Priority Rivals250 DT releases his top two, with Florida included
It is down to a pair of schools for Rivals250 defensive tackle Leonard Taylor.
To kick off the week on Monday, Taylor revealed via social media that the two finalists in his recruitment are Florida and Miami. This is no surprise as those are the only programs that have received FutureCast predictions, with a handful of them in UF's favor while a couple of those have gone to the Hurricanes.
UM didn't land in his top five back in December, but has gained significant ground since the beginning of the year and made his final five in May. Florida, on the other hand, has been viewed as the prohibitive favorite to land Taylor for several months, though the Hurricanes have emerged as a legitimate threat in his recruitment.
One of the biggest factors as to why Miami has elevated themselves for Taylor recently is the prolonged dead period. Mike Manasco, who is his head coach at Miami Palmetto Senior High School, says the Hurricanes have a "great advantage" because the coronavirus pandemic has kept Taylor and his fellow teammates at home instead of taking trips elsewhere.
Even with this being the case, I'm not changing my thoughts on the No. 12 DT in the country, who I put in a FutureCast prediction in favor of Florida back in October. I still believe his relationship with David Turner is stronger than with any other coach in his recruitment, and he's been on record saying that UF is the staff he has the best relationship with.
Also, despite visiting the Swamp roughly a handful of times over the past 12 months, Taylor conducted a virtual visit with the Gators during the spring. During the time with the program, Taylor was given a game plan for how Florida would treat him if he ultimately wound up in Gainesville at the next level.
"They were just showing me stuff, getting me reading for if I came," Taylor previously told Rivals' Rob Cassidy. "They were showing me the educational stuff this time. They were just showing me how much of a good spot it is for me. They were showing me how loved and taken care of I’ll be on campus. It was a good talk."
This battle is a lot closer than it was at the beginning of 2020, but I still have UF as the school in the best position to sign Taylor. Once the dead period is over and he gets back in town, I believe that will be enough to possibly seal the deal with him.
Stay tuned to GatorsTerritory.