Leonard might be one of the more special players in this year’s class. At 6-foot-2, 232 pounds, Leonard is expected to come in as a tight end and analysts are always referring to him as an athletic freak. He recently performed at the Badger Sports Elite 7-on-7 in Tampa over the weekend and word is that he was one of the best, if not the best, of the bunch down there. Eleven teams competed in the tournament, but according to Rivals.com Recruiting Analyst Barton Simmons, Leonard powered his Jacksonville-based Pro Impact team to a championship.

Simmons said Leonard, who could be considered undersized at tight end, was the top performer at the tournament. He described Leonard as being able to “literally run through” defenders that were “crawling all over him.” Simmons also said that Leonard made every play he had to to will his team to victory after victory over the weekend, helping him garner MVP honors.

“A.C. was the most dominating player in a loaded event,” Simmons said. “He’s so strong, runs good routes and he has incredibly soft hands. Essentially, he carried his team to thechampionship as a guy that could make a play even if everyone in the city knew the ball was going his way.”

This performance should only help increase Leonard’s popularity throughout the recruiting world. Leonard showed that he can compete with some of the best players in the state over the weekend and currently has offers from Miami, Florida International and Central Florida. While he’s committed to Florida, Leonard is still open to listening to other schools and currently has interest in Alabama, North Carolina and South Carolina.

One prospect fans might want to keep an eye on is Griffin, Ga., defensive end Xzavier Dickson. He lists Alabama as his leader, right now, but he’s got a plethora of schools after him. Dickson has a handful of offers and schools like Florida, Georgia, Auburn and Georgia Tech are right near the top of his list.

When I tried to get a hold of Dickson this week, his father informed me that his son won’t be conducting interviews at this time in order to give him some time to focus on school and to clear his head. Sounds like a great plan to me. Recruiting can bog down anyone, especially guys with talent like Dickson. At 6-feet-3 and 238 pounds, Dickson plays both tight end and defensive end, but could be a linebacker if he wanted to. Linebacker could be where he makes his home in college, but for now, he’s excelling on the line. After watching his film, it appears Dickson’s speed could be something he could improve on, but he still has an entire summer to work out and another season of football.

Before Dickson went silent he talked to Scout.com about some of the schools he kept the most contact with.

For all the Gator fans, this is what he had to say about Florida: “They recruit very good leaders on and off the field and they always prepare to win.” Not very telling, but it’s a start for the Gators. I think Alabama has the upper hand now, but if his recruiting is in fact slowing down and he can get on Florida’s campus the Gators have a good chance of getting even more involved.

Remember Barron Collier kicker Marvin Kloss? The place-kicker got a bit of attention when he wanted to walk-on to Florida’s football team. He was very close to getting his wish until UF’s admissions office didn’t accept him. With that, Kloss decided to walk-on at USF and compete for a starting job over the summer. He was originally offered a grayshirt by USF but thought he would have a better shot at playing with Florida.

Sunday, the Naples Daily News reported that Kloss was arrested on Friday along with another teammate after police said they stole around $8,200 from a home during a house party.

According to police reports, the victim told police several items were taken from her home between Feb. 26 and March 1, while she was out of town. Reports stated that a Nintendo Wii, an 18-karat gold bracelet, a watch and a camera were stolen.

Obviously the story is developing and more details could come out, but imagine if he was accepted by UF. Florida’s football program has seen 26 arrests during Meyer’s five-year tenure and to have a recruit fall into that category would ignite more Meyer bashing. Obviously Florida’s staff wouldn’t have shown as much interest in Kloss if this had happened before, but it would have been another distraction for Meyer to have to deal with concerning players and the law.

To Meyer’s credit, Florida’s 2010 class dodged a few other off-the-field bullets. There was Darlington, S.C., cornerback Victor Hampton, who verbally committed to Florida in February of 2009 while at Charlotte, N.C., Independence. Hampton later transferred to Darlington and off-the-field issues supposedly contributed to that. Last month, Hampton was arrested on a charge of underage drinking while at his high school. Hampton signed his Letter of Intent to play at South Carolina this fall.

Lauderdale Lakes Boyd Anderson safety Demar Dorsey was a guy who only got attention because of his on-again, off-again feelings about his Florida commitment. Dorsey was finally let go by Florida’s staff just before National Signing Day. Initially, it was thought that his uneasy commitment was the reason for his departure, but soon his criminal past surfaced and he started to get a lot more attention. Word began to spread that his troubled past might have played a bigger part in him not making it into Florida’s class. According to court records in Broward County, Dorsey was charged with two felonies while in high school. He signed his LOI with Michigan and coach Rich Rodriguez has taken some heat for giving Dorsey a scholarship.

For a program that has taken a lot of criticism of late for the negative off-the-field attention it has gotten, Meyer did a good job of bringing in a host of commitments who have kept themselves out of trouble.

Well, the Deland athlete is letting fans know there is nothing to worry about. He became Florida’s first commitment of the 2011 recruiting class after making his verbal pledge back in October and he’s not planning to change his status anytime soon.

“Florida is still No. 1,” Saunders said.

Now, he’s not gonna lie. He had a great time at FSU. He said the campus really impressed him and the coaches were saying all the right things about the idea of him being a shutdown cornerback for the Seminoles in the future.

But then get him talking about the Gators and the sound of his voice changes a bit. He’s developed a solid relationship with new assistant D.J.Durkin and thinks his skills would be best utilized in Gainesville. With his 4.5 40 speed, Saunders said he’s really drawn to Florida’s man-to-man defense and constant corner blitzes. But Saunders said it was the thought of winning multiple championships with the Gators that really swayed him to commit during his junior year. Even though Florida might have a bunch of bodies at the corner position, Saunders said he’s not worried about a little competition.

“I’m the kind of player that can change the game — shut down the other team’s best receiver or best player on the other side of the ball,” he said. “I can also come up and make tackles at times when it’s needed.”

He certainly has the confidence and “swag” to play corner at the next level.

Saunders, who is dubbed an athlete, plays offense as well. As a junior he ran for more than 1,600 yards and had 23 touchdowns. Saunders said he brought the idea of playing offense at Florida and thatDurkin said the coaches have been giving serious consideration to it.

“(Florida’s coaches) talked about it a few times so I think I’ll get the ball a few times,” he said.

Saunders said Florida and FSU are the only schools he’s been in contact with and has yet to iron out any summer camp plans.

We spoke a little on Sunday night, and while recruiting is relatively new to Gosha, he’s getting interest from some top schools. Right now, Florida and Florida State appear to be at the top of his list. Florida has offered, but FSU hasn’t. He’s also got interest in Arkansas (which has offered), Alabama, Clemson and Georgia. He might have only two offers, but that should grow after the summer.

I think Gosha has Florida in front, but he’s waiting on that FSU offer. He went to FSU’s Junior Day last weekend and said he had a “great time.” He really liked the campus and said FSU defensive line coach Odell Haggins is a major reason why he’s so interested in the Seminoles.

“He’s good,” Gosha said of Haggins. “He keeps it real.”

I met Gosha last fall when I covered one of his games, after which the opposing coach said he game-planned his entire offense to go away from whichever side Gosha lined up.

This is one of the reasons I think he’ll become a bigger name as the year progresses. He can play inside or outside, and he said that’s what has Florida defensive line coach Dan McCarney so interested in him. The two have a good relationship and are in constant contact, Gosha said.

From Day One I thought Florida was the top school for Gosha. His eyes light up when I first talked to him about the Gators and he starting laughing when I brought up the Gators Sunday. He said he could see himself playing any position on Florida’s line in the future.

“They put a lot of defensive linemen out there (in the NFL Draft), like Florida State,” he said.

Again, not much of a quote, but he’s a good kid.

Gosha, who stands 6-foot-3, 275 pounds, had 65 total tackles and 13 sacks as a junior. He’s heading to Florida and FSU for summer camps and said he’ll “definitely” be at Friday Night Lights in July. He’s set to visit Georgia on March 20 and wants to get to Alabama, where coaches have said he could be a (much) lighter version of Terrence Cody.

One prospect who currently resembles a whale shark in the recruiting world is Oviedo Hagerty’s Jeff Driskel. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound, dual-threat quarterback wowed scouts and members of the media at the U.S. Army National Combine in January and continued his combine dominance at the Elite 11 Regional QB Camp Sunday at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports. Reports are that he had one of the strongest arms at the camp and was the most fluid of any of the other particpants.

When I spoke to Driskel after he returned from Orlando, he said that he felt he did well.

“I feel like I can make all the throws on the field in the pocket or on the run,” Driskel said. “I can make some plays with my legs because I’ve got some speed.”

Since January, Driskel has gotten a lot of publicity and is considered to be one of the top prospects this year. Driskel doesn’t call it fame, but his name is “starting to blow up a little bit.”

I will make one thing clear. His name is blowing up, but his head isn’t. Driskel comes across as a very humble kid, which can be hard for a quarterback getting this much love this early.

The media has drooled over Driskel’s ability (he’s been clocked running a 4.52 in the 40), but college coaches saw enough in Driskel’s junior season — he threw for 1,427 yards and 11 touchdowns — to realize that it’s time to put the heat on him.

“They like my accuracy and they like my strong arm,” Driskel said of what college coaches have said about his skill set. “They like my poise in the pocket. Obviously they like the size as well. That never hurts.”

Driskel said he doesn’t have a list of top schools at the moment, but he’s getting the most attention to Auburn, Florida, LSU, Mississippi, USC and just picked up on offer from Tennessee Sunday. He’s already been to Junior Days at Florida and Auburn.

Being a Florida native and having that dual-threat ability, Driskel is already hearing the comparisons to one of the most famous Floridian football players — Tim Tebow. Some kids hate to be compared to past players and like to make their own name, but Driskel said he embraces the comparisons.

“I like being compared to Tim Tebow,” he said. “That’s a guy that has a great competitive mentality. He plays the game right, he’s a great leader and he’s a good person. I don’t know if I’m quite like him, but whenever I’m compared to him I like that.”

So, if he’s being compared to UF’s most decorated football player he’s certainly got some interest in the program, right? Right. Driskel said Florida has been recruiting him very hard and that he has developed a good relationship with quarterbacks coach Scot Loeffler. Driskel said the two talk once or twice a week and that he’s most impressed with the players Loeffler has been able to send to the NFL.

As far as the rest of Florida’s program, Driskel said he likes the winning tradition and the fact that the Gators compete in “the best league” in the SEC. He’s also impressed with the type of athletes Florida consistently brings in on offense.

“Even if I wasn’t a Florida guy, if Florida’s coming after you that’s a big deal,” he said.

Another thing going for Florida is its baseball program. Driskel said Meyer and baseball coach Kevin O’Sullivan have given him the green light to play both if he were to pick Florida. He’s a center fielder, and senior Matt den Dekker will be gone after this season.

Driskel said he’ll take five visits over the summer to colleges and wants to make a decision in either June or July.

“It’s definitely coming before the fall,” he said of his college decision. “I’m thinking early summer.”

I was just trying to get a couple of extra tidbits for a story I’m doing on Brown, but I got a little bit more out of the conversation and figured I’d share it with the No. 1 recruiting blog fans in the country!

Brown, who suffered through a hamstring injury this season (and pretty much every high school season he’s had), first started running in mid-February after resting since the end of Lithonia, Ga., Martin Luther King’s regular season in November. Well, Brown didn’t waste time getting back into the swing of things. He said he ran a blazing 4.4 in the 40-yard dash last week.

Um, yeah. Just a handful of days after running for the first time in almost three months, Brown is nearly up to his top speed. He recorded a 4.38 before his senior year. Brown said he felt a little tightness, but no pain after running.

However, he’s had some trouble getting his weight to stay above 200 pounds.

“I gained 10 (pounds) and lost five,” Brown said. “It’s hard to keep (the weight) on. I live with my dad, so he doesn’t cook for me all the time.”

It might be time for him to visit the McDonald’s value menu a few more times a week.

Brown will report to UF for Summer B, so he should be in town in late June. He’s hoping his weight and hamstring issues work themselves out in time for summer practices so he can have a legitimate shot at cracking the lineup in the fall.

“I’m real excited (about getting to campus),” he said. “Hopefully I get some playing time (in the fall).

“I’m a baller. If I get a chance I’m gonna turn Gainesville out.”

All that stuff you guys went through in high school ain’t squat compared to what you’ll go through in Gainesville.

“It’s always (hard to adjust) when you come in as a freshman, especially when you come in midway in January,” Trattou said. “It’s always going to be tough because no matter what you did in high school it’s not going to be the same intensity as it is here, between all the strength coaches and all the guys who have been here for a couple years.”

Florida compiled one of the best recruiting class of all time this past year, but with all that talent could come egos. Be warned, says Trattou, things won’t be easy for you guys. Not even the ones that Urban Meyer or any of his other coaches love so dearly.

Eleven of those highly-touted recruits are already on campus and are already having to go through the tough Gator workouts.

“Our (freshmen) are adjusting well and getting better,” Trattou said.

Things weren’t all about scary tales by Trattou during a nice Friday morning sit-down with he a couple of other players. Trattou does like what he sees out of UF’s top-rated defensive line class. He’ll get a chance to play with a few before he graduates and he’s ready to see them in action when they arrive.

“I’m really excited for them to get here and start working with us this summer,” he said. “They’ve got a lot of talented guys (coming in). The future looks good for the d-line at Florida.”

* * *

I caught up with two highly-regarded Florida targets this week. It’s a relatively slow time of year, but evaluations of rising seniors are starting to take shape. Two guys Gator fans should know about are Miami Northwestern quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and Punta Gorda Charlotte running back Mike Bellamy.

Bridgewater — He said he’s got “a lot of interest” in the Gators. He’s very familiar with Florida’s program and he showed last summer at Friday Night Lights. He also impressed earlier this year in Miami for a 7-on-7 camp. The question is where will he play? He’s a great athlete and has interest in playing wide receiver, but could be a very talented dual-threat quarterback at the next level. He’s gonna have to gain some weight regardless of where he plays. He’s 6-foot-3, 170 pounds. That’s great height for either position, but he’s got to put on some pounds. I think Florida might be recruting him more as an athlete and would only consider him at quarterback if a couple of bigger QB prospects don’t work out. He could be a dangerous “Wildcat” guy. Georgia is a team Bridgewater has a lot of interest in as well.

Bellamy — From the start, it seemed that Bellamy was all but committed to Florida. His Facebook page was littered with pro-Gator stuff. He even declared himself as the next great Gator running back. But things seem to have changed a bit. It appears as though Florida’s depth chart is worrying Bellamy. UF’s backfield is already crowded with juniors Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey, senior Emmanuel Moody and sophomore Mike Gillislee. True freshman Mack Brown will be on campus this fall. Bellamy would be stepping into another logjam situation as he would only be taking the place of Moody.

He wasn’t as upfront with me, but this is what Bellamy had to say about Florida to Rivals.com a few days ago: “I’m pretty much going to go where I can play and Florida is not the best place for that right now,” Bellamy said. “Too many people are trying to be Florida Gators. I’m not scared of competition because I know I can play and I have expectations to. I want to pretty much start and play early. That’s not possible there with Jeff, Chris Rainey and Mack Brown coming in with a couple other guys.”

This one isn’t over, in my opinion. Rainey could still consider jumping into the NFL Draft, so Bellamy might just need to wait it out. It is just February anyway.

Now, I’m not saying Tebow is the best passer out there or that he should be the top quarterback drafted, but I’m just not sure that a coach would change something about a player if that player is constantly winning for you.

Regardless, the negative attention Tebow has gotten concerning the NFL Draft will always come back to Meyer. He’s the head coach and he’ll have to answer those questions. But will all this negativity have an impact on who UF recruits? Will high school athletes start to really take notice of
what scouts are saying about Tebow’s ability at the next level?

Of course they should, but will it have that much of an impact on the future? Rivals.com recruiting analyst Barton Simmons says no.

“More than anything, kids are still recognizing that system as being a system where a quarterback can be successful,” Simmons said.

“Kids still think they can come in and be productive and be a part of a pretty explosive offensive there.”

Let’s not forget what Meyer has done with other quarterbacks. Alex Smith was the No. 1 overall pick at Utah, and while his NFL career hasn’t been stellar, he’s coming off arguably his best season with the San Francisco 49ers in which he passed for more than 2,300 yards and had 18 touchdowns in only 11 games. Chris Leak led the Gators to a national championship in 2006 and is the all-time leader in passing yards (11,213) at Florida. Leak hasn’t made it in the NFL, and Simmons said the NFL might be the only area Meyer will have to prove himself to prospects.

He also thinks that Tebow is too unique a player for people to throw Meyer under the bus. He’s just totally different in all parts of the game and Simmons considers him an “exception to the rules.”

The real test for Meyer will be how junior John Brantley does this fall. He’s much more of a pure passer and is about as pro-style as you can get.

Simmons said recruits won’t shy away from Florida’s program no matter where Tebow is drafted, but watching Brantley next season could have an impact on how recruits view the quarterback coaching at Florida.

“If (Brantley) can step in and be really productive, that could be huge for (recruiting),” he said.

“A lot of prospects will have their eye on him, but in my opinion, Meyer’s proven a lot without waiting on a Brantley-type.”

The St. Petersburg Times first reported Kloss was expecting to walk-on to Florida’s football team and was only waiting for UF’s admission to clear him. He had already earned a Florida Bright Futures Scholarship, which would have paid for 75 percent of his tuition, so it seemed as though we’d be seeing him kicking out on Florida’s practice field this summer.

Originally, Kloss was offered a grayshirt by South Florida, meaning he wouldn’t be able to report until January of 2011. Getting a chance to walk-on and compete at Florida interested him more, so he decided to take that path.

“If they can get me in, I’m going up there,” Kloss told the Times. “I want to play right away, and they’re a lot better (than USF) scholarship-wise with just one kicker and one punter on scholarship.”

But that all changed after a conversation with Florida interim head coach/offensive coordinator Steve Addazio on Wednesday. According to the Times, Addazio told Kloss it would be “hard to get me in” to UF this fall. With those simple words, Kloss decided to accept a walk-on offer from USF, meaning he won’t immediately be on scholarship, but he’ll be able to compete for a starting job in the fall.

“It wasn’t that hard a decision,” Kloss said. “I thought about it, sat down with my coach and my parents, and overall, I just had a better feel about USF.”

Punter Chas Henry will be a senior this fall, while place kicker Caleb Sturgis will be a junior. Luckily for the Gators, with less glaring needs for the 2011 class, Florida shouldn’t mind giving a scholarship out to a punter this year.