National Signing Day has come and gone and while the 2025 class is not finished since there is a late signing period in February as well, most of the action happened this week.
Rivals is breaking down each Top 25 recruiting class and we continue here with No. 11 Florida.
MORE GATORS: Florida's 2025 recruiting class
MORE TEAM SPOTLIGHTS: No. 1 Oregon | No. 2 Texas | No. 3 Georgia | No. 4 Ohio State | No. 5 Alabama | No. 6 LSU | No. 7 Michigan | No. 8 Auburn | No. 9 Texas A&M | No. 10 Tennessee
NATIONAL SIGNING DAY: Grading the ACC | Grading the Big 12 | Grading the Big Ten | Grading the SEC | Gorney Awards | Winners and Losers | Who will be the team recruiting champ? | Who's left for the 2025 class? | Auburn beats Bama in-state | Ranking the top Group of Five signees | LSU's Kelly vents about NIL world | Live Blog | Announcement Guide
TRANSFER PORTAL OPENS MONDAY: Offensive transfers available | Defensive transfers available
WHAT WENT RIGHT ...
From the combination of Billy Napier's vote of confidence in mid-November to the Gators playing their best ball on the field thereafter, there was an instant translation into recruiting. Not just picking up blue-chip commitments, but flipping them from rival programs like Georgia, Texas, Auburn, Florida State and Miami.
It rolled all the way into the week of signing day, when class headliner and five-star safety Hylton Stubbs jumped in after a longtime pledge to Miami. Beyond the flips, Florida held on to some of its prized prospects pursued by other programs like defensive tackle Jeramiah McCloud, pass rusher Jalen Wiggins, cornerback Ben Hanks Jr. and of course legacy wideout Vernell Brown III.
WHAT WENT WRONG ...
While the final weeks of the cycle were special and somewhat unprecedented, there were more flip targets out there for Florida to chase on National Signing Day itself.
The wide receiver position was at the center of the conversation, from five-star Texas signee Jaime Ffrench to fellow top-50 overall prospect Dallas Wilson, but each stayed true to their longtime verbal commitments. The Gators also made a late run at Georgia four-star quarterback commitment Ryan Montgomery and Miami four-star wideout Joshua Moore, a former Gator commitment, to no avail.
That and the early turnover in the class, as many prospects looked beyond the program in anticipation of Napier being fired, somewhat limited the ceiling for the group.
PARTING PREDICTION
Prediction: Florida's late wins with Stubbs and former Tennessee commitment Lagonza Hayward will lead to the top safety duo to come out of the class of 2025.
We don't envision either impressive senior waiting very long to see the field for good within a secondary that has had its ups and downs of late. Stubbs is a complete player, capable of playing center field as much as he is working the alley for big hits. Hayward has some nickel traits in that he is comfortable at all three levels and offers strong ball skills in the process.
