Jim McElwain, Florida pushing hard to flip top recruits

Until the ink hits the letter of intent, recruits committed to universities remain free game for competing schools.

The Florida Gators and head coach Jim McElwain have a lot of catching up to do with only eight commitments in the 2015 recruiting class but the new head coach isn’t wasting anytime going after recruits committed to other schools.

At the Under Armour registration today, ESPN’s Derek Tyson reported that the Gators are pushing hard for several recruits and are expecting to receive visits from a few top-rated recruits after the dead period.

LB Tevon Coney says he will likely visit Florida soon after the #UAALLAMERICA game.

— Derek Tyson (@DerekTysonESPN) December 28, 2014

#ESPN300 quarterback and FSU commit Deondre Francois says he will still take an official visit to Florida on Jan. 23rd #Noles #Gators

— Derek Tyson (@DerekTysonESPN) December 28, 2014

#Auburn commit Richard McBryde will visit #Florida on Jan. 30, #LSU on Jan. 23 and #Auburn on Jan. 16.

— Derek Tyson (@DerekTysonESPN) December 28, 2014

All three recruits are four-star recruits. 

Coney and McBryde are linebacker commits to Notre Dame and Auburn, respectively. Coney was a Florida target prior to committing to Notre Dame in October.

Francois is an intriguing prospect for the Gators. Currently committed to Florida State, Francois is one of three quarterback commits currently in FSU’s 2015 recruiting class. As of now, Francois is slated to officially visit FSU on Jan. 16 and then the Gators on Jan. 23.

It’s likely that McElwain will be forced to flip some recruits in order to fill out the 2015 recruiting class, given the Gators’ lack of current numbers in their class now.