should see the upper echelon of contenders come more into focus.