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With the 2027 class officially eligible for recruitment this month, the Florida Gators have begun strengthening relationships and building connections with many who may one day take the field in the Orange and Blue, including IMG Academy safety Elijah Hamm.

“June 15th, That night when the clock hit twelve, I woke up to a couple texts,” the rising junior told Florida Gators on SI. “Florida definitely showed the most love.”

A 6-foot-2 recently converted defensive back playing at one of the more prestigious high school football programs in Florida, Hamm heard from a variety of schools, including Florida's SEC rival Tennessee and ACC programs such as Georgia Tech and Duke. Hamm recorded three interceptions in five games as a sophomore while switching to safety midway through the year.

Though his recruitment is just getting started, his relationship with Florida has been steadily growing for a while.

“I would say the relationship started when I came to IMG, but it definitely picked up more after the season, probably November-ish,” Hamm said. “It slowly started to build when I went to IMG… they kinda opened the door for me a little bit… (Florida) visits the school a lot.”

Just around a two hour drive to campus, Hamm has been in Gainesville numerous times, including a visit to watch the Gators upset Ole Miss at home last season. However, his relationship started with a coach now at a different program.

“I started off building my connection with coach (Will) Harris, and then he left and went to Miami…Definitely was kind of a shocker when they reached out as early as they did. It was great,” Hamm said. “Me and Coach Harris got along well.”

Despite the surprise departure, Hamm has continued to build a strong relationship with the staff at Florida.

“The coaching change was kinda sudden but me and Coach Vinnie (Sunseri), we instantly clicked…We get along really well, talk on the phone a lot, text back and forth all the time.” Hamm said. “I have a great relationship with everybody up there. Coach Vinny, Coach Russ (Callaway) and Coach (David) Doeker, all those guys, Katie’s (Turner) great… So I’m super excited for how that goes.”

With IMG just down the road from UF, located in Bradenton, the Gators have consistently fought to build a pipeline from the program. In the 2026 class alone, the Gators already have two players from the school committed in four-star guard G'Nivre Carr and three-star tight end Kekua Aumua.

Hamm believes the connection will continue to grow.

“IMG and Florida in the past have not had the best relationship, but now are definitely starting to build a really strong connection… I think Florida was on school grounds at least six or seven times this spring alone,” Hamm said. “Having talked to some teammates, a lot of kids are really high on Florida.”

Under Billy Napier, Florida has signed three players from the program already in 2022 five-star safety Kamari Wilson, 2024 four-star offensive lineman Knijeah Harris and 2024 four-star receiver Tank Hawkins. Though Hamm has not spent much time with the head coach, he likes what he has seen.

“I love what Billy’s doing with the program… It is something that I think I would 100% want to buy into…a lot of kids are wanting to buy into it…The coaching staff is just fantastic,” Hamm said. “Coach Napier is the kind of guy you want to play for.”

Heading into an important weekend for Gators recruiting, Hamm was on campus for Friday Night Lights and will be there on Saturday for Grill in the Ville. The Gators’ target is excited to continue to develop relationships with the staff.

“Florida has kinda shown me everything that I need to see from them… I’m mostly looking forward to actually getting coached by the coaches and seeing how they coach on the field,” Hamm said ahead of the weekend. “Building that relationship further, making sure it's the coaching style that I fit with…and see where things go”

While he has no plans of committing any time soon, Florida will likely have plenty of work to do this next year to position themselves for the young ballhawk while fighting off a familiar face.

“I’m still in contact with Coach Harris at UM. He actually reached out the other day and wants me to come out there… Definitely still a good relationship there,” Hamm said. “I plan on letting this year play out, seeing where it goes, weighing my options and making a decision towards the end of next year.”

More From Florida Gators on SI


This article first appeared on Florida Gators on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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