2025 Class

Saw on the Rivals recruiting rankings, sow was at 12 and we were at 15.......... Just sayin'.....
The bias is still there for them. Saw another ranking system and they were 33rd...... Lol
Nice haul by Billy and staff.

GO GATORS!!!!

 

I think of Spikes optimistic tweet Tuesday night and it turned out. But he might have been fooled like the rest of us by a last minute switch. He’s as credible a source as you could have but it’s still an amazingly unpredictable process. Kids, reps, parents, coaches…all yanking in different directions. Believe the fax machine or whatever its equivalent is these days.

 

Sound like an average, second tier class for us. Hopefully we can get back to routine winning records.

 

Grimesley

 

Who does their rankings? The Glitter Boys? On what planet is this even remotely possible? Only on Hole World.

 

Doesn't look that way to me. We're at 11 and FSU is at 24.

 

Here we go again. People that want to dump on the UF AD, or coaches, are going to quote, cite, refer to anything that denigrates the objects of their confirmation bias/locked in opinions. Sunshine pumpers (I count myself among these) that support UF IAKOW and want only the best for UF, the staff and the players, will be mocked, minimized, etc. for having a glass-half-full view of the same events. I'm done with trying to change anyone's mind on these things. I look at the results on the field/court and give credit, and assign responsibility, in equal measure, since none of the people have changed. To watch these unhappy people state their disappointment when our kids in O&B are doing well, growing, improving, makes me feel sorry for them.

 

I wasn't sure I was going to post about the recruiting haul or not. It was just that I got sucked into the idea that we were finding a nice niche in this silly landscape only to get "shocked" that we are not playing the exact same game (allegedly). This is all on me and not the Grand Poobas. It is what it is.

IMO, what he have witnessed is a remarkable reincarnation of Napier and Company, via wins against some damn tough teams (okay, not FSU) and recruiting shifts. I think we should all realize that there are two distinct issues regarding what we witnessed working up to yesterday. The first, and I believe foremost, is that players who were wary that signing with UF was going to potentially undermine their future prospects got a good dose of courage. Good for them and good for us. And I do not doubt that Lagway's play was a big part of it. But then there is the "other side". And to that I have to tell myself to stop believing in the tooth fairy.

I am reminded, again, that we have a DAMN HUGE mess on our hands, better known as major college football. NO ONE is in charge. Just a bunch of drunken sailors running around trying to outdo themselves. I saw Napier as a place to park to allow the silliness to subside. I had hoped Year 3 was going to give folks at least a semblance of what sanity looked like while winning some nice games. Then the season began and it all kind of got flushed down the drain.

I have posted several times throughout the season that I am not sure I will be sticking around because of what I perceived was the next logical step in UF football: jump into the mess like everyone else. Damn the torpedoes, full spend ahead! That isn't what I want to do with my time and emotions.

But the momentum came in droves and I was back into the buzz mode for what is UF football. It all looked so magical. And then came reality (or some of what is the reality). As long as no one is in charge, certain players are going to game the system. Solomon Thomas and Dallas Wilson appear to be Exhibits 1 and 2 of that fact. Again, it is what it is and my emotions are all on me and not the administration. And so, I have to acknowledge that all we could muster was a Top 10-ish early signing class. Is that what we desire? Nope, but that is who we are...right now. And again, until I see a non-Bama, non-UGa, or non-Clemson actually win it all by playing this game, THEN I may accept the drunken sailor philosophy.

So, because of certain intangibles, Napier is going to get his 4th year. It feels like a re-boot of Year 3 expectations but that is the cards we have been dealt. Can he FINALLY stop taking a step backward after taking one forward? We shall see. That is about all we can do.

 

I concur Ranger. I used to debate those who are constantly negative, but as the troll population on here exploded, I dumped my paid membership and began “ignoring” them all. At no point will they relent, even when faced with overwhelming empirical data. I saw one this morning call this a second tier class of which is ridiculous. We are book ended by major programs who are in or were in on the playoffs in the recruiting rankings. Our staff won’t and rightfully so take bodies for rankings. They choose quality over quantity and it is reflected on the field.

When it comes to our AD, he has had some major egg on his face with scandals involving his hires. He should get credit for the resurgence of our 9-0 B-ball team and what CBN has accomplished. With that said, if the recent allegations against our HBB coach turn out to be founded, in my opinion it would be the ADs third strike. Like you, I pull for whoever wears our colors. Just my $.02.

 

What's wrong with acknowledging that it's a second tier class? It's certainly not elite, right?

 

Good post and this reply is not recruiting related but I must call out that in a HATED RIVALRY game, even, nay even OFTEN, a previously underperforming team can become dangerous. We have seen that happen enough in our lifetimes to acknowledge it. For the team we played Saturday, it was their last chance at redemption, their one shot to have balm for the suppurating wound that was their 2024 football season. My detestation of them in general didn't blind me to the fact that they had a pretty decent defense even as their offense was on life support most of the year. Match that with our conservative play calling AND being away from the sanctuary of the The Swamp and I believed it was possible our coaches and players might have been sleep walking into a trap.

 

Im closer to a sunshine pumper than the other end of the spectrum i hope. When i say second tier, i mean outside the same top four that have cemented themselves at the top of the recruiting for a decade and i dont mean it as a knock on our class in any way. Our recruits arent second rate in any way but there is a clear distinction between ten and 1-4. Not being negative or knocking our class but only stating the obvious. Go Gators.

 

I can't wait for someone to pass me a note that says when we have reached the exalted status of "elite". What will be required - and for how long - for us to be considered "elite"? What are the tiers that you have and are they acknowledged as objective? Is "elite" like "Top 3" for X years in a row? Wanne15 has a criteria: "Must be Top 4 for a decade." And who are the objective sources of the rankings by which "elite" is measured? Surely there are unimpeachable, data-based, qualitative and quantitative data sets upon which your "elite" rankings will be based. Are there people claiming to have objective criteria upon which to base a claim that this recruiting class is "elite"? What is "Good"? Is our class "Good", is it "Adequate" or is it "Poor"? Is it graded on the curve of where it was 2 months ago? Do "needs" factor in or is it wholly "stars" or whatever based?

 

Your definition of elite is clearly delineated at top three or something silly like that. It’s your purgative and by and large inconsistent with the vast majority of those that follow recruiting. Most consider a top 10 class in the realm of elite because the roster is capable of winning national championships. Is a championship team elite? I think most would say yes. A class is elite when it has elite talent and a high BC ratio. This checks those boxes. By your perceived definition, a class would be elite if it was number 1 because it has 50 three star players. You don’t need to respond, I’m just answering your question. Honestly, if someone doesn’t think a class in the top 7% of classes elite, it’s on them.

 

If our class is 'elite', what would you call the classes of Texas, Georgia, Oregon and Bammer?

 

I can't find the person that made this claim either.

 

Elite of course. I see any class capable of competing on any given day with any other class on the field as elite. Can they win a title? Do you believe our class isn’t capable of beating any of those schools on a Saturday with appropriate coaching? Do I believe a 25th ranked class can regularly complete with a top 10. Not really. Clemson in their hay day consistently landed in the top 10 and won a title with their “elite” talent. It’s semantics and I simply think you’re narrowing the scope to fit your needs. Your definition isn’t even wide enough to account for +/- ratings errors. Whatever that may be.

 

Would you not consider being in the top 7% as elite?
Somehow I think most people would argue if they were called second tier after performing better than 92% of everyone else

 

A class filled with a bunch of free agents and guns for hire who will bail to the next highest bidder a year later when they don’t get their way.

 

You are elite when 4 and 5 stars hit the portal without a ripple on the program. Bama alone had more 5 stars hit the portal than we have in the entire program. What also makes it elite is how it fills gaps and compliments your scheme. For example, you fill gaps on the defensive line with 3 star recruits. If you have a top 4 class because you pulled in 5 receivers you don't need, is it really elite if you didn't recruit what you need? The top 4 over-recruit and with the new caps, a chunk of them will be forced to transfer.