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Five out-of-state football programs recruiting Florida well

John Garcia, Jr.by: John Garcia, Jr.07/09/25JohnGarcia_jr
James Johnson Georgia

The state of Florida is arguably the most fertile college football recruiting territory in America.

Every cycle, programs well beyond state lines look to make a splash from Miami-Dade County up through the Panhandle. Rivals looks at a handful doing it at a higher clip than most others in the class of 2026.

Clemson

Dabo Swinney and company always spend time in the Sunshine State and this rising-senior group is no different. The group already boasts a trio of blue-chip recruits, including the highest-ranked CU pledge overall in Jacksonville (Fla.) Bolles star Naeem Burroughs. Around the same time he locked in with the Tigers, two more Sunshine State natives in the trenches elected to do the same in Chancellor Barclay and Grant Wise. The latter was an especially big win for Matt Luke in that he is not only a state weightlifting champion, and the Rivals Five-Star bench press winner last month at 27 reps, but also a Miami legacy.

Georgia

The Bulldogs landed two of the state’s top five prospects in a short span this offseason, corralling fringe five-star James Johnson and No. 4 cornerback Justice Fitzpatrick out of South Florida a few weeks apart back in June. Another pair of Rivals300 members playing their prep football are in the class for Kirby Smart and company in IMG Academy‘s Zech Fort and Preston Carey. Ever since the New York native made the move down to Florida, the SEC and especially UGA have appealed in a big way to Carey. Fort picked Georgia early on and hasn’t looked back despite interest from Notre Dame and others.

Naturally, Georgia continues to hunt for Floridians in the cycle from elite running back Derrek Cooper to another IMG star in offensive lineman Breck Kolojay, among others.

Illinois

A lot of the Illini work came early, largely in the Orlando metro area, and the early decision-makers have stuck with Bret Bielema and company despite plenty of efforts to flip from others. There are five prospects in the program’s top-25 haul from the Sunshine State, headlined by Miami (Fla.) Edison quarterback Michael Clayton and Orlando (Fla.) Bishop Moore wide receiver Kenyon Alston. Colorado is a new offer in to Clayton while Michigan came calling for Alston – each to no avail.

The remainder of the Floridians in the Illini class were also strong wins on the trail. Linebacker Tony Williams picked the program over a push from SMU, pass rusher Kingston Shaw had Mississippi State looking for a flip and defensive back Almirian Thomas had Big Ten tenders from Minnesota, Michigan State and Indiana come in after the Illini became his first FBS tender back in January.

Syracuse

Even if one was under a rock when elite wide receiver Calvin Russell stunned the college football world with his Syracuse selection on July 5, it has been easy to see the Orange’s success in the state. SU sets the pace among out-of-state programs with current verbal commitments from Floridians, with seven on board at the moment. It is looking for more, too, in Florida State flip candidate Tedarius Hughes while defensive tackle Amier Clarke is set to commit between ‘Cuse and Georgia Tech on July 10.

Among the half-dozen additional pledges to the Orange from Florida, offensive lineman Javeion Cooper and pass rusher Jarius Rogers hold blue-chip status and remain on board with Fran Brown‘s program despite interest and visits logged to other programs. Miami native Kamron Wilson is another pledge pushed by others, with Florida State once as the favorite and Nebraska once confident in an offseason flip.

UCLA

Before the month of June, the Bruins would not be anywhere near a list like this. But once these Sunshine Staters took official visits to Los Angeles the first two weekends of June, the pipeline became a tangible one. The anchor of the group is up front in big blockers Johnnie Jones and Micah Smith, who committed just about 48 hours from one another.

The following week it was the skill position players’ turn as a pair of wide receivers with games who complement one another picked the program on June 16. Santana Carlos is a compact and speedy slot type and Xavier Stinson is a classic ‘X’ wide receiver at a head-turning 6-foot-2, 195 pounds. Each recent Bruin pledge cited the opportunity to make plays in the Big Ten on an up-and-coming roster as part of the reason to move across the country next year.

Honorable Mention: Louisville, Notre Dame, Alabama, Oregon, Ole Miss