With a zinger even Steve Spurrier would enjoy, the father of Walter Nolen has dropped a line to describe how the Florida Gators are in the mix for his son, the 5-star defensive lineman out of Cordova, Tennessee.

“I think Dan Mullen is probably the biggest factor for Florida because, to be honest with you, I cannot remember who Florida’s coach was before he got there,” said Nolen’s father, also named Walter, in an interview with Sports Illustrated’s Fan Sided.

Florida is in a battle with several other SEC teams for Nolen, and has been in pursuit of the 6-foot-4, 300-pound lineman’s services dating back to March 2020 and is inching closer to learning the elite prospect’s final college decision. The other schools in his top five are Michigan, Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. He’s rated the No. 1 defensive lineman in the country in the Class of 2022, and the No. 3 player overall, according to the 247Sports Composite.

“Florida has a good (coaching) staff,” Nolen Sr. said. “Coach (David) Turner’s a good coach. We enjoy talking with them. Dan Mullen is a good guy, and it feels like home down there as well.”

The decision appears to be coming sooner than later.

“Knowing him, it is possible,” his father said on the possibility. “He had originally said December, but I was like, ‘Nah.’ It will be done before then. It is quite possible.”

Here are the father’s comments about the rest of the teams in the top five.

On Alabama: “Bama is Bama. All of that works speaks for itself.”

On Georgia: “Coach Tray (Scott) is one of the best recruiters. Georgia has a good body of work, also. They haven’t got over the hill yet, which I guess their Achilles heel is Alabama. But Georgia has a good program, and they have a good recruiting staff, too.”

On Michigan: “Some of the new staff they got in decided to migrate down south and recruit more players from down here. Michigan, even though they haven’t beaten Ohio State, they have a good program, and they have good facilities. It does feel like home up there. Just they are up north, and we are down south.”

On Tennessee rejoining the list: “I am probably going to say Coach G [Rodney Garner] and the recruiting staff. When they came in, from day one when they got there, they were like we have to have Walter. He is a top priority for us. Just looking at Coach G’s body of work— 30 plus years—multiple kids go on to the NFL. He is really good at what he does, so that was a big plus for them.”

Here are his highlights from Hudl: