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SEC power is new leader for 2018 four-star Radley-Hiles

Brendan Radley-Hiles

Brendan Radley-Hiles has a new frontrunner and Florida fans should be smiling.

The 2018 four-star defensive back from Calabasas, Calif., said Wednesday afternoon that the Gators have moved ahead of USC, Nebraska and every other major program that has offered him.

The main reason? Radley-Hiles feels like he wants a change and not to be just another top defensive back from the West ending up in the Pac-12.

He called Florida “DB University” and that’s a big reason why the Gators have emerged as the early leader.

“I don’t want to be like all the rest of the West Coast DBs by staying in the Pac-12,” Radley-Hiles said. “I want to be different.”

Some other programs including LSU would argue that it’s the true “DBU” but what cannot be contested is Florida’s success of putting top-notch defensive backs in the NFL over the years.

The latest example was when former five-star corner Vernon Hargreaves was taken with the No. 11 pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers just a few months ago. This season former five-star Jalen Tabor is widely considered one of the nation’s top cornerbacks and a potential first-round pick.

Radley-Hiles, rated as the No. 10 cornerback and second-best at that position in California for the 2018 class, said that kind of success developing defensive backs is huge in his thinking.

“That’s major to me,” Radley-Hiles said.

The Calabasas standout, which is also the home of five-star cornerback Darnay Holmes and four-star Nebraska commits Tristan Gebbia and Keyshawn Johnson, Jr., among others, plans to visit Florida for its showdown against LSU in early October.

He also is scheduled to see Nebraska in its opener against Fresno State, the Red River Rivalry between Texas and Oklahoma and numerous USC and UCLA games this season.

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