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A major reason that Florida football snapped its three-season losing streak last fall was the performance of its 2024 recruiting class, headlined by five-star quarterback DJ Lagway. But the talented play-caller was not the only one who stood out for the Gators on the field.
In fact, the class as a whole provided a huge boost to Billy Napier’s struggling roster, and the result was an 8-5 finish overall and the program’s first bowl victory since 2019. This was not lost on CBS Sports’ Chris Hummer, who recently graded the cycle for the entire Southeastern Conference and gave the Orange and Blue an “A”.
“Florida found its program future in (DJ) Lagway, who finished with 1,915 yards passing and 12 touchdowns. He’s the type of talent who can be the best overall player in college football,” he begins. But there is a lot more beneath the surface here.
Hummer listed two Gators as his “hits” in the recruiting cycle, with Lagway being one and running back Jaden Baugh earning the other honor.
“Baugh ran for 673 yards and seven touchdowns on 5.1 yards per carry,” he notes. “He’s a big back who forced 55 missed tackles on just 133 attempts.”
In Hummer’s “great start” category, he lists a septet of true freshmen: defensive lineman LJ McCray, linebackers Myles Graham and Aaron Chiles, defensive tackles Michai Boireau and D’Antre Robinson, wide receiver Tank Hawkins, and safety Gregory Smith.
“The Gators seemed to hit across the board in the 2024 class. Either Graham or Chiles projects to start next season. Same with Robinson at DT and possibly McCray — a former five-star recruit — somewhere along the defensive line. If Florida manages to find a way back under Billy Napier, it’ll be because of its 2024 class.”
Hummer also points to offensive linemen Jason Zandamela and Roderick Kearney as players to watch in 2025.
From an objective…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/florida-footballs-2024-freshman-class-200330079.html
Author : Gators Wire
Publish date : 2025-03-05 20:03:00
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