Florida makes massive jump in team recruiting rankings after landing 4-star CB Ben Hanks Jr.

After consecutive years of top-15 recruiting classes for Florida under head football coach Billy Napier, the Gators have gotten off to a slow start in the 2025 cycle. At one point sitting in the 50s nationally and second-to-last in the SEC, UF needed a serious jolt of momentum.

They’ve gotten that over the summer with a handful of key commitments. That was the case again on Friday as Napier and Co. landed four-star cornerback Ben Hanks Jr., one of the nation’s top defensive backs.

The Gators came into the day with only 12 commitments, but sat at a respectable No. 31 in the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Rankings for such a small class.

Following the addition of Hanks, they’ve jumped 11 spots past SEC rivals Kentucky, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Arkansas — among others — to No. 20 in the country ahead of their season opener later this month. It was the second major ranking jumps in a month, as four-star wide receiver Vernell Brown III pushed UF up a whopping 22 spots in the team rankings to No. 31 nationally and No. 12 in the SEC.

Like Brown, Hanks is a UF legacy who had the chance to play at programs across the country but chose to stay home with the Gators. Hanks’ father, Ben Hanks Sr., also is a Miami native and he played for the Gators in the early/mid-1990s.

“I have a great relationship with coach Billy Napier and Coach Will Harris,” Ben Jr. told On3’s Chad Simmons. “I have been going to Florida since I was a kid. My dad played there, my sister went there, my cousin Treon Harris played there, so it is like home for me.

Gators finding momentum on the recruiting trail

With 13 commitments, the Gators are building a small but very stout class that features seven four-star pledges.

Four-star Tampa (Fla.) Plant running back Waltez Clark was the first to put his name on the commit list back in September 2023. The Gators’ top defensive commit, Tallahassee (Fla.) James Rickards four-star defensive lineman Jalen Wiggins, joined up in January, choosing UF over Florida State, Georgia, UCF and others.

The spring was quiet, with no commitments between January and early May. But Napier and his staff got an early summer boost by landing three-star defensive lineman Jeramiah McCloud and Texas-based running back Chad Gasper.

A month later in June they added four-star pass-catchers Joshua Moore and Tae’shaun Gelsey — both On300 prospects — as well as punter Hayden Craig.

The aforementioned Brown was the second pledge in July, joining three-star linebacker Myles Johnson, a former Alabama commit. UF closed out that month with a major flip, pulling four-star athlete Demetres Samuel away from Syracuse.

Hanks’ addition gives them another key player in the secondary as well, as they look to take their recruitment momentum into a pivotal season for Napier and his staff.