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Florida schools look to finish strong

By Jenna Sweeney
SouthernPigskin.com
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The Sunshine State is a talent hotbed and it is no surprise that Florida, Florida State, and Miami are all in a great position to finish with impressive recruiting classes.

The end is coming! The end of the 2012 college football recruiting season that is. With just one weekend left before National Signing Day (February 1st), football coaches across the country are doing everything in their power to win over as many top high school football prospects as they can. In Florida, the big three in-state schools are working hard to finish strong. The Sunshine State is a talent hotbed and it is no surprise that Florida, Florida State, and Miami are all in a great position to finish with impressive recruiting classes. The three schools also happen to be fighting over some of the same players.

Florida head coach Will Muschamp and his staff are looking to fill up their class with some talented recruits. The Gators will be visiting five-star ATH Josh Harvey-Clemons, five-star ATH Nelson Agholor and five-star Florida State commit Dante Fowler Jr. before National Signing Day. The Gators already have 20 verbal commitments, including the top rated DE, OL, and TE in the nation. Despite already having 20 commitments, Florida still has plenty of room in their class. Most of the players left on Florida’s board will be making their college choices known on National Signing Day. The Gators are thought to be high on the lists of prospects like five-star CB Tracy Howard, five-star WR Stefon Diggs, and five-star DE Darius Hamilton. The Gators are expected to finish strong and could end up with a top 5 recruiting class.

Florida State currently has 16 verbal commitments. Top ranked DT Mario Edwards and top ranked QB Jameis Winston are among some of the highly rated recruits committed to the Seminoles. Coach Jimbo Fisher and the Seminoles are trying to add players like five-star DT Eddie Goldman, four-star CB Ronald Darby, five-star ATH Josh Harvey-Clemons, and five-star CB Tracy Howard. Josh Harvey-Clemons added the Seminoles to his list of finalists after being impressed on his visit to Florida State’s campus last weekend. The Seminoles continued to push for Harvey-Clemons by visiting him Thursday at his high school. Florida State’s recruiting class is shaping up to be very impressive. They are in a great position to finish with a top class.

Miami’s coach, Al Golden, is hitting the recruiting trail hard this weekend. The Hurricanes will host several highly rated prospects. Among these visitors are five-star CB Tracy Howard, five-star DE Darius Hamilton, and five-star ATH Josh Harvey-Clemons. The Canes have 31 verbal commitments, including top ranked RB Randy Johnson, four-star DB Deon Bush, and four-star DE Tyriq McCord. Miami is in line to finish with a very talented class.

With this many hot prospects undecided, National Signing Day is promising to be an exciting day. In the remaining days leading up to National Signing Day, Will Muschamp, Jimbo Fisher, and Al Golden will be pulling out all of the stops. Now that the finish line is in sight, these coaches will be doing everything that they can to reel in as many big fish as possible.
 

Jenna Sweeney - Jenna Sweeney is a current student at the University of Florida majoring in English. She was born and raised in the Sunshine State and has been a lifelong Gator fan. She has been playing sports since she was six years old and was the starting pitcher on her high school softball team. She is a huge fan of all college sports, especially football and avidly follows recruiting.