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Florida gaining ground on elite edge rusher who's had a fascinating recruitment with the Gators
Tanya Breen / USA TODAY NETWORK

Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier has had a fascinating few weeks when it comes to recruiting. The 2026 recruiting class only has two recruits committed right now, but Napier has been putting the pressure on many recruits.

One of those is four-star edge rusher Luke Wafle out of New Jersey. He's had a very interesting recruitment when it comes to the Gators, and it getting even more so, as Napier and his staff are making a move in on Wafle.

Getting a player like Wafle to commit to the Gators would be huge, especially with only three-star defensive tackle Jamir Perez being the only defender to commit in the 2026 class.

What's really interesting is how Wafle's recruitment has gone. Initially, Wafle was reported to have his top four schools, with Florida not included. That came a couple of days before Wafle had an official visit scheduled. What made it extra interesting was the visit was scheduled just a couple of days earlier. 

The night of Wafle's visit, On3 Sports' Hayes Fawcett reported his top five with the Gators included.

Wafle being impressed with his visit to Florida shouldn't be much of a surprise, as the coaching staff has done a great job in making prospects feel at home. They have a great defensive line lineage, and the likes of Caleb Banks and Tyreak Sapp are the next ones in line.

There is one thing that could prevent the Gators from landing a commitment from Wafle: he is taking four other official visits over the next month

  • Ohio State
  • Texas
  • USC 
  • Penn State

The Nittany Lions have the best shot at landing Wafle, as his older brother is currently on the football team. The Gators are hard on his trail, and they will need to stay that way to secure his commitment.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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