Top combo guard recruit to visit UF

Florida has set up an official visit with one of the top combo guard prospects in the Class of 2016.

Oldsmar Christian High coach Jordan Fair confirmed a report from Scout.com’s Evan Daniels that Class of 2016 guard Eric Hester (6-4, 170 pounds, Oldsmar Christian HS) will visit Florida the weekend of September 4. The visit coincides with Florida football’s season opener at the The Swamp vs. New Mexico State.

Hester is the first big recruiting target of new UF coach Michael White and his staff. He’s the 18th-ranked shooting guard in the Class of 2016 and a top 75 national prospect, per Scout.com’s rankings.

Fair said first and foremost, Hester is coachable and a good kid off the court. On the court, Fair said that Hester is one of the top defensive players in his class.

“He’s about 6-foot-4 with a 6-11 wingspan,” Fair said. “Really good lateral quickness. He’s just a pitbull as an on the ball as a defender.”

Fair, a former guard at UNF, has coached Hester for three seasons with both Oldsmar Christian and the Team Breakdown AAU program. Offensively, Fair said Hester is capable of playing both guard spots with range out to the 3-point line.

“He needs to get a little more consistent with his shot, but he shot the ball well in July,” Fair said.

Louisville, Missouri, Virginia Tech and UCF also have shown strong interest in Hester. But Florida will be Hester’s first official visit. Hester took an unofficial visit to UF in June.

“He really likes Coach White,” Fair said. “He thinks Coach White and his staff are young and energetic. He has a winning history and a history of developing players. That’s attractive to him.”

Florida currently has one commitment for the Class of 2016, power forward John Mooney, who pledged to play for Billy Donovan close to a year ago but has kept his commitment to UF despite the coaching change to White last May.

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