Kaiir Elam Undecided on Future With Florida Gators, Excited for Bowl Game
Photo: Kaiir Elam; Credit: Zach Goodall
Long-projected to hear his name called in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft, Florida Gators cornerback Kaiir Elam has a decision to make: To forgo his senior year at UF with pro football aspirations in mind, or to return for one more season and embrace a refreshed culture with a new head coach in Billy Napier.
Elam made one thing clear when he met with media ahead of Thursday's Gasparilla Bowl between Florida and UCF: He has yet to make his decision, one way or another.
"My plans are to beat UCF and make a lot of plays," Elam said on Monday when asked about his future with the program.
The talented cornerback, surely, has made a lot of plays throughout his three-year UF career, which has led to his hype as an underclass draft prospect. Tallying 76 tackles, five interceptions and 20 defended passes in 29 games, Elam doesn't have much left to prove before taking his talents to the NFL.
That is, to everyone except Elam, which gave him plenty of reason to strap up his pads for the Gasparilla Bowl.
"I feel like every game I play I have something to prove, something to get better at," Elam said. "I feel like I wasn't satisfied with how this season went for my team and myself, and I just feel like I owed it to my team to play in this game.
"I just want to win. I feel like we've had ups and downs. I just want to showcase, you know, finish out the season with a win. I feel like this would be a good game for me to just get back, I had like had two weeks off to get healthy, and show what I could do."
Still, the question remains: Will Elam make the jump to the pros after the bowl game or stick around for one more season with the Gators?
An important factor in Elam's decision, certainly, would be his impression of Napier. Napier was hired as UF's next head coach in late November and immediately got to work on building a coaching staff and wrapping up the 2022 recruiting cycle, however, he's had an opportunity to meet with current UF players in a limited fashion, leaving Elam impressed with his vision.
"I met coach Napier at practice, really great guy," Elam explained. "I listened to what he had to say and offer. I feel like his plans are very detailed and precise and how he takes his time with everything, I feel like that's pretty cool."
Time will tell if Napier's pitch will convince Elam to spend one more season in orange and blue. He'd certainly be welcomed back for his senior year, but similarly, everyone within and around the program would understand if Elam opted to begin his NFL career.
But, odds are, Elam won't let the public know of his plan until after the Gasparilla Bowl.
"When am I planning on making a decision?" Elam pondered, "I'm not sure, I'm really just focused on beating UCF and making plays and grinding, dominating."
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