East Coast Spotlight: Surprising recent recruiting developments
National recruiting analyst Adam Friedman reports from the East region with four surprising recruiting developments, including a couple of programs making their presence felt further from campus than normal.
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1. FLORIDA PULLS OFF TWO SURPRISES
The Gators are on an awesome run right now but two of their most surprising commitments came from Aaron Chiles and Amaris Williams. Florida getting Chiles to jump onboard during his official visit was the most surprising move so far for the entire 2024 recruiting cycle. Michigan had been viewed as the heavy favorite to land the Rivals250 linebacker out of Maryland but now he's part of a linebacker corps in Gainesville that features five-star Myles Graham and fellow Rivals250 prospect Adarius Hayes.
As for Williams, it was more the timing of his commitment that surprised, rather than the destination. The Rivals250 defensive lineman out of North Carolina had been eyeing a commitment date in July but couldn't hold off after seeing everything Florida had to offer during his official visit.
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2. GEORGIA KEEPING PUGLISI IN THE FOLD
Ryan Puglisi was the first quarterback to commit to Georgia in this class but for months the Bulldog coaches, recruits, and fans were so focused on making sure five-star and Rivals250 No. 1 Dylan Raiola committed to them that it seemed like only a matter of time before Puglisi flipped to another program. Penn State was the likeliest destination for the Avon (Conn.) Avon Old Farms star if he were to flip but there were plenty of other teams that tried to catch his attention. Puglisi had conversations with the Nittany Lions and a few other coaches but ultimately decided to stick with his original commitment, to the surprise of many.
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BULLDOGS TRAVELING NORTH
Speaking of Georgia, the back-to-back national champions seem to be reloading with more talent from the Northeast than ever before. Kirby Smart's squad holds commitments from Marcus Harrison (New York), Jordan Thomas (New Jersey) and Puglisi (Connecticut) so far, which matches the highest number of commitments from the Northeast ever for Georgia. The Bulldogs are likely to surpass that total before the end of this recruiting cycle, especially when you consider they are trending with targets like Nyier Daniels (New Jersey), Kristopher Jones (Virginia) and Chris Cole (Virginia).
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WISCONSIN FOCUSING ON THE EAST
The Badgers have always had a presence in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast but this year it's on a whole different level. Luke Fickell and his staff already have six commitments from the region and it isn't even July yet. To put this in context, Wisconsin has never signed more than eight players from the East region and that was back in the 2005 class. In the 2002 class the Badgers signed six from the East region but Wisconsin is likely to surpass that number this year.