After landing one of the top in-state quarterbacks in the 2027 recruiting class in Sarasota Cardinal Mooney four-star Davin Davidson, the Florida Gators now appear poised to land a rising in-state passer in the 2028 class.
Florida on Wednesday received predictions from On3/Rivals’ Steve Wiltfong and Blake Alderman to land Sarasota three-star Hudson West. West (6-5, 190 pounds) is a three-star and is rated as the third-best quarterback in the state, according to 247 Sports. Notable Power Four offers he has include Cincinnati, Colorado, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Iowa State, North Carolina, SMU, Syracuse and Virginia Tech, a bulk of which have come this summer.
He received his Florida offer on June 20 after a strong showing at the Gators’ 7-on-7 camp and the Friday Night Lights camp.
West’s sudden rise is no surprise after a strong sophomore season at Sarasota in which he threw for 2,836 yards and 26 touchdowns against just five interceptions, while completing 55 percent of his passes. That season, plus his stand-out performances in front of Florida’s coaching staff over the summer has led to him being a priority for head coach Jon Sumrall, offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner and position coach Joe Craddock.
“You can tell when you’re wanted,” West told Alderman. “They make me feel like a top target on their board.”
With its 2027 recruiting class, which ranks as high as seventh nationally by ESPN, the Rivals Industry Composite and the 247 Sports Composite with 26 commits, nearly finalized, the Gators have quickly turned its attention to the 2028 class. As it stands, Florida holds one commitment in the cycle in Hollywood (Fla.) Chaminade-Madonna four-star receiver Armani Strong, who is 247 Sports’ No. 25 receiver and No. 164 overall recruit in the 2028 recruiting cycle. Florida also holds predictions from Alderman, On3/Rivals’ Corey Bender and 247 Sports’ Zach Blostein to land Blountstown (Fla.) four-star safety Cyion Smith.
Blostein also has a prediction for the Gators to land Lakeland (Fla.) four-star corner Dominick Harris-Payne.
“We can get anybody to come visit the University of Florida if we want in America if we do a good job. This is not a really hard place to recruit to,” Sumrall said in April of his early recruiting success with the Gators. “… I think the guys that come here to visit, most of them come back at some point whether they’ve chosen us or not, how they feel the energy’s real. And there’s authentic relationships.”
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