Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier gained leverage ahead of a pivotal 2025 season when 2026 ESPN 300 five-star recruit JaReylan McCoy committed to the program.
The defensive end is the highest-ranked recruit in Florida's surging 2026 class. Per On3, the Gators ranked outside the top 25 in its rankings two weeks ago but have since risen to No. 13.
Florida has jumped from outside the top-25 to No. 13 in the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Rankings over the past two weeks
— On3 Recruits (@On3Recruits) June 14, 2025
Gators are ROLLING! https://t.co/Omvx50Ih6p pic.twitter.com/yX30jTKXAn
McCoy is the No. 9 overall player in ESPN's high school prospect rankings and top Florida recruit. Per ESPN's Eli Lederman, the 6-foot-7, 260-pound edge chose Florida over SEC rivals LSU and Texas.
McCory originally committed to LSU in January 2025.
Napier scored another huge recruiting win this month with McCoy's decision to enroll at Florida.
On June 3, four-star safety Kaiden Hall committed, followed five days later by four-star wideout Justin Williams.
BREAKING: Four-Star Safety Kaiden Hall has Committed to Florida, he tells me for @on3recruits
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) June 3, 2025
The 6’3 200 S from Milton, FL chose the Gators over Alabama, Florida State, & Oklahoma
“Building something special for the next few years!! #gogators”https://t.co/RUejPVnxsi pic.twitter.com/Ib2TlBzQO7
The Gators added another four-star wide receiver, Marquez Daniel, on Saturday.
Despite limited on-field success in three seasons as Gators head coach, Napier's strong recruiting class should give him extra job security ahead of the 2025 season.
In February, The Athletic's Seth Emerson ranked Napier No. 2 in his SEC coaching hot seat rankings.
Through his first three seasons at Florida (2022-24), Napier has a 19-19 record, including 1-1 in bowl games. He posted his first winning season last year, going 8-5 and leading the Gators to a Gasparilla Bowl win.
2024 five-star quarterback recruit D.J. Lagway had a promising freshman season, winning late-season home games against LSU and Ole Miss, eliminating both from the College Football Playoff conversation.
While expectations might be higher for the Gators, they could find it difficult to improve much from last season.
Per ESPN's Football Power Index, Florida has the country's toughest strength of schedule. It should begin the season 2-0 with games against FCS Long Island and South Florida, but a brutal stretch follows.
Florida plays LSU and Miami in back-to-back weeks on the road. Following a bye, it hosts Texas, then travels to Texas A&M. The Gators also play Georgia and Tennessee in The Swamp while getting Ole Miss on the road.
It's a daunting schedule with several land mines. Florida is unlikely to emerge unscathed, but Napier might.
With his recruiting success, the Gators would risk losing their talented prospects by firing Napier should Florida underwhelm this fall.
According to Reuters, Daniel, an Alabama native, explained his decision to commit to Florida by saying, "What makes Florida stand out to me are the coaching staff. Coach Napier is really a great coach."
McCoy also praised Napier and the coaching staff, crediting the "family atmosphere" as a major draw in his choice.
Florida isn't the power it once was, and it's unclear whether Napier is the right coach to return the program to glory. But with every high-profile recruit who commits to the Gators, the chances increase that he'll be around in 2026.
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The Michigan Wolverines enter a really big second year under head coach Sherrone Moore. It wasn’t overly surprising to see the team have its struggles in 2024, especially with a new coaching staff and so much roster turnover. The team did, however, show a lot of promise down the stretch of the season with victories over Ohio State and Alabama. There are some very clear positions of strengths for the Wolverines entering 2025, and some question marks that do exist. With some volatility, there is sure to be some big surprises, and potential breakout players on the horizon. Here are some Hot Takes for this team entering the season. Mikey Keene holds off Bryce Underwood There are many people who believe that the Mikey Keene bridge conversation is nearly lip service, and insurance from the Michigan staff. When you have a five-star signal caller to the level of Underwood, they tend to get on the field very early. While I expect to see a lot of the 6-4, 214-pound freshman passer in 2025, I do think the Wolverines will remain patient with him and develop him properly. I do believe that Keene will start several games for Michigan, and people will have to try and be as patient as possible. Underwood is the future, but like most true freshman, he might need some time to develop. New defensive star When linebacker Jaishawn Barham transferred over from Maryland this past offseason, most Michigan fans were excited but didn’t fully understand just how he would fit. The 6-3, 245-pound athlete spent time at both defensive end and on the second level for the Terrapins, possessing intriguing upside but some tweener traits as well. While his impact might not have popped off the box score in his first season (66 total tackles, four tackles for loss, one sack), Barham showed great growth as a true linebacker. I have a feeling he’s going to take his game to a much higher level, and become a playmaker for the Wolverines this season. Two-headed rushing attack With Justice Haynes transferring in from Alabama, it feels like most people are assuming that he becomes the heavy volume getter in the running back room. There has been barely a mention of rising sophomore Jordan Marshall, who ended the 2024 season on a very high note. A tough and determined runner at 5-11 and 210 pounds, I expect Marshall to get his fair share of touches this season. This could end up being closer to a true split in the backfield. Don’t be surprised if Marshall and Haynes each eclipse the 800-yard mark in 2025.
The Dallas Cowboys extended one of their stars Sunday, just not the one fans wanted them to pay. At Cowboys training camp Saturday, Dallas fans serenaded owner Jerry Jones with "Pay Micah [Parsons]" chants. The EDGE, of course, is set to play on the fifth-year option of his rookie contract this season. Jones must not have been listening. He gave tight end Jake Ferguson a new contract instead. Dallas and the 26-year-old pass-catcher agreed to a four-year, $52M contract extension, via NFL Media's Ian Rapoport. This move seems head-scratching. Parsons has won the 2021 Defensive Rookie of the Year and earned two first-team All-Pro nods since the Cowboys took him with pick No. 12 in the 2021 NFL Draft. The 26-year-old EDGE also finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting during the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Ferguson, meanwhile, is solid but not elite. In three seasons with the Cowboys, the 2022 fourth-round pick has made one Pro Bowl and has never finished with more than 761 receiving yards in a season. An extension for Parsons will devour future cap space. The Cowboys may be worried about that after giving quarterback Dak Prescott (four years, $240M) and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (four years, $136M) long-term deals in 2024. Pittsburgh Steelers EDGE T.J. Watt signed a lucrative three-year, $123M extension on July 17, making him the league's highest-paid non-QB. Parsons could command a similar contract. If cap space is Dallas' primary concern, however, why would it extend Ferguson? He's now set to be the NFL's seventh-highest-paid TE. The Cowboys waited to extend Lamb and Prescott just before the start of the 2024 season. They may be doing the same with Parsons. The star defender has said, "Ownership is always gonna make [contract negotiations] drag out." Regardless, the Cowboys should've paid Parsons before Ferguson. That's a much bigger priority for the team.
There may be more to Christian Wilkins’ recent surprise release from the Las Vegas Raiders. NFL reporter Josina Anderson reported Saturday that "some sources believe an incident involving a teammate may have factored in-part into the Raiders' fatigue and release" of Wilkins. The nature of the incident is not clear. However, many believe the Raiders had a very good reason to move on from Wilkins considering the money they had invested in him. It also suggests the Raiders saw no alternative if they went straight to a release. Wilkins was dumped by the Raiders just one year into a four-year, $110 million deal. The Raiders suggested Wilkins failed to take rehab seriously as he tries to work his way back from a foot injury. Other teams do not appear to have the same concerns about Wilkins as the Raiders did, and he should find a new landing spot fairly easily. That is one of the reasons some suspect there is more to the Raiders’ decision than they are publicly saying.
The New York Rangers are adding to their forward depth ahead of their upcoming training camp. The Rangers are entering a new chapter of their organization under new head coach Mike Sullivan. After missing the postseason last year, the organization is trying to rebound and respond accordingly in 2025 and 2026. Former Stanley Cup champion forward Conor Sheary is the latest player to join the new-look Rangers. The veteran forward agreed to a professional tryout agreement (PTO) with the club and will look to earn an NHL deal with his performance in training camp and the preseason. Sheary is a veteran of 593 NHL games. Originally an undrafted free agent, he signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins after completing his collegiate career. Following a year with the Penguins' AHL affiliate, he forced his way onto the NHL squad after posting 36 points in his first 30 games of the 2015-2016 season at the AHL level. His debut NHL season went better than ever expected, and he was a key part of the Penguins' lineup that won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017. Sheary's coach at the time, both at the AHL and NHL levels, was Mike Sullivan. Now, he'll get the chance to reunite with the coach under whom he won two championships. In addition to playing for the Penguins, Sheary has played for three other NHL franchises. The Pens dealt him to the Buffalo Sabres before the 2018-2019 campaign, but he would return to Pittsburgh the following season at the trade deadline. After his second stint with the Penguins, he joined the Washington Capitals. He played three seasons in Washington, D.C. before landing with the Tampa Bay Lightning, where he spent the past two years. Over his 593 career games, he's compiled 124 goals and 143 assists for 267 points. His best NHL season came during the 2016-2017 campaign, his second in the league. He scored 23 goals and added 30 assists for 53 points in 61 regular-season games.