Men's Tennis Recruiting

The team picked up a great addition yesterday in Jonah Braswell. I know Jonah's father Ty and the family is first rate. Jonah's older brother Micah is a sophomore at the University of Texas and plays in the top three of their lineup. Jonah won the mythical "world junior title" in 2020 by annexing the Orange Bowl title. Jonah will fit right into Shelton's program when he arrives in the fall of 2022.
In addition to Jonah, the Gators have a commitment from senior Axel Nevre, who plays number one for Notre Dame. These two players will help fill the void that will be created next season with the departure of five or possible six seniors.
The team hopes to add another player or two but it does not look like that will happen in the early signing period.

 

There were good players who came for visits who went else where, at least one of whom I know Florida would have signed but yes for the most part the top players Florida wants are out there. We are now in a position where we can wait on those players to make a decision before moving in a different direction. Florida is now a men's tennis destination program. However, it is very tough out there right now and there are no guarantees. I think a few of the best junior players still in play might even wait until quite late to make a decision as to whether to play collegiate tennis or turn pro. A few will even wait until the spring of 2022 to enter college depending on how the current season goes on the ITF M15 and M25 pro circuit for them.

 

Don't forget Riffice could use his covid year of eligibility next season if he choses to do so. Yes, I agree that the players you name are quite capable of fueling any team to a top ten finish! Another overlooked asset our program has is the excellent player evaluation and subsequent development that occurs. Most people felt Bonetto was just another solid player we picked up when he signed from Oregon with us last year. Turns out he could not only be a good player, but a top player with another year of development in Coach Shelton's program. Nate has shown how deep his potential is during the fall tournament season. I can tell you that the coaches are very high on him. There will be additional signings for next season, and hopefully they will be the players Florida has been recruiting hard for a long time now who decide to cast their lot with the Gators for 2022.

 

He came for a visit this week. One more to sign

 

As of right now we have three incoming players: Jonah Braswell from Sarasota
Axel Nefve from Notre Dame, and Tanapatt Nirundorn from Thailand. If we do sign another, and that is far from certain, it most likely will be through the portal. Returning players are Ben Shelton, Lukas Greif, Nate Bonetto, Abedallah Shelbayh, and Will Grant.

 

Ben Shelton will not turn pro next season. He entered college early after only spending 3 years at Buchholz High. His degree is important to he and his family. He has been looking forward to being a Gator since he was nine years old, and right now just wants to experience everything our great University has to offer. Yes, he is currently the number one ranked player in division one collegiate tennis, but he knows he still has plenty to learn as he matures as a person and player. We are very fortunate to have his father and Ben as part of our university and tennis program.

 

Coach Stump is not going to coach tennis anymore. He has a large young family and he is going to try his hand at employment that allows himself some time at home with his family. Yes it is a huge loss and one we hate to see, but I also understand Tanner's situation and his need to have more time to be with his three children as they grow.

 

The addition of Zgola and Orlikowski is huge. With the squad number in the fall of seven, and the possibility that Aboud will not return for second semester, we needed a boost. Polish junior tennis is improving with leaps and bounds. I expect one or both of these players to contribute immediately. By the way new associate head coach Mat Cloer has been unbelievable in salvaging our recruiting year and moving this program along throughout the fall season. His contacts with the USTA are immense, and we hope to add an ATP tournament in Gainesville in a year or two. It will be a rebuilding year, but we just added some important bullets to the gator men's tennis gun!