The Florida Gators HC Jon Sumrall’s recruiting era began in Gainesville with Junior Day. As per On3, Sumrall got his first big win as the Gators’ head coach after going toe-to-toe with in-state rivals like Florida State for a four-star cornerback.

On January 24th, recruiting specialist Hawyes Fawcett hopped onto IG and dropped recruiting dimes for Gators’ Nation:

“BREAKING: Four-Star CB Amare Nugent has Committed to Florida, he tells me for Rivals. The 6’0 180 CB chose the Gators.”

What makes this win even sweeter is that Florida had to beat out their biggest in-state rivals, Florida State and Miami, to get him. Nugent is from American Heritage High School in South Florida, which is a major football factory that usually sends players to FSU or Miami. Safe to say Sumrall has “closed the borders” and proved he can walk into enemy territory and take the best players for himself.

When you go through his records and profiles, he’s one of the best in the nation for the class of 2027 at his position. He is currently a four-star prospect ranked as the No. 13 cornerback in the country and the No. 105 overall player. Nugent’s play on the field definitely backs up the rating 247Sports gave him.

This past season itself, he helped lead American Heritage to a state championship while racking up 27 tackles, two picks, and a sack. He also ran the 10 dash in 11.24 seconds on tracks.

The turning point for this deal happened during Florida’s “Junior Day” event in Gainesville on January 24. Nugent spent time with the coaches and felt an immediate connection to the new culture Sumrall is building. He also has a great relationship with cornerbacks coach Brandon Harris, which helped him feel like Florida was the right place to call home for his college career.

“The culture excites me about Florida,” Nugent said about the Gators earlier this week.

It’s only a matter of time before Sumrall gets a top 15 or even top 10 class when you actually look at his standard.

Jon Sumrall set his priorities right for the Gators

Jon Sumrall is using winter workouts to set the tone for what Florida football will look like under his leadership. One of his first messages to the team was that wearing the Florida Gators logo is earned on a merit basis, not bought. “We ain’t earned it yet. We haven’t earned a damn thing. All we’ve got is our name. Where are you gonna put your freaking name on every day? So to wear the Florida Gators logo, to wear the Gators across your helmet, and to wear the gator head, you got to earn that,” Jon Sumrall said on Sunday.

This idea isn’t new in Gainesville. When Urban Meyer took over Florida in 2005, he used the same approach by limiting access to helmets and jerseys until players met his standards. By doing so, the Gators won two natties. Mind you, Sumrall wasn’t even aware that he was copying Meyer by doing this. “I didn’t know that, but that doesn’t surprise me. I know a lot about Urban. We hadn’t talked about that.”

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Obviously, he knows the pressure that comes with impatient places like Gainesville. The plan is to make the playoffs in Year 1, not to spend a couple of grace years.

“I’m not comfortable having a plan to win in eight years. I want to win tomorrow.”

And so far, he has done a pretty good job with it. The Gators now have 26 ballers from the portal. Some of the big-timers are former No. 1 WR of the 2025 portal Eric Singleton from Auburn, Aaron Philo, Haynes King’s former backup at Georgia Tech, and a DB from Kentucky.

The class currently ranks 13th nationally. Despite putting together a pretty good class, Sumrall isn’t celebrating yet. “You never really fully know until you go through spring practice,” he said. For now, the focus is on work and proving themselves every day.