What are our chances of landing more package deals with either the Greens from Tampa or the trio from Ft. Lauderdale (Joyner, Cody Riggs, and Linder), or both. Do any of these prospects want to play together in college? And if one commits to us, (either Riggs or Chaz Green), would it influence the others at their school?
— Zach Abolverdi

To me, the best chance Florida has at landing any other package deal, besides Lynden Trail and Quinton Dunbar from Miami Booker T. Washington, is the Green duo. Chaz Green and Christian Green have talked up the Gators all year, and both have had Florida at the top of their lists at some point. As the fall has progressed, both have a few other schools that could be right up there with Florida. Chaz has developed a lot of interest in Tennessee lately and his decision could come down to UF and UT. Christian is looking at Florida and Georgia, but he’s been around Florida’s staff so much. Plus, the Gators are in need of playmakers in their offense, and Christian would be a great fit. Both will visit for the Florida State game next week and that could be a done deal for the Gators if Urban Meyer can work his magic at the end of the year.

It’s shouldn’t be too hard. Silly Nike Pro Combat uniforms, an epic senior day and FSU. Looks good for the Gators.

What are the chances that Florida will recruit a BIG, heavy-duty tailback such as Jalston Fowler out of Alabama. Seems that with Tim Tebow leaving next year, Florida will need at least a couple of big 240-pound tailbacks (not just blocking fullbacks): POWER up the middle, not just the small tailbacks (200 pounds is small by today’s standards). Alabama is reportedly stocking up on some big running backs, and this would add another dimension to Florida’s spread.
— Paul

Florida is playing around with Rick Burgess at fullback and has T.J. Pridemore for the next couple of seasons. I think Florida is finished recruiting at the running back/fullback spot. Mack Brown is committed, and he’s the every-down power back that Meyer has wanted for as long as he’s been at Florida. The Gators will also be awfully deep at running back next year. Five guys are expected to be on the roster come fall. Adding another body — no matter how beefy — would just make for an even more cluttered position. Plus, I don’t see Meyer going after a more of a traditional fullback in recruiting. He might be up for recruiting a linebacker (like Pridemore) and turning him into a fullback.

Who will be the biggest surprise recruit that comes to UF in this year class? Do you think we will get either or both Ronald Powell or Kenny Stills?
— Joe Secoy

I’m no psychic, so my answer is strictly opinion. If I had to pick my biggest surprise it would be UCLA commit Tony Jefferson. The Chula Vista, Calif., Eastlake safety is officially visiting Florida for the FSU game and has shown increasing interest in the Gators this fall. The problem is, I don’t think even if Jefferson wanted to decommit from the Bruins that there would be a spot for him at Florida. Word is that Gator commit Matt Elam doesn’t like the fact that Florida is talking to other safety prospects. Moving in on other guys could scare Elam off, and the staff doesn’t want that. Still, if Elam were to jump ship anyway, the Gators could go right after Jefferson. Or, since Elam is an early enrollee, the staff could put off Jefferson until after December. Not saying that will happen, but it’s a possibility. As good as I think Jefferson is, I’d be shocked to actually see him end up in this class, considering the circumstances.

I saw Shane Matthews on Pat Dooley’s show, and he was talking about the junior QB on his team throwing for over 400 yards in a game. Is he a player that the Gators are interested in for the 2011 recruiting class to give them a John Brantley-type to balance the more run-oriented Trey Burton?
— Ken Frier

GHS quarterback Ryan McGriff is averaging just under 200 yards a game, has 30 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He’s done quite well for the Hurricanes this season and even put up 445 yards against Lake Weir last week. I have yet to see him live, so I can’t really comment on what he looks like in game situations. But from what I’ve been told, he’s a solid player who is improving with every week. He’ll have to outshine a lot of talent this summer and next fall to get into the same conversation with some of the quarterbacks Florida will be after. The advantage he has is that he’s a legacy and is playing in UF’s backyard, meaning the coaches can go see him whenever they want. As far as going for a more pro-style quarterback versus a dual-threat, it will come down to what Meyer wants his offense to look like in the future. Next year won’t look like this year, but there’s no telling what it will look like once Brantley’s gone.

Has Raleigh, NC-area quarterback Garrett Leatham shown up anywhere on your radar? He’s a 6-foot-6 junior, big man for one of best basketball teams in our state, is throwing for over 400 yards per game, dominating top classification high school defenses for Middle Creek High School. Big arm, getting attention. Not a runner but can move on basketball court.
— Gatormac

I hadn’t heard anything about him until you brought him up, so I did some research on him. He averaged close to 300 yards passing this season and a lot of writers in his area considered him one of the top players around. There’s not a lot on him as far as the Internet would reveal, and I couldn’t find any video. He’s got decent stats this year, but like McGriff, he’s going to have to make a major push in the next year to get his name out there on the national scene.

But there’s more than just Shaw leaning toward picking the Gators Tuesday, it’s about how Florida needs to land Shaw. The Gators have verbal commitments from six defensive back prospects in the 2010 class. However, in my opinion, two of those prospects will end up at corner — Travon Van and Jaylen Watkins. People have talked about Demar Dorsey playing corner, but I think with his size he’ll be moved to safety. Also, Dorsey’s iffy commitment to the Gators could mean getting another defensive back prospect would be a must anyway.

Outside of the kids potentially coming in next fall, Florida will lose two senior corners in Markihe Anderson and Wondy Pierre-Louis and will likely lose junior Joe Haden to the NFL Draft. That’s three bodies gone. So, Florida will return four corners and only one — Janoris Jenkins — has starting experience. Moses Jenkins will be a senior, and he’s barely had time at the position. Freshman Jeremy Brown has done nothing in his career because of a serious back injury. Freshman Adrian Bushell has the tools to lineup opposite Janoris Jenkins, but who knows because of all the time he’s spent on special teams.

After next year, Janoris Jenkins will likely head to the draft and Moses Jenkins will be out of eligibility. Getting some extra guys at corner is essential to adding depth. Florida doesn’t want that 2007 defense showing up any time soon. Adding at least four corner prospects in this class would go a long way into making sure the defensive backfield for the Gators in the next couple of years aren’t thin.

Shaw is the top priority at the position. Ft. Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas corner Cody Riggs is good, and he’s probably still favoring the Gators, but the staff cannot pass on the opportunity to land Shaw. He’s got great size for the position with his 6-foot-1, 195-pound frame. He looks tremendously fast on tape and when I saw him up close last week, I could see the potential for growth once he gets on campus. The size combined with the speed is huge for that position. Even if Shaw commits Tuesday, landing someone like Riggs shouldn’t be a problem. Again, that would give Florida four corners for a team that plays multiple defensive backs at a time. That’s also a reason why it shouldn’t worry any of the committed corners.

Getting Shaw on Tuesday would be huge for Florida’s class. Not Tim Tebow huge, but big enough that Florida’s corner issue next season won’t look so bad.

Of course the big name that will be officially visiting is Manning, S.C. cornerback John Fulton, who is fresh off an official to Florida for the Vanderbilt game. He spent a lot of time with linebacker Brandon Spikes before and after the game. He was also talking with Urban Meyer for a good bit of time before the game. Meyer seemed more interested in speaking with him than watching pregame workouts. He’s expected to make his commitment in the next couple of weeks, and I think this will come down to South Carolina and Florida. Alabama was the early favorite, but I’m giving South Carolina a slight lead over the Gators. It’ll be too tough for Florida to try and sway him Saturday night when he’s officially visiting the other school.

Rivals.com reported that Florida State defensive end commit Darious Cummings (Titusville Astronaut) and 2011 quarterback prospect Christian LeMay (Matthews, N.C., Butler) will be in attendance as well. Cummings is interesting because he’s said he’ll be looking around with all the drama surrounding FSU’s program. He’s got an offer from Florida and is officially visiting for the FSU game. Quite interesting. LeMay is a guy that Gator fans have been talking about for some time since he visited over the summer and everyone found out that his father used to be the Gators’ chaplain. He used to have the Gators as a top school, but he’s recently come out to say they are not part of his top three schools anymore. It’s still early and there’s talk that the spread makes him a bit nervous. That could change with John Brantley taking over for Tim Tebow next year.

I saw that Ocala Trinity Catholic wide receiver Kadron Boone will visit South Carolina this weekend. Searched it out and he is expected to be in town. Florida is still pursuing him despite his commitment to Texas Tech, and if one of the staff’s top targets at the position doesn’t pan out, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Gators make a run at him.

Dunkley is the guy. He’s the one the staff wants — and probably has. He’s been on campus plenty of times, and even though he has yet to officially visit, he doesn’t really need to at this point. He probably will, but he’s in Gainesville so much that it wouldn’t even matter.

I wonder if (possibly getting Joshua Shaw) will eliminate the chances of (Cody) Riggs committing??
— Zach Abolverdi

I looked at the numbers recently and if Shaw were to commit to Florida, the Gators would have two other guys — Jaylen Watkins and Travon Van — coming in as corner prospects. Add Riggs to the equation and the Gators would have four corners in this class. That’s not a ridiculously high number. I don’t think Riggs would be deterred at all because this team plays with so many defensive backs on the field. Just check out that nifty “Joker” package. I go back to 2007 when the Gators were riddled with young guys in the defensive backfield. It hurt them because all the inexperience translated into a lot of points for other teams. If the Gators can bring all these defensive backs on campus, they’ll have time to learn and get some limited playing time. Four corners is nothing too crazy for a team to bring in when looking to add some depth in the next couple of years.

Shaw will officially visit Oklahoma this weekend. It will be his last official, so a commitment somewhere could be in the works. Calls to him the last couple of days have gone unanswered, but I’ve gotten word that Florida’s coaches feel pretty good about Shaw. He stands 6-foot-1 and would be a great addition to Florida’s defense. The Gators usually have smaller corners, and having a guy with some height and speed to match would be a plus. Even with the six defensive back commitments in the 2010 class, Florida would be foolish not to take a commitment from Shaw if he decides to make Gainesville his next home.

As a junior, Shaw had 40 total tackles, including six for loss and four interceptions. This year, Shaw is playing quarterback and defensive back and has 1,471 passing yards and 11 touchdowns. He’s added 624 yards on the ground with eight scores. I couldn’t find all of his defensive stats, but he’s grabbed couple of interceptions and has two blocked kicks.

Once Tebow is gone, Florida will head into spring practice with just two scholarship quarterbacks — redshirt sophomore John Brantley and freshman Jordan Reed. However, Reed has been working out at tight end a little this season, and while Meyer contends that he is still listed as a quarterback, there’s a chance he could be used at tight end in the future. He wasn’t the sharpest QB during summer work outs, but he’s a tremendous athlete.

So, if you take Reed out of the equation, you’re left with Brantley as the starter, and eventually rock-solid commitment Trey Burton will come in as a true freshman next summer. A lot has been made of Burton’s abilities as a quarterback. His mechanics will need improvement, but with the coaching he would get at UF, it can be fixed. He, like Reed, is a great athlete. I almost like him more as just an athlete-type player than as a quarterback because of his speed and shiftiness. All in all, Florida could have a problem under center if Brantley goes down.

With word that quarterbacks coach Scot Loeffler went up to Michigan a few weeks ago to see Detroit Inkster dual-threat Devin Gardner (a Michigan commit), Meyer was asked earlier this week if he was thinking of going after another quarterback for this class.

“It’s hard to sign more than one,” Meyer said. “It’s unusual because they usually ‘X’ each other out. We haven’t made that decision yet.

“Would like two, but I don’t know if there are two we could go get.”

It could be tough to bring in another quarterback this year. The staff went after Lakewood, Calif., quarterback Jesse Scroggins earlier this year and USC snatched him away. The Gators had a great chance with Memphis University School’s Barry Brunetti. He actually had Florida as his leader in the spring, but the Gators never offered and he chose West Virginia.

If Florida is going to go after another quarterback, Gardner is the cream of the crop this year in terms of dual-threat guys. This is definitely a down year for quarterbacks, but Gardner has great upside with is 6-foot-4, 195-pound frame. He’s a run-first type of player right now but certainly has a great arm. Gardner had nearly 2,000 yards passing with 26 touchdowns and 1,400 yards rushing with 22 scores. The issue with trying to get Gardner is that some think he’s good enough, right now, to beat out Michigan’s Tate Forcier and Denard Robinson.

Florida could also look at Miami Central’s Jeffrey Godfrey. He doesn’t have an offer from the Gators and he stands just 5-11 and weighs 167 pounds. He might translate into a better athlete prospect at the next level with that frame. But like Robinson last year, he could be a guy who surprises some under center. He threw for just under 3,000 yards and had 28 touchdowns as a junior.

Florida could wait and develop the players it will have next fall or it could go hard after Gardner. If he were to turn to the Gators, it would cover all of their bases. Stay tuned.

Notes for the weekend

Florida will have a couple of big-time visitors on campus for the Vanderbilt game. Port St. Lucie Treasure Coast linebacker Jeff Luc will be in town for an unofficial visit. This could be big for the Gators considering all the recent talk about Tennessee taking a bit of a lead on the Gators.

Got word this week that Manning, S.C., defensive back John Fulton will be in town for an official visit. Looks like he’ll be the only official for the weekend as well. That means extra, extra time with the coaches. It also figures to be a game where the Gator defense will surely look fantastic. Fulton has shown some interest in the Gators, but South Carolina is the favorite. He’s visiting the Gamecocks next week for the Florida game. If Florida can impress two weeks in a row, that will be huge, but I still give South Carolina the advantage. UF has so many defensive back prospects at the moment and South Carolina has home-state advantage. He’s planning to make a decision in the next few weeks and will enroll early.

In a surprise move, Palmdale, Calif., cornerback Joshua Shaw will pay his own way for an unofficial to Gainesville this weekend. Remember, he officially visited for the Tennessee game and his last official will be to Oklahoma next weekend. This is big for the Gators, who are apparently trying to get 50 commitments from defensive backs this year. Shaw is a tremendous athlete and if he were to try and commit in the near future, there is no way Florida would turn him down.

Pahokee receiver Chris Dunkley will be visiting Alabama this weekend for the LSU game. I still consider Florida the leader. He’ll be in town for the FSU game and probably again in December. Gators have the advantage.

Due to their offensive experience in high school, could Travon Van, Demar Dorsey, Jaylen Watkins, and/or Jordan Haden possibly play WR? On another note, what are the chances of Josh Haden coming here, and which position would he play?
— Zach Abolverdi

Of those guys, I think Van would have the best shot at playing offense for the Gators. Though, I think he’ll be more of a defensive back, but he’s got the athletic ability to play in the slot and the backfield. However, Florida will return all four running backs from this year and Mack Brown will be on campus, so that backfield will be very busy and very crowded. Florida will possibly lose cornerback Joe Haden to the NFL Draft, so his spot would be up for grabs starting this spring. The secondary is where I see all of these prospects getting the most time.

I talked to a source close to Josh Haden who said he’s not looking at Florida. The backfield is too crowded, which is smart because if he wants to play, he would have to pass a lot of bodies at UF. Nothing wrong with that. He left Boston College and wants to play as soon as he can. Even though he would have to sit out a year if he transferred to UF, Chris Rainey, Jeff Demps, Mike Gillislee and Brown could all still be on campus when he was eligible to play.

What is the situation between Joshua Shaw and Cody Riggs? It looks like we are closing in on Shaw, who is bigger and and arguably better. With Riggs, we seem to have been his leader for some time and he is a great athlete too. The problem is we can probably only take one. If Riggs tries to pull the trigger early, will we put him on hold to see what Shaw does? Who would you rather have?
— Romans 8:31

This is kind of a good problem that Florida has. If Florida can get Shaw, they’d definitely take him. Riggs appears to be a strong Florida lean right now, but who knows if he would want to wait around for Florida to see if it’s going to get a guy like Shaw. The thing with Shaw is that he’s already officially visited. Florida has already had its big selling day with him. Riggs will officially visit for the Florida State game, so if Florida’s staff is convinced that Shaw might be harder to get by then, they’ll have time to sweet talk Riggs some more.

The problem comes if the staff waits on Shaw and then loses out on Riggs because he doesn’t want to take a back seat to him. Then they could easily lose Shaw as well. I’m sure the staff is smart enough to figure ways around all that, though. Ohio State is a major player for Shaw and could be the leader right now. He’s set to announce at the Under Armour game in January.

Shaw has a couple inches on Riggs and is much heavier. In my opinion, he’s got better potential as well. Just a really talented athlete. But Riggs holds his own. He’s got great speed and would fit in with Florida’s defense all the same.

Why doesn’t a coach like Urban Meyer, call out other coaches who lie to recruits about him or his program? For example, the coaches who were/are telling recruits Urban is going to Notre Dame. The ones telling recruits that their offense is better preparation for the NFL than UF’s, with evidence to the contrary, etc. … If Lane Kiffin wants to use the media to get UT’s program talked about, Meyer should have the media grill Kiffin about his antics. It has cost UF and will in the future if someone doesn’t call him out and make him justify the comments to recruits.
— JC

Meyer doesn’t have that much to benefit from by calling out other coaches. Then it just turns into more immature games in an already immature recruiting world. I’m sure Meyer has words about other coaches and schools, but I really can’t speak for what he has said because I’ve never been there. He has taken a few shots at coaches when he’s met with the media, but not many. He’s more of a players’ guy. He’d rather talk about how players and the schemes win games, not coaches. Meyer now has the advantage of saying that his offense has won two out of three national championships, produced a potential NFL Rookie of the Year (Percy Harvin) and has the chance to win a third championship this year. I won’t sit here and be naive and think that he doesn’t call other coaches out when talking to recruits (look at Patrick Peterson and what Meyer said about LSU academics), but I don’t think that he has to come out in public and display his disdain for coaches like you’d like.

As for negative recruiting costing Florida recruits, it happens all the time. If a kid isn’t feeling a school, he won’t go there. What an opposing coach says about a program has some influence, but I don’t think it’s the biggest factor in kids defecting from other schools.

Who are the possible recruits that could jump ship, committed or not, if Charlie Strong finally gets a head coaching gig?
— Kevin

The problem with this is that if Strong gets a head coaching job, it might not happen until right before or after Florida’s bowl game, like Dan Mullen last year. The prospect who has the best relationship with Strong is Port St. Lucie Treasure Coast linebacker Jeff Luc. His relationship with Strong has been the biggest selling point in Florida’s recruitment of Luc. The issue for Florida is that Luc is an early enrollee, so if Strong situation isn’t settled in time, Luc could take the safe route and go elsewhere (Tennessee). If Strong takes a head coaching job before Luc commits anywhere, it could give Florida enough time to talk to Luc about who could replace him. If Luc values Strong’s relationship that much and will weigh his decision on what Strong does, Florida might have to work a bit harder down the road. I’m not saying Strong will take a job this year, but there’s talk about teams wanting to contact him.

Every defensive player the Gators go after has to talk to Strong, so each will be interested in his situation, but I don’t think anyone is more concerned than Luc.

As I watched from the Jacksonville Municipal press box Saturday, I couldn’t help but be impressed with one guy in red and black. Most Gator fans have to have been thinking the same thing when they saw Georgia tight end Orson Charles line up opposite the Gators’ defense: Why isn’t this guy wearing different colors? I mean, he did knock over Florida’s 2006 national championship trophy last year. He did say Florida was one of his top schools for the longest time. And he lived right down the road in Tampa.

But Georgia got the better of the Gators, snatching Charles and quarterback Aaron Murray from Tampa Plant. Murray will probably redshirt, so he didn’t get to showcase anything Saturday, but Charles did. Sure, he had a couple of false start penalties, but that doesn’t take away from his athletic ability. He was targeted three times and caught just two passes for 18 yards, but he’s a guy that just screams playmaker. On a fourth-and-3 at Florida’s 13, Georgia drew up a play just for Charles. The true freshman lined up at wide receiver and Gator cornerback Joe Haden played about 9 yards off him. Talk about respect. Charles grabbed 7 yards, helping set up the Bulldog score. He’s got 12 catches for 208 yards and a touchdown, and he’s doing much better than starter Aron White.

Against Florida, Charles split out wide a few times. He’s got the speed of a receiver and the strength of a tight end. He reminds me of a faster, thinner Aaron Hernandez. Speaking of Hernandez, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him make the jump to the NFL after the season. Who would take his place? Well, Charles could have. He would have been perfect, but he spurned Florida, and now the Gators might rely on Desmond Parks (currently redshirting) or 2010 commits Gerald Christian and Mike McFarland. Maybe even freshman quarterback Jordan Reed, who is playing around at tight end, could be an option.

Of course, Hernandez could stay and give Florida’s staff time to develop the young guys. Still, seeing Charles in Florida’s offense would have been pretty exciting. Does the name Cornelius Ingram ring a bell?

Speaking of what could have been, Tennessee receiver Nu’Keese Richardson reportedly was a no-show at Vols practice Sunday. Uh oh. Rumors have spread this year that Richardson might not be too happy in Knoxville. The transfer talk is in full swing, and UT coach Lane Kiffin will speak more about Richardson’s situation Tuesday. Richardson has 58 yards rushing and 48 yards receiving with no scores. Percy position?

That part of the state has been relatively good to Meyer and his staff, but the Gators failed to get anyone from there in last year’s class and have already missed out on a couple of big prospects from there this year.

Georgia offensive line commitment Brent Benedict (Jacksonville, Bolles), Miami defensive line commits Louis Nix (Jacksonville, Raines) and Tavadis Glenn (Jacksonville, Terry Parker), and Florida State defensive line commit Tavaris Barnes (Jacksonville, First Coast) all turned the Gators down.

Ironically, Florida’s opponent Saturday has had more success in Jax this year. Georgia has already snatched two guys out of there.

Despite his recent struggles, Meyer still views Jacksonville as one of his primary recruiting areas in the state.

“We love Jacksonville,” he said.

“Jacksonville’s been great to the Gators. That’s one of our (recruiting areas). Jacksonville, Orlando and south Florida — those are the areas that we just try to hit as hard as we possibility can.”

Reconsidering an early signing period

Meyer’s had his fair share of losses in the recruiting game. Two guys got away on National Signing Day last year, and throughout his time at Florida he’s had to cut ties with some major commits. He’s also done the same to a few other schools (see poor Notre Dame).

It comes with the territory when you can start recruiting kids almost a year before they graduate from high school.

But Meyer has never been one for an early signing period. He likes getting to know guys and getting to see them as much as possible to make sure their commitments are genuine. If there was an early signing period, it would also take away from a lot of official visits to games. That’s when guys can really see the atmosphere and get some royal treatment. Instead, you’d have way too many kids trying to officially visit over the summer, when things are a bit hectic for coaching staffs.

“You’d had 20, 30 kids visiting,” Meyer said.

With a few changes, Meyer could be interested in one.

While he’s not totally down with an early signing period, he likes the idea that an SEC coach had where if a player commits early and decides he doesn’t want to take visits, he should be allowed to sign a letter of intent — binding him to that school. I’m sure some players would be up for it, but you’re missing out on the fun of being courted and getting to travel around the country.

“The minute he visits other schools then I’d say he can’t (sign),” Meyer said.

The one thing an early signing period won’t take away from, Meyer said, is the negative recruiting schools use against other programs.

“Recruiting is recruiting,” he said. “Someone said, ‘Boy, when you talk about your graduation rate compared to another school, that’s negative recruiting.’ You never hear us talk about negative recruiting. We just think everybody goes as hard as they can and they sell their school. I don’t think an early signing period has anything to do with that stuff.”

Kiffin finding recruiting tougher in SEC

Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin’s days at USC were a walk in the park when it came to recruiting as opposed to what he’s going through in the SEC. Sure, he’s had some decent success against Florida and Alabama, but he’s finding that he’s having to work more this time around than when he just had to advertise buxom blondes and the Hollywood atmosphere in Los Angeles. Now, he’s having to compete more inside his conference than he had to when battling Pac-10 schools. His only real competition used to be outside the conference.

“When we got it going at Southern Cal we didn’t have to battle guys in our conference as much as we had to battle Florida, Texas, Alabama, Florida State, the great teams,” Kiffin said.

“The great players that we got, everybody wanted, so we had to go battle those teams. Now, we just happen to run into our conference a lot more.”

Trick or Treat

Trick: Speaking of Kiffin and his early luck, it looks like he’s got Tennessee in the driver’s seat for Port St. Lucie, Treasure Coast linebacker Jeff Luc. After Florida appeared to be out in front, the Vols have reportedly pulled ahead. I say this goes down to the wire in December with these two schools. Will Kiffin’s sweet talk prevail? Staying with the Vols, current Gator defensive back commit Demar Dorsey could be officially visiting UT this weekend. It’s not totally clear if he will, but it could happen. Pahokee receiver — and major Florida target — Chris Dunkley is also expected on campus.

Treat: Running back commit Mack Brown is all Gator. He won’t be in attendance Saturday in Jacksonville, but he’ll be watching and cheering for the Gators. He grew up a big Georgia fan, but that changed when he started rooting for Florida last year in this game. He said this week that he still gets letters and is still contacted by Georgia’s staff, but he remains solid on his UF commitment.

“I love both schools,” Brown said, but I’m committed to Florida, right now, so I have to go with the Gators.”

Treat: Rivals.com is reporting that Philadelphia, George Washington defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd is down to Florida and Ohio State. He’s probably the best defensive tackle in the country and officially visited UF early this fall. Why is this a treat? Well, Florida’s owned the Buckeyes in pretty much everything in the past few years, so it’s only natural that I feel Floyd pretty much just said he’ll be signing with UF.

Trick: Back to UT, yeah, I’m sure guys are happy about that. Tampa, Catholic offensive lineman Chaz Green, who was a suspected silent commit to Florida for a while, might be looking at Tennessee a bit harder than originally thought. I still give the Gators the edge in the end, especially with the line issues the Gators have had this year, but Kiffin and his staff has done a great job in less than a year and they are making sure to get into every Gator target — and commitment’s — ear.

Treat: Chaz’s teammate, Christian Green, is going to have a tough decision when it comes to colleges. It’s probably going to come down to Florida and Georgia, and it appears the Bulldogs have pulled up a bit. I’m still convinced that he’s still leaning toward the Gators. The receivers have struggled this year and that’s a major selling point for this year’s class. Plus, he’s been in Gainesville way too many times this year. An official visit could seal it for the Gators.

Treat: I talked to a couple of sources this week and it appears Fort Lauderdale, St. Thomas Aquinas cornerback Cody Riggs will probably end up in Gainesville. Florida has like 100 verbals from cornerbacks this year, but if Dorsey decides to go elsewhere, the staff would happily welcome Riggs. He’s visiting for the FSU game and I wouldn’t be surprised if he committed shortly after.

Trick: It’s a shame that the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party — yeah I called it by its REAL name — can’t allow official recruiting visits. Sure it’s a neutral site, but UGA coach Mark Richt said he would like to see the home team be able to invite recruits. Look at that. Not even arguing to have both schools get recruits there. Now, that’s class. It probably won’t happen, though. If the NCAA allows these two schools to do it at a neutral site, then it would have to let every school do it. Visits for the Red River Shootout and when Alabama plays someone in Atlanta. Then you’d have to do it for conference championships and bowl games. Too much paperwork.

Happy Halloween! Be safe! Look both ways before crossing the street. Don’t eat razor blades and don’t worry about the bowl full of intestines and the batch of eye balls. It’s just spaghetti and grapes/olives.

And most importantly. If you can’t laugh at yourselves, who can you laugh at?

Now, on to the questions!

How are we doing with Chaz Green and Christian Green at Tampa Catholic? Would love to see them playing together in the Orange & Blue!!
— TampaDave

From what I understand, both are still very high on the Gators. Chaz was more of a Gator lean earlier than Christian, but now it seems that both are starting to develop interest in other schools. Christian’s leaders have been Florida, Florida State and Georgia for some time. Now, Georgia and Florida are his top schools. Georgia could even be considered the leader right now. He has visited there and knows the staff quite well. Florida State was believed to be at the top in the beginning because his cousin, E.G. Green, played there, but Florida got in his ear over the summer and he had the Gators on top. FSU’s struggles on and off the field have been a concern for Christian, so this one is probably coming down to UF and UGA. Now, Chaz is a guy who could change things for his teammate. Even with Tennessee getting a lot of love from Chaz lately, I still think Florida is in the lead. He loved Knoxville, but he’s been pretty close to committing to the Gators in the past. The thing going for the Vols is that his parents went to UT. If Chaz commits to Florida, watch to see if Christian follows suit. The staff is looking to add a little depth to the offensive line, and Chaz is one of their top options. We all know about UF’s struggles at wide receiver, and Christian could also be used as a wildcat weapon.

It happens quite often that a highly touted player with high expectations came to college only to sit because of injuries suffered in high school. Do high school players generally get adequate medical attention? How much do college coaches know the injury history of high school players?
— Eugene

I think medical attention paid to high school athletes differs depending on where you are. It’s hard to say what exactly goes on when high school players have injuries. When I played soccer in high school, I pulled a muscle in my leg and my coach sent me to a clinic to get treatment — and I played soccer. I’m sure many schools have this kind of treatment ready for athletes, but some might not, depending on the amount of money the program has. Trainers and a medical staff are required for all games and practices as well.

Colleges do a lot of research on the players they recruit. These are kids who could potentially be in the program for four or five years. Florida has had some recent history with high schoolers coming in after injury. Offensive lineman Nick Alajajian had a severe ankle injury and still enrolled early. Receiver Andre Debose had that terrible hamstring injury that started at the end of his high school track season. And this year, defensive tackle Leon Orr and safety Jordan Haden will miss the rest of their senior seasons with leg injuries. Staffs know what they are getting into, and sometimes injuries just freakishly happen during or after the season. Coaching and training staffs can’t control it, but I assure you they monitor it and have a plan for those prospects once they get on campus in case the injury is more severe.

Edward, we know about Florida’s top priority guys like Jeff Luc and Chris Dunkley, but who are some sleeper guys the coaches who may not be as high in the rankings? Also, what recruit do you think Florida is able to snatch from another team’s commit list by National Signing Day?
— Brandon S.

I think Florida already has a couple of sleepers in its class in receiver Soloman Patton, athlete Travon Van and I guess, if you’re Rivals.com, safety Jonathan Dowling. Van could be the biggest one, depending on his position, because of his athleticism and speed. But, if we’re going to go with uncommitted guys, two guys that I like as sleepers in any class are cornerback Pee Wee Cobb (Auburn, Ala.) and receiver Kenny Shaw (Orlando, Dr. Phillips). Cobb has got nice size right now but could still put on a little more weight before he gets on campus. I’ve only seen a little film on him, but he’s a pretty good cover corner. I doubt he’ll be in Florida’s class, and he’s not getting much love on the national scene, but he could end up being a player in college.

Shaw is a guy with some killer speed. I think the reason he’s not getting a great deal of attention is because he’s had Florida State at the top of his list for the longest time. If it wasn’t for the drama surrounding the program right now, he’d probably be a Seminole. Now, he’s talking official visits, and I’ve even seen him at a couple of Gator games this fall. He’s a pretty athletic guy and could make a quarterback very happy in a couple of years.

The guy to watch out for as far as switching allegiances to the Gators is Aurora, Colo., Grandview defensive end Chris Martin. Martin is committed to Notre Dame, and you know the history Urban Meyer has with snatching Notre Dame recruits (see Justin Trattou and Omar Hunter). The Gators will probably lose Carlos Dunlap to the NFL Draft and Jermaine Cunningham is a senior. The Gators have some depth at the position, but there’s no way the staff turns down a stud like Martin (he’s got more than 200 tackles combined his last two seasons). There’s also a good chance that Martin will visit Florida for the Florida State game in November.

With the struggles in the WR corps and injuries to the d-line, are there any plans to recruit at least 1-2 for those positions from the junior college ranks to give immediate help for next year?
— Ken Frier

JUCO players haven’t been too kind to the Gators in recent years. Yes, Reggie Nelson was a beast and was one of the best defensive players I’ve seen in college, but it’s been pretty tough for the Gators to really benefit from JUCO transfers. Since Meyer got Nelson to stay a Gator, he’s signed quarterback Bryan Waggener (2007), receiver Carl Moore (2008) and defensive tackles Troy Epps (2008) and Edwin Herbert (2009). Waggener redshirted the 2007 season and transferred to Northern Colorado. Moore caught 14 balls for 184 yards and a touchdown last year but will probably miss this season with a back injury. Epps tore his ACL last year and has seen a little time on the line this season. Herbert has only been in for a few snaps, and defensive line coach Dan McCarney said at the beginning of the year that he wasn’t physically ready for SEC play.

All and all, the Gators have had four scholarships go to players who haven’t done a lot for the program. With that said, Florida hasn’t really dipped too far into the JUCO talent pool this year. The Gators signed prep school star Travon Van, but haven’t gotten any JUCO commits yet. The staff seemed interested in Torrance, Cali., El Camion C.C. receiver Kenbrell Thompkins, but things have cooled down between the two parties. He was a huge Gator lean for a while and even tried to commit, but it never happened. Florida has offered his teammate, defensive back Mike Harris, but that’s really the extent of the JUCO search this year.

The linebacker position is pretty critical with this recruiting class due to the loss of most of our linebackers over the next two years. Which linebacker would you want most out of the possibilities (Luc, Jordan Hicks, Christian Jones), and why? Also, who do you think we actually get?
— Romans 8:31

As far as Florida is concerned, Luc and Hicks are at the top of the list for linebackers. I think Florida will take either one — and both since they play different positions. Which one does the staff prefer? I’m not sure. Luc is a physical specimen, but Hicks might have the most potential because of his overall talent and technique. He’s also the most versatile linebacker I’ve seen. The knock on Luc is that he’s too stiff because of how muscular he is. But he’s a bull on the field and defensive coordinator Charlie Strong and he would be great together. Jones is probably the fastest one and plays the outside positions very well. Jones might have more room to grow as a player. While I think Luc is the most physically impressive — and intimidating — I think that if I had my choice, I’d have to go with Hicks. He plays more outside, but he could play in the middle and direct a defense if needed. His versatility and technique are too sound to pass up.