GATOR NATION

Top Gators target Vernell Brown III sets commitment date

One of Florida’s top targets in the 2025 cycle has a commitment date set

With eight verbal commitments in the 2025 recruiting class so far, the Florida Gators still have a number of prospects still to announce their pledges in the upcoming weeks. Florida’s top target in the 2025 class, Vernell Brown III, a four-star wide receiver from Orlando (Fla.), has set his commitment date. He has decided to reveal his college football playing and attending school on July 21.

Florida, Florida State, Miami, and Ohio State are his four finalists.

The legacy target had multiple family members play their career at Florida in the past. Those family ties, along with the fact that he’s a big time talent of his own, has made him a priority target for the Gators this cycle. This past season as a Junior, Brown caught 70 passes for 1,363 yards and 10 TD, and scored four more times on special teams as well. Multiple Florida coaches have been involved in this recruitment, but wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales has been leading the charge. He’s got a long history of producing players from the college ranks to the NFL, and Gonzales has give Brown an in-depth look of what his coaching pedigree is. With Brown having eyes on playing professional ball himself, it was good to hear what Gonzales’ teaching could do for him.

“We sat down, he showed me a presentation of what his plan for me is,” Brown said of that pitch. “People talk about it all the time, but it was good for him to actually show me. They have some big plans. They don’t compare me to a single player, but there are similar playstyles like with Kadarius ToneyPercy Harvin and Tre Wilson. I’m unique, so the plan they have is individualized to me.”

From growing up around UF’s program, Brown knows Gainesville and UF’s campus like the back of his hand. He’s also taken several visits to campus as a prospect, including an official visit last month. Something unique his official visit allowed was for him to get extra time around the players. That gave him even more insight into the program, and learn what the Florida brand could do for him.

“When you get a chance to be around certain players, you get to hear different experiences,” Brown said. “Tre Wilson, who generally has the perfect experience, to someone else still working their way up, it was good. I didn’t hear anything bad and all the players are enjoying it, which is a big selling point for coach Napier and his staff talking about the player experience.”

Heading into his decision date, the Florida Gators currently hold the majority of the predictions on the 247Sports Crystal Ball.

The 247Sports Composite, an industry generated average, currently ranks Brown as a five-star prospect, and the No. 25 overall prospect in the 2025 recruiting class.

 

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