Florida WR commit still likely

Louis Murphy, the two-way star for St. Petersburg (Fla.) Lakewood High, committed to Florida in July. Now, after the recent firing of Coach Ron Zook, he says that he still anticipates ending up a Gator.

“After the whole thing with coach Zook I sort of opened things up again,” Murphy said. “But I’m probably still sticking with them. I look coach Zook, and I know he’ll land on his feet wherever he ends up. Right now I’m just looking to make sure that Florida brings in another good coach that wants to win. I’m still talking to N.C. State, Florida State, Louisville, Maryland, Miami, Iowa and Tennessee.”

Murphy is now more certain that he will make some official visits, but he said that location could also be a narrowing factor in his decision, if he does decide to consider other schools.

“My mom wants me to stay close to home, so I’m probably only considering a few other schools with Florida,” he said. “FSU, N.C. State I might consider. I remember growing up and watching FSU here in Florida, and I like the passing game and the chemistry between players and coaches at N.C. State.

I’m also going to take some official visits after the season is over. I’m going to visit Florida, FSU, probably Miami, Tennessee and N.C. State. But I’m just focusing on the season right now.”

Relatives could also play a role in Murphy’s decision, with one in particular working on swaying his pledge.

“My cousin, Chris (C.C.) Davis is a wide receiver for Florida State, and he talks to me about FSU all the time,” Murphy said. “I think he’d really like to get me there with him.”

While Lakewood’s season hasn’t gone the way Murphy and his teammates had hoped, it hasn’t kept the 6-foot-3 receiver from being effective. After a shoulder injury to the team’s starting quarterback limited the number of passes Murphy was getting, he found other ways to make a difference in games.

“We didn’t have things go the way we planned, and we’re only 2-5 right now,” he said. “But I’ve been doing fine. I’m getting at least one or two passes a game, and I’ve done a lot on defense and special teams. I have one interception return for a touchdown and a kickoff return for a touchdown. I also have gotten lots of tackles at free safety.”