National scout says Florida WR signee Vernell Brown III has instant-impact potential in 2025

No program finished the 2025 recruiting cycle hotter than Billy Napier and his staff at Florida.

The Gators inked the nation’s No. 11 class — per the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Rankings — and are bringing a slew of elite prospects to Gainesville, multiple of which are primed to make an immediate impact as a freshman later this year.

That includes Orlando Jones five-star wide receiver Vernell Brown III, a UF legacy and one of the Sunshine State’s top recruits. His grandfather and father both dawned blue and orange, and he’s now set to do the same.

Playing time will likely be available for Brown in year one, and according to On3 National Scout Cody Bellaire, the 5-foot-10.5, 173-pounder has the look of someone who will be catching important passes from DJ Lagway in The Swamp in the near future.

“When you lose your two leading receivers from this past season in Chimere Dike and Elijhah Badger, you have to think a new pass-catcher is going to emerge out of this strong 2025 signing class for Florida, and I think that’s going to be Vernell Brown out of Orlando,” Bellaire said on ‘The Inside Scoop’.

Brown is one of four receivers that signed with the Gators and is among a group that also includes Tampa Bay Tech four-star WR Dallas Wilson, someone who was regarded as one of the top players at the position for much of the cycle.

It’s the specific skillset that Brown carries that makes him an intriguing option early on for the Florida offense rather than others, according to Bellaire. Across his junior and senior seasons at Jones High, Brown caught 158 passes for 2,727 yards and 21 touchdowns.

“Yes, I recognize that Dallas Wilson’s there, Naeshaun Montgomery’s there, and I think those players could potentially have a role as well. With the addition of J. Michael Sturdivant from the transfer portal, he’s 6-foot-3-plus, 200-plus pounds, I think that’s going to be your big-bodied option on the outside, which means when you’re trotting three or four receivers out there, I think someone with Vernell Brown’s skillset out of the slot who can carve up defenses in the intermediate and underneath levels of the field and make guys miss after the catch, that’s going to be quite valuable, in my opinion,” Bellaire said.

Continuing the legacy led Brown to sign with Florida

Florida State, Miami and Ohio State were all charging hard for Brown throughout a contested recruitment, but it was always the Gators in the end. From the legacy aspect, to relationships with the coaching staff and the opportunity to make an impact early, Brown chose Florida on July 21.

“The program on the field is great and off the field, I can set myself up for life there,” Brown III told On3. “The outside factor that the other schools couldn’t match was me being from Gainesville and growing up around there and then, having an opportunity to build on my family’s legacy while creating my own path as well.” 

“It’s a really good staff and I love the staff,” he added. “Coach Billy Napier has done a really good job of trying to make Florida better overall and not just in football. It’s more than football to him. They’re going to get it right on the field this year and there are other things that he was working on that made the overall experience better.”

Brown closed the 2025 cycle as the No. 30 overall prospect, No. 6 WR and No. 3 player in Florida, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.