Gators 2021 Target WR Brashard Smith Commits to Miami

The Florida Gators will be missing out on one of the more explosive slot receivers as 2021 WR Brashard Smith officially commits to Miami Hurricanes.

As the Gators get set to have an explosive August, they'll be without one of the most explosive slot receivers in the country as 2021 WR Brashard Smith officially commits to the Miami Hurricanes.

Announced on social media, Smith, 5-foot-9, 188 pounds will be shutting down his recruitment and signing with the Hurricanes when the signing period opens in the winter.

"First off I would like to thank God Almighty for blessing me with the talent to be in this position," Smith said on Twitter today. "Next I would like to thank my parents, family, and all my coaches from little league to high school for shaping me up to be the man that I am today. Words can't express the gratitude I have for you all at Palmetto Sr High. WIth that being said I'm excited to announce that I will be signing to The University of Miami!!"

Recruitment ShutDown‼️#Gwslilbro❤️ pic.twitter.com/jCmxOpbEdA

— B💰 (@BrashardS) July 26, 2020

Smith has been a heavy target for the Gators for a long time. In fact, the Miami Palmetto (Miami, Fla.) receiver originally committed to Florida in January before decommitting in May. It was expected Smith would take time to re-evaluate his decision, but ultimately the Gators were not his choice.

Florida was on Smith's most-recent top five, and the decision likely came down to the Hurricanes or the Gators at the end of the day as it appears could be the case among all of the 'Palmetto 5', ultimately.

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Smith, a Sports Illustrated All-American candidate was recently evaluated and given high marks from the SIAA team. Their final thoughts on Smith are as follows:

Bottom Line: Someone with this type of speed is going to terrify defenses every time he steps foot onto the football field. Smith is going to take the top off of defenses, and early in his career you can manufacture touches for him and watch him work.

The Gators miss out on Smith but were able to snag Jacksonville (Fla.), native WR Marcus Burke just last week and currently have three other receivers committed in Daejon Reynolds, Trevonte Rucker and athlete Charles Montgomery.

Florida will continue to evaluate their wide receiver board, while Smith is a big loss, they have plenty of other options left on the table still.