USF football recruiting notebook: Colorado commit among key targets visiting Tampa Saturday

With the other power programs in the state of Florida playing away from home this weekend, eyes are on the University of South Florida Bulls in the Sunshine State for recruit visits. Alex Golesh‘s program hosts the Navy Midshipmen at noon in an important matchup as USF needs to win two of their next four matchups to reach bowl eligibility in back-to-back seasons.

And while USF looks to notch a big win on the field, the Bulls staff is also looking to make waves on the recruiting front to improve the future of the team. And they have key prospects visiting this Saturday.

On3 believes that USF will have eight class of 2025 commits in Tampa Saturday afternoon. Those prospects are St. Augustine (Fla.) High QB Locklan Hewlett, Venice (Fla.) High DL Eli Jones, Port Saint Lucie (Fla.) St. Lucie West EDGE Brooks Williams, Lakeland (Fla.) High S Jermichael Gillis, Apopka (Fla.) Wekiva S Jabari Smith, Perry (Ga.) High WR Kory Pettigrew, Oakdale (Conn.) St. Thomas More TE Brandon Kubay and Bradenton (Fla.) Braden River K Brunno Reus.

Who are the big 2025 targets visiting for the USF game Saturday?

The most notable prospect who will see the Bulls in action is Daytona Beach (Fla.) Mainland’s Christian Hudson, a former UCF commit and current Colorado pledge who ranks as the No. 446 overall player and No. 41 defensive lineman in America per the 2025 On3 Industry Ranking.

The Bulls are getting aggressive when it comes to taking another interior defensive line prospect in their 2025 class, and Hudson isn’t the only one they’ll have in town Saturday.

USF will host Valdosta (Ga.) High’s Marcus Williams, a rising D-line prospect, and Kennesaw (Ga.) North Cobb’s Kamron Cullins, a former Georgia Tech and SMU commit.

There will be one official visitor this weekend for USF, hosting Lake Butler (Fla.) Union County cornerback and Toledo commit Gavin Jenkins. The three-star prospect added the Bulls to his offer sheet back in January but committed to the Rockets in June. USF is back in contention and very well could flip him to stay in state. Golesh and Co. have already flipped two other Toledo commits this cycle.

In late October, the Bulls offered rising outside linebacker Christian Smith out of Powder Springs (Ga.) Harrison, and he’ll get a look at Tampa Saturday. His high school teammate, Colin Bellomy, is committed to USF. Bulls’ fans need to get familiar with Smith, who very well could end up in USF’s class.

USF is expected to have three class of 2025 prospects from St. Augustine on Saturday. Hewlett is one of them, and the current expectation is that he’ll make the trip with two of his pass catchers. Former UCF wide receiver commit Carl Jenkins Jr. isn’t guaranteed to make the trip, but On3 believes he will as of Friday afternoon. It would be notable if he’s able to make the trip. And wideout Trenton Jones, who holds several Division I offers, will visit, too.

Huge 2026 prospects due in for USF

There are dozens of underclassmen prospects visiting for the USF game Saturday, including seven recruits who we want to highlight in this story. One is a top local quarterback in the 2026 class — Clearwater (Fla.) High’s Jaylen White. The Bulls haven’t offered him yet but are showing him a good bit of interest.

Fort Myers (Fla.) High’s Kendall Guervil ranks as the No. 159 prospect and No. 14 defensive lineman in America according to the On3 Industry Ranking. The four-star prospect is a national recruit with offers from Florida, Miami, USC, Tennessee and others. He’s expected in Tampa Saturday.

Tampa (Fla.) Plant defensive lineman Dane Bathurst will make it in, and he’s a top 2026 defensive line target for the Bulls.

The Bulls will host two impressive pass rushers Saturday in Tyrone (Ga.) Sandy Creek’s Evan Harvey and Fleming Island (Fla.) High’s Jarius Rodgers. The latter prospect ranks as the No. 241 overall player and No. 22 EDGE in the land per the 2026 On3 Industry Ranking.

Another 2026 four-star player expected at Raymond James Stadium is Marianna (Fla.) High’s Amari Clemons, the No. 297 prospect and No. 22 running back in America.

Tarpon Springs (Fla.) High cornerback CJ Cresser is a top local recruit who has already visited for a USF game this fall and comes back this Saturday.