Florida lands 2025 commitment from highly-touted kicker, former Arkansas pledge
Florida has been struggling to build its 2025 recruiting class amid uncertainty about Billy Napier’s future. The fact that the Gators are at 15th in the SEC on the 247Sports Composite rankings was likely a factor in UF athletic director Scott Stricklin announcing last week that Napier will return for the 2025 season despite a losing record in 2-plus seasons. It won’t do much to move the needle, but Florida has a 12th commitment.
Evan Noel, a kicker from Mississippi, took to social media to announce Monday that he has flipped his commitment from Arkansas to Florida.
Committed!! #gogators @coach_bnapier @CoachJoeHouston @HKA_Tanalski @KohlsKicking @SSCFBCoach pic.twitter.com/xG0syCnwKF
— Evan Noel (@EvanNoel14) November 11, 2024
Noel is ranked the No. 2 kicker in the nation on the Composite as well as Kohl’s Kicking. Florida, Arkansas and Ole Miss are the 3 schools to extend scholarship offers.
“Noel competed at the National Scholarship Camp in July of 2024 and had an outstanding camp,” his Kohl’s bio reads. “He scored 32/36 points on field goals and 107.5 points on kickoffs. Noel might have the best overall talent in the 2025 class! He is very consistent and handles pressure very well. Noel had another strong showing at the 2024 Underclassman Challenge. He scored an impressive 19 points on field goals and won a field goal competition at the UC Challenge.”
The addition of Noel gives the Gators 12 verbal pledges for 2025. The class is now ranked No. 45 nationally on the Composite, still 15th in the SEC. Mississippi State is 14th in the conference at No. 33 nationally. Vanderbilt checks in at No. 83 nationally for 16th.
Smart move. Arkansas is not committed to football.
Neither is Florida hence the need for him
Arkansas’s joining the SEC years ago made sense both geographically and in terms of its great football history – so expectations were that it would be quick in reestablishing that. Sadly, in contemporary times it is not the only program to experience downward trajectory, but as you implied it only takes the university’s full commitment to the sport PLUS better decisions in coaching selection to be one of the “haves” versus “have nots”. CFB has always been cyclic, but in this day and age the die seems more easily set than it’s ever been. Keep the faith, bud – sometimes that’s all you can do.
A good kicker is important!
Shut down recruiting right now and do a Mullen. We got the 5 star kicker and now we are set. Napier’s job is safe in 2025 and beyond, playoffs here we come
This is a very important commitment, but we’re going to need a big haul of offensive linemen from the portal.