MahxFahn
Gator Fan
Quarterback Jordan Reed. Dana Jensen/The Day
By Robbie Andreu
Staff writer
Published: Monday, February 9, 2009 at 11:45 p.m.
Last Modified: Monday, February 9, 2009 at 11:45 p.m.
The signees: Running back Mike Gillislee, 6-foot, 190 pounds, DeLand; Quarterback Jordan Reed, 6-foot-3, 225 pounds, New London, Conn.
The star: Gillislee has one of the most impressive highlight tapes among the UF signees. He seems to fit the mold the Gators are looking for at tailback. He’s quick and elusive and is a threat to go the distance once he gets past the first level. He rushed for 1,149 yards and averaged 5.1 yards a carry his senior season. Rivals rates him a four-star recruit.
The sleeper: Reed missed several games with a sprained ankle his senior season, and was affected in several others. But the UF coaches saw enough of him at camp and during his junior season to judge him a good fit for the Gators’ spread offense. As a junior, he threw for 1,706 yards and 28 touchdowns, with only three interceptions. He also rushed for 570 yards. He will be the No. 3 quarterback when he steps on campus this summer.
One that got away: The Gators made a strong late run at Pensacola Escambia star Trent Richardson, but he stuck with his commitment and signed with Alabama.
Grade: B. Gillislee gives the Gators another potential playmaker in the backfield. Reed will need time to develop under new quarterbacks coach Scot Loeffler. Once again, UF failed to sign an elite tailback prospect.
Top target in 2010: Mack Brown, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound tailback from Lithonia (Ga.) Martin Luther King. He rushed for 1,700 yards and 21 touchdowns as a junior. He has excellent speed (he ran a 4.38 40-yard dash at the Under Armour Combine in January) and quickness and is quickly emerging as an elite recruit. He recently received an offer from UF.
