New coach Jim McElwain and the Florida Gators are banking on several uncommitted in-state five stars to sign in February, along with a couple others who have already verbaled elsewhere.

According to 247Sports’s latest team rankings, the Gators sit last in the SEC with eight commits days away from the end of the dead period. With just one four-star at the moment, McElwain and staff will work tirelessly next week trying to convince others to join the turnaround in Gainesville.

RELATED: Assessing Florida’s current 2015 class

One player the Gators feel confident in flipping is Miami commit Tyree St. Louis, a 6-foot-5, 300-pound, three-star prospect out of IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

St. Louis has official visits set up this month to Tennessee and Florida and has said early playing time is important. At Florida, St. Louis would get a chance to compete as a true freshman on a team with just eight scholarship offensive linemen returning.

“(McElwain) gave me a very good message,” St. Louis said in recent report by 247Sports. “They’re going to try to keep the same offense, pro-style offense. They said they don’t really have very many linemen, so I would be able to come in and be used very early.”