There have been some negative headlines recently surrounding the Florida program and head coach Billy Napier, including a lawsuit from a former recruit. Despite that, Napier and the Gators have still been able to add plenty of talent to the roster.
Napier explained this during the SEC spring meetings, explaining that since getting to Florida they’ve worked hard to establish their culture and players see that in the recruiting process.
“I think, ultimately, we’ve got a staff and an organization that’s worked really hard,” Billy Napier said. “We’ve added 35 players to our team. 20 high school players. 15 transfer players. We wouldn’t have been able to do that if we didn’t have a healthy culture, if we didn’t have good systems, if we didn’t have a good product to sell.”
Billy Napier and Florida put together the 10th-ranked recruiting class overall and the seventh-ranked recruiting class in the SEC during the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking. That’s a class that includes two five-star recruits in quarterback DJ Lagway and defensive lineman LJ McCray.
Florida has also been very active in the Transfer Portal. There, the Gators’ 2024 transfer class is ranked 18th overall in the On3 College Football Team Transfer Portal Rankings. Among the transfers into the class, nine are coming in from power conference programs.
“So, again, I think it’s all a part of we’ve been working for two and a half years here to improve consistently all parts of what we do, and I think our ability to add quality players to our team is a reflection of that,” Napier said. “So, I think there’s a difference between outside narrative and what people experience when they come to our campus, they interact with our people, they observe our processes, and I think that’s a been proven throughout the recruiting process.”
Many of the questions that Billy Napier is dealing with stem from the lawsuit against him and a top booster of the school by Jaden Rashada, a former top quarterback recruit who ended up at Arizona State before transferring to Georgia. The lawsuit itself is over an NIL dispute.
Billy Napier explains how Jaden Rashada lawsuit impacts current recruiting
Billy Napier has directly addressed how the Jaden Rashada lawsuit is currently impacting the team’s recruiting.
“A lot of this narrative has been out there for a long time. I think we got that question two years ago, or a year and a half ago … So, look, we’re gonna keep moving forward. I mean, this process has been ongoing. I think, ultimately, the NCAA process. So you know, we can’t say much more than that,” Napier said.
“I think ultimately, we have to treat all parts of our organization, recruits, families, we have to treat them just like we treat the media. So the big thing is … I mean, just real thankful for the university support. And we’ve got confidence in our legal team.”
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