December
Follow along with Scott Carter (@GatorsScott) on Signing Day.
The Gators expected to sign more players on Thursday, the second day of the Early Signing Period.
And they did.
Florida flipped four-star safety Dylan Purter from LSU, a significant win for the Gators in the first week with Jon Sumrall as their head coach. Purter, from Tuskegee, Ala., is a teammate of receiver Marquez Daniel, who officially signed his UF athletic aid agreement on Wednesday.
Sumrall recruited Purter while he was at Tulane and told Swamp247.com why he chose to change his pledge to LSU and sign with the Gators.
"I just love the way he interacts with his players, and he brings out the best of them," Purter told Swamp247. "Every player I talked to, they all had very great things to say about him. When I saw that, why not take the opportunity?"
Purter was ranked the No. 21 safety in the country in the 2026 class.
Versatile playmaker on defense @lil_dylan17 | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/IBz2Fr1A6H
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) December 4, 2025
Meanwhile, Florida added another defensive back in CJ Hester, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound hybrid talent from Cocoa High. He committed to the Gators in July and signed with them over Auburn, Iowa and Syracuse, among others.
A four-star recruit, Hester can play safety and cornerback. He drew interest from Iowa on the recruiting trail and was part of a state-championship winning program at Cocoa.
Hester attended Florida's victory over Florida State on Saturday.
"I think it was great getting their confidence back going against a rival team and coming out with the dub,'' Hester told GatorsOnline.com.
Big time addition to the secondary @CliftonHester14 | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/mTxCjFWlRm
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) December 4, 2025
Fort Myers defensive lineman Kendall Guervil recorded 88 tackles and 12 tackles for loss as a junior.
He started his senior year with lofty goals.
"My goal is to break the sack record,'' Guervil told the Fort Myers (Fla.) News-Press in July. "I need to find out what it is, but that's the goal."
Brick wall on the D-line @KendallGuervil | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/ILBu1UKwCl
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) December 3, 2025
Unfortunately for Guervil, he suffered a season-ending knee injury in the season opener and missed the rest of the season.
However, as a solid commitment to the Gators, Guervil remained in the plans and signed on Wednesday. He entered the season as the top-rated player in Southwest Florida according to the News-Press, his hometown newspaper.
Guervil had long been on the radar, ranking the No. 8 college prospect in the area as a sophomore, moving up to No. 3 as a junior, and finally No. 1 as a senior.
While his season did not go as planned, Guervil's status as a top college prospect remained intact.
Here is a scouting report from Andrew Ivins, director of scouting for the 247Sports network:
Athletic defensive tackle with the mass and quickness to make an impact in the middle. Tips the scales at just over 6-foot-4, 310 pounds and wears it well with a thicker trunk. Slams into opponents and frequently is the one initiating contact. Will get low in his stance with exceptional lower-body flexibility, but pad level tends to rise as play progresses, which in turn can put him in some comparable positions. Displays adequate get-off for his size and has the downhill charge to close gaps in backside pursuit. Has manufactured plenty of power in the weightroom over the years and that shows up with his bull rush as he can forklift obstacles, but needs to figure out how to get more from his 35-inch arms and big 10.25-inch hands. Enters senior year with a lower sack total compared to most of his peers, but has the tools to eventually emerge as an effective one-gap player if he can take to coaching and keep honing his craft. Could fit into a variety of different fronts and shade up in short-yardage situations. Projects as a potential multi-year contributor at the Power Four level with an NFL ceiling given how he moves with his features.
It's been a busy week for the Gators, as you are probably aware if you are reading this.
I just hopped off the phone with UF Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Danny Wuerffel to discuss more about his role in helping UF Athletic Director Scott Stricklin in the search that landed Jon Sumrall as the Gators' new head coach.
Meanwhile, I did a podcast earlier with FOX 13 Tampa Bay sports anchor Scott Smith to talk about Sumrall and the latest around the Gators.
And, hey, since this is a National Signing Day blog, let's get back to what's happening with the Gators since I posted the last update when they signed Tampa Jesuit quarterback Will Griffin.
The action has slowed down, but the Gators continue to add to their 2026 signing class with defensive lineman Kendall Guervil, interior offensive lineman G'Nivre Carr and wide receiver Davian Groce.
Guervil is a 6-foot-4, 323-pounder who the Gators fought off Texas, Miami and Florida State down the stretch.
Carr is 6-4, 309 pounds and played at the IMG Academy in Bradenton. He grew up in Ocala and attended Trinity Christian in Ocala before transferring to IMG.
Meanwhile, Groce is the highest-rated player Florida has signed today. A standout at Lone Star High in Frisco, Texas, Groce had offers from more than a dozen of the nation's top programs as one of the top 10 athletes in the nation according to 247Sports.
Baylor and Oklahoma pursued Groce hard, but after he made a late commitment to the Gators, Groce found his future home.
A mismatch for any defense @_davian0 | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/hDzLNMFjW8
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) December 3, 2025
The Gators have signed the player who has been committed the longest: Tampa Jesuit quarterback Will Griffin.
Griffin committed to the Gators on June 1, 2024, and remained firm despite the coaching change. He reaffirmed his college destination on social media earlier in the week and made it official on Wednesday morning as the 13th player to sign on Early National Signing Day.
Griffin finished his prep career as the all-time leading passer in Tampa Bay high school history. He became the 10th quarterback in state history to throw for 10,000 career yards in high school.
He’s a Gator 🐊 @WillGriffin__11 | #NSD26 pic.twitter.com/kPlHNt6XhN
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) December 3, 2025
Longtime Tampa Bay and recruiting reporter Keith Niebuhr of On3.com perhaps said it best: Griffin's high school numbers are staggering: 12,299 career yards, 143 touchdowns, 37 interceptions.
Griffin joins sophomore DJ Lagway and freshman Tramell Jones Jr. in a competitive quarterback room entering spring if the trio holds in place.
The Gators have consistently announced additions to the roster since shortly after 7 o'clock this morning.
For those counting at home, hopefully you have 12 players signed like I do (I was never great a math, so there's that).
Here are the players in the order the Gators posted their announcements on X: OL Tyler Chukuyem, WR Justin Williams, LB Malik Morris, TE Heze Kent, OT Javarii Luckas, DB CJ Bronaugh, OT Chancellor Campbell, IOL Desmond Green, DL JaReylan McCoy, DL Kevin "KJ" Ford, WR Marquez Daniel and OL Corey Brown.
As for Brown, the latest addition, his name should sound familiar. He is the younger brother of Gators freshman WR Vernell Brown III and son of former Gators DB Vernell Brown Jr. He has signed as a preferred walk-on and continues the Brown family's Gator legacy.
Brown isn't the only player signed so far who grew up wanting to play for the Gators.
Williams is a Gainesville kid, and Morris grew up in Lakeland and played at Lakeland High, which has produced many great UF players over the years. Luckas is from South Florida, growing up in Glades Central.
Still, UF's recruiting staff identified him as a loyal commit who stuck to his pledge through the coaching change, in part because he had long been a Gators fan.
Big trench presence @coreybrown352 | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/DYieOlCQJw
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) December 3, 2025
