Florida keeps coming up just short on elite recruits, and the latest reminder is in the 2027 class. The Gators had five-star prospects Jalen Brewster and Easton Royal on campus last month for official visits, but on the surface it does not look like either one is headed to Gainesville.
That sent the conversation back through recent cycles and the biggest names Florida couldn’t quite land, even after getting them on campus. The common thread is pretty simple: the Gators got real attention from some of the best players in the country, but the final decision kept going somewhere else.
In 2026, the highest-rated player who officially visited Florida before signing elsewhere was Luke Wafle, the No. 6 overall prospect and a five-star EDGE who ended up at USC. Florida hosted him in mid-May of 2025, and he left with the kind of polite praise recruits usually give after a visit, including the familiar line that Florida “definitely improved their chances.”
In the end, though, he never looked especially close to becoming a Gator. As a true freshman, he is rated 82 overall in CFB 27.
The 2025 cycle brought another painful miss in Na'eem Offord, the No. 13 overall player and a five-star cornerback who chose Oregon. Florida did have another major defensive back target in DJ Pickett, and the Gators seemed to build a lot of early momentum with the Zephyrhills standout.
But Pickett never made an official visit to Gainesville. His profile shows only an unofficial visit after he had already committed to LSU, and that came for the infamous Florida vs.
Miami game of 2024.
Offord was the top-rated prospect who actually took an official visit. He came to Gainesville in November of 2024 during the weekend of Florida’s win over LSU, but the result did not swing him. He signed with Oregon and, as a true freshman, played 245 snaps with a PFF grade of 58.2.
The 2024 class had Jeremiah Smith at the top of the list, and Florida was in the picture more often than almost anyone else. The No. 1 overall player seemed to be in Gainesville constantly, showing up for a seven-on-seven tournament, a track meet, and unofficial visits. 247 lists five visits to Gainesville during his recruitment, but the Gators never made the kind of move that mattered. Smith ended up at Ohio State, where he quickly became one of the best wide receivers in the country.
Florida’s 2023 miss was Francis Mauigoa, the No. 10 overall prospect and an offensive tackle who wound up at Miami. Keon Keeley gets an honorary mention in that cycle, since the Tampa native made several unofficial trips to Gainesville, including one after he was crystal balled to Alabama. But his profile does not show an official visit to Florida.
Mauigoa, meanwhile, was a major target as Billy Napier tried to land his first big-name recruit after taking over as head coach. Florida pushed hard, but Mario Critobol won out, a result that became a metaphor for the Billy Napier Era.
Mauigoa took an official visit to Gainesville in June of 2021, and even after he named a top three that did not include Florida, he returned for the 2021 game against Alabama, a narrow Florida loss. As the defeats piled up that season, it became clear the Gators were not going to get him, and he eventually committed to Texas A&M.
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