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Toombs County coach Buddy Martin doesn't need a lot of words to describe Lagonza Hayward. He simply defines him with one word. "Physical," Martin said. "Physical. Physical. Physical. He flies around to the ball and makes sure you know he's there. I'd also say he's a gamebreaker. He made so many big plays for us this past season." During his 2023 high school season, Hayward racked up 48 tackles, three tackles for loss, three interceptions, while also catching 26 passes for 727 yards and seven touchdowns on offense. "We like to say that Lagonza plays with a hot motor," Martin said. "He's just one of those special players that can do it all."

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Toombs County

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Lagonza Hayward

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Florida Gators

Safety

After playing 13 true freshmen in the Florida Gators's 55-0 season-opening win over LIU, fewer than half of that number saw action in Game 2, an

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Gators Online Football

GatorsOnline

The True Freshmen Report: Game 2 update

When the college football season opened this past weekend, it was the first time in a little over two months that recruits could hit the road to

Kaiden Hall

Gators Online Football Recruiting

4-star S commit Kaiden Hall praises Florida’s young players in season opener

If you've been keeping track of Zach Abolverdi's extremely detailed projected depth charts (links here—offensive; defensive) it seems clear that even

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The Florida true freshmen likely to make the biggest impact in Year 1

No. 3-ranked safety Bralan Womack of Brandon (Miss.) Hartfield Academy will make his college commitment Thursday, choosing between Auburn, Florida

Billy Napier

If Florida flips a 5-star this cycle, here’s who I’d bet on…

It won't be easy to have a major role with the Florida Gators as a true freshman in 2025, especially with UF having a fairly deep roster at lots of

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Five Florida Gators freshmen who might earn a role during fall camp

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — With fall camp approaching, it’s time to delve into the Florida Gators football team and preview each position group.

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2025 Position Preview: Florida Gators Safeties

While Florida has built most of its roster through in-state talent, Billy Napier and his staff have also found major success recruiting beyond state

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Florida's top out-of-state commits by class under Billy Napier

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Safety is the only position on defense where the Florida Gators return every starter in 2025. They have to replace players at

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‘Extremely talented’: Vinnie Sunseri breaks down UF's safety room

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA — Two factors have helped highly touted freshmen safeties Drake Stubbs and Lagonza Hayward get more quickly acclimated to

NCAA Football: Florida Spring Game

Gators freshmen Drake Stubbs and Lagonza Hayward creating buzz at safety

Spring practice is the first real opportunity for colleges to see how early enrollees are adapting to the next level. For the Florida Gators, a

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Freshman Firepower: 5 Gators to watch this spring

The signing of 4-star defensive back Lagonza Hayward by the Florida Gators was hugely important. And that is largely due to the fact many view him as

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Early Enrollee introduction: Lagonza Hayward

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — With spring ball approaching, Gators Online will preview Florida’s offense, defense and special teams over the next two

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Spring Camp Preview: Florida Gators Safeties

The 2025 recruiting cycle officially comes to a close in two days. Ahead of February’s National Signing Day, On3 has updated its player

Top Safeties on300 AFI

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Rivals

Top 10 safeties in the final 2025 On300 rankings

The final On300 rankings for the class of 2025 have been released, with several Florida Gators signees having received a bump from Charles Power and

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Why On3 ranks Gators signee Lagonza Hayward higher than rest of industry

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqiFL1mpHoQ  After the end of the high school football season and the completion of the all-star game circuit, On3

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On3 Outliers: 2025 prospects On3 ranks higher than the recruiting industry

The 2025 Florida signing class is well-represented in the final On300 rankings as multiple Gators made the list. Legacy recruit Ben Hanks III, a

Several Gators make final On300 for 2025

It's a big weekend for many members of the Florida Gators' No. 11 recruiting class. Some early enrollees arrived Saturday. Some come to town Sunday.

Football early enrollees arriving in Gainesville

With the winter deadline having passed for Florida Gators players to enter the transfer portal, we now have a better idea of what the roster will

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Instant Impact: Which Gators freshmen can contribute early?

There were eight state championship games inside Mercedes Benz Stadium this week and Bowdon, North Oconee, Toombs County, Carver Columbus, Milton,

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Eye-catchers from the Georgia High School State Championship games

At 4pm ET on Monday inside Mercedes Benz Stadium, week 15 will kick off in the state of Georgia. It will be the first of eight state championship

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High School Football

High School

Stars will compete for Georgia high school football state championships this week

Shortly after the Florida Gators announced their 23 additions from the Early Signing Period, Gators Online highlighted five of them we believe can

South Carolina target Lagonza Hayward is pictured at his school (Photo: Chad Simmons | On3)

Billy Napier: DB signee Lagonza Hayward can do it all

As the season comes to a close, a few Florida Gators’ signees continue to pursue state titles. Here’s a quick review of last week's schedule:

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Florida Gators Signee Tracker

Another National Signing Day has come and gone and this year Billy Napier and the Gators landed 24 prospects. Overall, the class gets a "B+"

Keith Niebuhr's Florida Gators recruiting class superlatives 

On Wednesday, over 20 prospects signed with the Florida Gators for the Early Signing Period.  Some of those future Gators are expected to see the

Instant Impact: 5 Gators signees who can contribute early

Numerous college football programs worked to add Lyons (Ga.) Toombs County four-star safety Lagonza Hayward to their 2025 recruiting classes. One of

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4-star safety Lagonza Hayward commits to Florida: ‘I love everything about it’

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