Ahead of the Early Signing Period, Florida’s recruiting class ranks a very pedestrian 21st in the 247 team composite rankings. The Gators rank 10th of 14 SEC programs and thus far, at least, haven’t been able to parlay their surprising success on the football field in 2018 into wins on the recruiting trail.

All is not lost, as Florida remains in solid position for several elite players down the stretch and should they land the bulk of them, the perception of this class, along with its ranking, will improve.

At present, however, this class is a bit of a disappointment on paper with of 10 4-stars of the 18 committed players. Florida still has not signed a consensus 5-star player since 2015, when future stalwarts Martez Ivey and Cece Jefferson inked with the Gators.

Despite the gloom and doom, Florida did address at least a few of its immediate needs, especially at linebacker and along the offensive line. The defensive line haul, at least to date, is deeply troubling, especially for a program likely to lose multiple contributors to the NFL in the coming months.

Here’s how we rank the Gators’ class by position group.

1. LB

5-stars: 0

4-stars: Diwun Black (Forest, Miss.); Tyron Hopper (Roswell, Ga.); Mohamoud Diabate (Auburn, Ala.)

Skinny: The three highest-rated players in Florida’s class all play linebacker, which is a huge relief to Todd Grantham, who had to get even more creative than usual schematically to overcome Florida’s lack of depth at the position this season. Even assuming both Vosean Joseph and David Reese return to school for their senior seasons, the Gators still would have needed to see improved production from the likes of James Houston and David Reese (the other one) to feel good about the future.

This class changes that — and in the three blue-chips, Florida thinks they have real difference-makers. The lone 3-star is Pierre, who the Gators flipped from Miami this autumn. He has prototypical size and is a really strong tackler who might be better-suited to move inside after adding muscle.

Grade: A

2. Backfield (QB/RBs)

4-stars: QB Jalon Jones (Henrico, Va.); RB Nay’Quan Wright (Miami)

Skinny: An elite athlete and a very accurate passer, Jones was a late bloomer but became the subject of a fascinating recruiting battle between Florida, Alabama and Louisville, among others. The son of a doctor, Jones plays with poise and smarts, and already shows a past-his-years ability to read progressions and make good decisions with the football.

Dan Mullen has liked this young man since the ninth grade, and was rewarded for that persistence as Jones developed into an elite quarterback recruit. He’ll make a QB room suddenly laden with blue-chip talent that much better, and is a potential program changing guy.

In Wright, the Gators get a coveted talent from South Florida. Compact and explosive with good hands, Wright is a perfect change-of-pace type piece for Mullen’s spread. Wright hits the hole hard and is tough to square up once he gets to the second level, with an elusiveness that more than compensates for his lack of five-star type speed. He’ll be a good player at Florida and if Jordan Scarlett and Lamical Perine leave, he has a chance to play immediately.

Grade: A-

3. OL

5-stars: 0

4-stars: Michael Tarquin (Citra, Fla.); William Harrod (Fort Washington, Md.); Wardrick Wilson (Miami)

Skinny: Martez Ivey and his 44 starts will graduate and the status of junior Jawaan Taylor is up in the air, with the imposing tackle projected anywhere from the middle of the first round to the third round on various draft boards. If both leave, the Gators will have two new starters at tackle in 2019, a hefty lift for a unit that was one of the nation’s most improved in 2018.

Florida didn’t sign an elite offensive line class, but there is quality and, critically, quantity and they signed up to play for a coach that consistently develops players at a high level.

Tarquin is physical despite being slightly undersized and has very quick feet, which make him ideal for Florida’s zone concepts. He flipped to Florida from Miami and was a massive get for John Hevesy, Florida’s outstanding offensive line coach.

Wardrick Wilson had offers from basically every big Power 5 program and has the physicality, strength and big program pedigree to play immediately. Two curious ones are William Harrod, a small Christian school player who has outstanding size and quickness but had a less than elite offer list for a 4-star player, and Ethan White, who has prototypical size but an offer list that is all over the map, which might explain why he is a high 4-star on some lists and a low 3-star on others. Riley Simonds picked Florida over Alabama and Virginia Tech, a testament to his upside should he add the weight and muscle needed to play guard in the SEC.

Grade: B+

4. WR

5-stars: 0

4-stars: 0

Skinny: Dionte Marks was one of the first commitments in Florida’s class and stuck. With nice size and good hands, he’s a really nice depth piece that could contribute right away.

Ja’markis Weston is a project in that he lacks a true position, but he’s a gifted athlete who shows the ability to make physical plays on both sides of the football. It will be interesting to see what Florida does with him; this is the type of player Mullen molded into a game-changer consistently during his tenure in Starkville.

Grade: C+

5. DB

5-stars: 0

4-stars: Jaydon Hill (Madison, Ala.)

Skinny: Anyone who watched Georgia vanquish Florida’s SEC East and College Football Playoff hopes this season in Jacksonville knows depth in the secondary is a significant problem for Mullen and Grantham moving forward. Florida simply didn’t have the bodies to recover from the injury suffered by C.J. Henderson on the game’s first possession.

The front end of DBU is still, well, DBU. Henderson is one of the best cover corners in America, Brad Stewart had a very good season at safety and Trey Dean is set to be the next great Gators corner after collecting All-SEC honors as a freshman. If Marco Wilson returns healthy, Florida will have a formidable core.

This recruiting class was about adding depth, and sadly, barring a signing day addition, Florida didn’t do enough here.

Hill is the only difference maker, with good size and speed and a nose for the football. Chester Kimbrough’s offer list suggests upside, but he’s undersized (5-10) and small (170 pounds) and needs time to mature physically, which isn’t a luxury Florida has at the position. Trent Whittemore has nice size and physicality but lacks the top end speed necessary to be a every down safety in the SEC.

Grade: C-

6. DL

5-stars: 0

4-stars: Jaelin Humphries (Lawrenceville, Ga.)

Skinny: Yes, Florida desperately needed a space-eating 3-technique who could occupy defenders and let linebackers clean up in the gaps. Yes, it’s great to go into Auburn and Georgia’s backyard and win a recruiting battle for a guy Auburn especially valued. Yes, Humphries is one of the best players in this class.

But Florida needed numbers and they needed quality in this class and Sal Sunseri and the defensive staff haven’t delivered. That could change this week or by February, but if it doesn’t, this is the type of “numbers failure” that puts the program even further behind Georgia and Alabama and yes, in-state FSU, which appears to have a nice class put together up front.

Grade: F