Impact Analysis: DBU adds another impact defensive back
Florida landed their second commitment in the last two days on Saturday when Miami (Fla.) Southridge cornerback Shawn Davis announced his pledge to the Gators. The three-star defender chose Florida over instate rival Miami, in becoming the Gators 16th verbal pledge in the 2017 recruiting class.
Inside the Gators takes a closer look at the latest addition to the class with this Impact Analysis.
The Commitment: This addition doesn’t come as a big surprise to many Florida fans as Davis has been pegged to the Gators for many months now after numerous visits to Gainesville over the last several months. However, after a couple of delays, the South Florida defender finally went public with his plans for his collegiate future by letting the public know via a released video on Twitter that he would be attending Florida. Davis is the second commitment for Florida from Southridge High School, joining tight end Kemore Gamble.
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* Gators strike gold with Davis pledge
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Impact on Class: The big need Florida had at cornerback heading into the 2017 cycle has been relieved with the commitment of Davis - the third addition at the position for the Gators. He will be joining Rivals250 members Elijah Blades and Marco Wilson. However, with Florida badly needing to restock the cornerback cupboard, there's is still work to be done. A few of the Gators top targets left on the board are Ohio State commit Shaun Wade, Rivals250 defensive back Brad Stewart, Rivals250 cornerback Ambry Thomas, Miami commit Christopher Henderson, and Georgia commit Latavious Brini.
Analyst Reaction: “Davis is a tall, angular defensive back who has a big frame and could grow into a 210-pound safety at the next level. He reads the play well and closes on the football well and outside when he's playing corner he does a good job using his length and leaping ability to high point the ball. He's not the most physical tackler and a tad awkward in run support so he needs to work on that but athletically he has good upside and could play free or strong safety depending on how he develops physically.” – Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell
Impact on Florida: This crop of incoming defensive backs is going to be coming in with the very real possibility of seeing the field early. With starting cornerbacks Jalen Tabor (likely) and Quincy Wilson (possibly) declaring for the NFL draft, it makes the need for early contributors at the defensive back position that much more of a priority. This crop of incoming freshman will be paired with 2016 signee Chris Williamson, JUCO transfer Joseph Putu, cornerback McArthur Burnett, and cornerback Christopher McWilliams.