Florida coach Dan Mullen and his staff signed eight Rivals 250 members during the 2020 recruiting cycle, including a pair of five-star prospects and six four-stars. Those signees were Gervon Dexter, Derek Wingo, Jahari Rogers, Xzavier Henderson, Rashad Torrence II, Ja’Quavion Fraziers, Anthony Richardson and Lamar Goods.

Gators Territory takes a look at those signees and breaks down the expectations for each incoming freshman.

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Dexter was one of Florida’s two five-star signees in the class, and it’s easy to understand why. Dexter possesses a unique blend of size, quickness and athleticism at 6-foot-6, 276 pounds, with a quick first step and the ability to bend. The Gators have a need on their defensive line with the loss of Jabari Zuniga and Adam Shuler to the NFL. Though Zach Carter looks to be primed for a breakout season as Zuniga's replacement, Dexter is just too freakish of a prospect to keep off the field — even as a true freshman. If he’s able to grasp the concepts he needs to learn as far as scheme and assignments, expect to see him in the defensive line rotation this upcoming fall as a strongside defensive end or tackle. He may not put up eye-popping numbers, but I could see him racking up 20-plus tackles with a couple sacks and 5-10 tackles for loss.

Wingo is the other five-star signee for the Gators and will look to fill a big void. With the departure of David Reese II, the team’s defensive leader at MLB, Wingo could see the field sooner rather than later. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound linebacker is an extremely smart and athletic player who could project at any of the three spots. With outstanding leadership traits, he could also step in and provide a vocal presence on defense. His teammates will likely gravitate toward him, and he’ll take on that aspect of Reese’s role almost effortlessly. Like Dexter, Wingo is far too talented to be on the bench. I don’t think he opens up the season as a starter at LB, but he will be in the rotation and could take over one of the spots by season’s end.

Rogers enrolled early and was set to go through spring ball before COVID-19 shut everything down. Participating in those practices would have undoubtedly helped his chances of making an impact this fall, but he still walks into a pretty deep cornerback room. Florida returns projected starters Marco Wilson and Kaiir Elam, as well as Jaydon Hill, Chester Kimbrough and C.J. McWilliams. However, the UF coaches have shown they like to rotate players across the secondary and are even willing to play freshmen if they’re ready. Trey Dean took over for the injured Marco Wilson in 2018, while Kaiir Elam and Chester Kimbrough both got playing time last season. Barring an injury bug biting the Gators at corner, I doubt Jahari makes a huge impact and could even see him taking a redshirt. If he was to avoid that, it would be with special teams and rotational play in several games (ala Hill and Kimbrough).

Henderson was the prized receiver Florida landed in the last cycle, and for good reason. At 6-foot-4, 185 pounds, he’s a tall, lengthy wideout who can take the top off a defense with his elite level speed and excellent ball skills. As far as his expectations, you’ll see him in the WR rotation throughout the year — just not as a starter. With the Gators returning Trevon Grimes, Jacob Copeland and Kadarius Toney, it will be hard for Henderson to crack the lineup. He also has to compete with Ja’Markis Weston, Trent Whittemore and Dionte Marks, all of whom redshirted last year. That trio should step into much bigger roles having been in the program, weight room and playbook for a year. With that being said, I do think Henderson will have a couple moments during the season where he flashes the skill set that had Nick Saban and Dabo Swinney calling his phone.

Torrence was another prospect who enrolled in January before the shutdown. He comes in at a position that has been one of the weak links of Florida’s defense. Had he gone through spring ball, Torrance could have pushed some of the older players for some significant snaps as more of an in-the-box safety. With spring playing out the way it did, the majority of his action as a freshman will now come on special teams. He’s a player that flies around the field and isn’t afraid to deliver a crushing blow. For that reason, I think he will excel on the kickoff team and be a special teams ace for the Gators.

Fraziers is another big-time receiver the Gators were able to land in their 2020 class, and expect him to have an impact similar to fellow signee Henderson. Baby Jay, as he likes to go by, is a big, physical wideout who will make contested catches over the middle of the field and can go up and get the ball with his 6-foot-4 frame. At almost 200 pounds, he’s also a very good blocker and that will go a long way with getting him on the field early under Mullen and position coach Billy Gonzales. I wouldn’t expect the Under Armour All-American to unseat a starter, but Gonzales likes to rotate his receivers a lot and Fraziers will benefit from that system.

Richardson was one of just three signees that participated in several practices leading up to Florida’s bowl game. The information coming out of those sessions was that Richardson made a strong first impression and will be an outstanding player for the Gators — in due time. With Florida returning Kyle Trask and Emory Jones at QB, Richardson won’t touch the field more than four games so that he retains his redshirt. Mullen has always been the type of coach to make sure his quarterbacks have a couple years to get comfortable in the system before he hands them the keys. There’s no reason for that to change with Richardson.

Goods was another early enrollee for the Gators who missed spring ball. Regardless of that setback, he was always destined for a redshirt. He’s a big kid at 6-foot-3, 302 pounds and projects as an interior defensive lineman. With Florida returning Kyree Campbell, TJ Slaton and Marlon Dunlap, coupled with Carter having the versatility to slide inside and the addition of Dexter, I think Goods will be far enough down on the depth chart when the season rolls around that we won’t see him in more than a few games this year.