The University of Florida’s 2010 recruiting class, ranked #1 by all the top recruiting sites, could very well mean another national title, or two, in the near future. Is it too early to project what the class will actually do? We know that all these guys won’t pan out. Right? They never do. Right? Well of course not. That’s the point
The 2006 class, ranked #2 by rivals.com, paid immediate dividends. Percy Harvin was a weapon on the day he stepped on campus. Tim Tebow soon found a way to contribute as well. He became the “Wildcat” QB, brought in to make critical short yardage plays. Without them the Gators do not win the 2006 BCS Championship. Then of course this class had several key players who were instrumental in winning the 2008 BCS Championship. That’s a #2 class.
Looking back at that class, Florida signed 27 players. There were four 5* commits, fourteen 4* commits, and five 3* commits. The class accumulated 2901 points on rivals points rating system. I confess I have no idea how they calculate those points, but since I’m going to stick with rivals, I’m comparing apples to apples here. Out of the 27 players, Riley Cooper, Jermaine Cunningham, Dustin Doe, Percy Harvin, Brandon James, Brandon Spikes, and Tim Tebow became major contributors. That’s it. Everybody else was either a role player or a bust. So 7 major contributors out of a class of 27 players in a #2 ranked class, was parlayed into a national title the very first year and another one in year 3. Not to mention another near miss in year 4. Now there were 10 other players who did contribute. But that means there were 10 players who did very little or nothing.
In 2007, UF’s class was ranked #1, with 2959 points. It also had 27 players in it. It had four 5* players, sixteen 4* players, and seven 3* players. Ahmad Black, John Brantley, Carlos Dunlap, Joe Haden, Chas Henry, Aaron Hernandez, the Pouncey twins, Chris Rainey, Deonte Thompson, and Major Wright were the stars of this class. So that’s 11 out of 27.
2008, UF was ranked #3 at 2600 points. (Alabama was ranked #1). four 5* guys, twelve 4*, and four 3* guys in this one. The name players that have contributed so far are, Jeff Demps, Will Hill, Janoris Jenkins, and Caleb Sturgis. Of course it could produce a few more players this year. It’s still too early to close the book on this one. But two years into it and there are five guys out of 22.
2009 was a small class. It had only 16 players. Three 5*, nine 4*, four 3* players in that one. So far, none of them have been a major factor.
That brings us to this year’s class, which could still get larger before National Signing Day. So far it has 26 players committed for a total of 2931 points. The #2 rated class is Texas at 2424 points. So UF is a full 500+ points ahead of everyone so far. Four 5*, seventeen 4*, and four 3* guys in this one. So how many does UF need out of this class to become star players for this class to be a major factor? Ten? Maybe not even that many? The Gators can still add two more to this already staggering class. There are a few players at the top of the class that UF is right at the top of those player’s lists.
So going by what we’ve already seen, how long before the Gators add another crystal football to the trophy case? Those rivals who have been eagerly awaiting the post-Tebow era are in for a rude awakening.
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