A total of 20 starters are returning for the Florida Gators in 2009 after winning the National Championship in 08, but that doesn’t mean this year’s freshman won’t rack up large amounts of playing time. With the quality brought in at positions of need or for depth some of these young players will soon become household names in Gainesville.

Andre Debose is a five star prospect out of Seminole High School and will provide immediate impact at wideout. With the departure of Percy Harvin, Debose will be counted on to try and replace the offensive production lost with Harvin’s departure into the NFL.

Gary Brown is another five star prospect and rated third best in the country at defensive tackle. He should add solid depth behind the nation’s number-one rated defensive line. Brown managed to rack up an impressive 26 sacks during his junior year at West Gadsden High School in Quincy, Florida.

Two key prospects at offensive line should find there way onto the field. Xavier Nixon from North Carolina and Nick Alajajlian of Naples High School are both are highly-recruited offensive lineman. Nixon is rated the number-three offensive tackle and Alajajlia is rated number five in the nation at offensive guard. Both players are a little undersized coming into college and should see an increase in body mass with UF’s weight training program.

Five star recruit Jelani Jenkins should find his way into the rotation of UF’s second-best rated line backing corp. Jenkins is the top-rated outside linebacker coming out of high school, and he was rated as the number-one prospect for the state of Maryland.

Mike Gillislee should find his way into the rotation behind running backs Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey. Gillislee rated as the seventh best al-purpose back rushed for over 1000 yards during his senior year at Deland High School.

There wasn’t a large number of players in this years recruiting class, but there’s plenty of talent to make up for it. The Gators are the top-rated team going into next season and are the strong favorites to go all the way.

By: Gabe Thompson