Florida Gators sign top-20 class in first week of Jon Sumrall’s tenure

Newly-minted Florida coach Jon Sumrall didn’t mince words at his introductory press conference Monday. His Gators are going to build through high school recruiting, and hitting the ground running during this week’s Early Signing Day on Wednesday was going to be “vital.”

“The lifeblood of your program is recruiting good high school players, and, at Florida, elite high school football players,” said the 43-year-old former Tulane coach. “This is a unique environment because I’m going to have an opportunity to recruit the best players in the country. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t attract the very top end of the talent coming out of high school.”

His message featured everything Florida fans wanted to hear after nearly a decade of fluctuating recruiting and a 4-8 season. The only concern lay in his ability to execute this year, only three days after accepting Florida’s position, while, notably, still coaching Tulane as it prepares for its conference championship game this weekend.

The result, then, was a clinic on how to handle a coaching transition. Florida signed 15 players Wednesday morning, retaining a significant percentage of the recruits that committed under previous coach Billy Napier. The Gators’ class ranks 16th in the nation per 247Sports and features nine four-star recruits.

Wide receiver Davian Groce stands out as the clear leader in the class. After Florida fired Napier in October, concern percolated about the Frisco, Texas, star re-opening his recruitment, potentially looking at more regional powers like Oklahoma and Baylor. 247Sports’ No. 52 prospect in the class signed Wednesday morning, potentially providing the type of offensive versatility Sumrall will need early in his tenure. Groce totaled 890 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns this fall, but spent time at running back the previous three seasons, tallying over 500 yards in each.

Florida added four other top-300 prospects: cornerback CJ Bronaugh (No. 101), athlete Justin Williams (193), edge KJ Ford (198) and defensive lineman Kendall Guervil (209). Bronaugh and Williams are both Floridians, with Williams a hometown commit from Gainesville’s Buchholz High School.

Similar to Groce, Williams has spent time at running back and receiver. He had over 2,500 total yards and 29 touchdowns as a junior, and has over 1,600 and 21 scores this year. The awards, rightfully, continue to roll in. The Gainesville Quarterback Club honored him as its regional Offensive Player of the Year on Wednesday, two days before he’ll guide Buchholz into a 6A FHSAA semifinal matchup with West Broward.

He’s one of eight players the Gators signed from within the state, including Tampa Jesuit High School product Will Griffin, the No. 17 quarterback in the nation and Florida’s lone signal-caller commit in its class. Florida also added offensive lineman Corey Brown as a preferred walk-on from in-state, the brother of receiver Vernell Brown III, which generated some hope that Florida may keep its star receiver. It should come as no surprise, though, that the Gators pointed their efforts toward their local commits.

“It starts here at home. We’re privileged to be in the state of Florida, which has got just such a great hotbed for not just high school football players but great coaches,” Sumrall said Monday. In Napier’s final class, fewer than 50% of his enrollees were from within the state. Sumrall will have none of that. “We don’t have to go very far to find what we need to win championships,” he said.

But the greatest talent hotbed in the Sunshine State lies in South Florida, where the Gators didn’t sign a single prospect Wednesday. They had three commits who had not signed by the afternoon: cornerback CJ Hester, safety Kaiden Hall and tight end Kekua Aumua. None are from the region, nor are they four-star recruits.

Here is a full list of Florida’s signees (rankings from 247Sports):

No. 52 Davian Groce (Wide receiver, Frisco, Texas)

No. 101 CJ Bronaugh (Cornerback, Windermere, Florida)

No. 193 Justin Williams (Wide receiver, Gainesville, Florida)

No. 198 KJ Ford (Edge rusher, Duncanville, Texas)

No. 209 Kendall Guervil (Defensive lineman, Fort Myers, Florida)

Marquez Daniel (Wide receiver, Tuskegee, Alabama)

Heze Kent (Tight end, Brunswick, Georgia)

Will Griffin (Quarterback, Tampa, Florida)

Malik Morris (Defensive lineman, Lakeland, Florida)

JaReylan McCoy (Defensive lineman, Tupelo, Mississippi)

Tyler Chukuyem (Offensive tackle, Douglasville, Georgia)

Chancellor Campbell (Offensive tackle, St. Petersburg, Florida)

G’Nivre Carr (Interior offensive lineman, Bradenton, Florida)

Desmond Green (Interior offensive lineman, St. Stephen, South Carolina)

Javarii Luckas (Offensive tackle, Belle Glade, Florida)

This story was originally published December 3, 2025 at 3:26 PM.