Florida-LSU Recruiting Battles
Considering that they are in different divisions within the SEC, Florida and LSU actually face off on the recruiting trail more than you might think.
Here is a breakdown of three battles that each team has won as well as three prospects they are going head to head for this recruiting cycle.
THREE BATTLES FLORIDA WON
This former Rivals100 signal caller was committed to LSU for quite some time. After Florida made a coaching change from the defensive minded Will Muschamp to the offensive minded Jim McElwain the Gators became much more of a factor. Little by little Florida was able to chip away at Franks pledge to the Tigers before flipping his commitment just before the cut off for early enrollment.
Though Florida was the odds on favorite from the start, LSU was a factor for this former five-star all the way to the very end. Jefferson officially visited Baton Rouge the final weekend before National Signing Day. In the end Jefferson inked with the Gators during a national ESPN broadcast on Signing Day.
He didn't make it out of the summer before his senior season uncommitted - as he pledged to Florida before the start of the season. However, before he got that far along in the process the former Rivals100 defensive back named LSU as one of his top four schools in the spring before his commitment to the Gators.
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THREE BATTLES LSU WON
He officially visited Florida and LSU on back to back weekends back in January 2013. The visits weren't the only thing that was close in the race to sign him. Many predicted that he would ink with the Gators. Actually, he supposedly was silently committed to Florida, but was upset when a UF recruiting support staff member mistakenly let his commitment out too early. He himself said he didn't settle on LSU until two minutes before he actually signed. He was included in Rivals Top Five Signing Day Surprises that year.
Dillon was actually pledged to Florida early on in the process and the Gators fought to hold onto Dillon’s commitment all the way thorough the coaching change from Muschamp to McElwain. However, Dillon chose to stay close to home when he chose to sign with the Tigers and not the Gators.
It isn't very often that a team goes into Louisiana with the belief that they can walk away with a prospect LSU covets. However, this Rivals100 member was a guy the Florida staff felt good about being able to pull all the way up until very late in the process. Fulton grew up in a house full of huge LSU fans, but was always smitten with the Gators and their pitch of early playing time. Florida received the last official visit the weekend before Signing Day, but as is almost always the case with Bayou State kids, he decided to stay home in the end.
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THREE BATTLES THIS CYCLE
Once the coaching shakeup took place at LSU, Florida attempted to take advantage of it, offering the four-star big man days after Les Miles was fired. Charles seems very solid to the Tigers despite the coaching change, but has said that he plans to officially visit Florida sometime in December.
Florida was a finalist for the Rivals100 safety before he committed to LSU and have remained in touch since his verbal pledge. Florida has been trying to get Delpit on campus for an official visit before he enrolls early. The status of his commitment could depend on who the Tigers hire as their next head coach. Just a couple of weeks ago he mentioned that he could take a December official visit with Florida.
Finally, here's a battle where Florida isn't the underdog. Actually, the Gators seem to be the team sitting on top for this four-star defensive back. The Tigers have offered, but haven’t been seen as much of a player here, as their offer came much later than a lot of other big time programs. Perhaps the new head coach LSU hires could make the Tigers more of a player.