Enai White’s Visit to Florida Moves Gators Up Recruitment Totem Pole

Following an official visit to the University of Florida, Philadelphia defensive end prospect Enai White says the Gators have moved up the totem pole for his services.

Since Dan Mullen’s arrival to Gainesville in 2018, the Gators have been no stranger to the nation’s northeast, plucking valuable talent from the region to bolster the roster.

Starting with Kyle Pitts in Mullen’s first recruiting class and Donovan McMillon in the 2021 class, Pennsylvania has been a talent-rich pipeline for Florida.

Looking to add another talented Philadelphia native to make their way down south, Florida hosted Imhotep Institute edge rusher Enai White for an official visit this weekend.

Pushing for him with the best the program has to offer, White believes UF made significant headway in his recruitment with his visit this weekend as expectations were met — and even exceeded.

“I mean, it's Florida. I knew it would be nice. They definitely met expectations for sure. It actually moved Florida up a lot. For me, coming down here and actually seeing it, the vibes down here, it just felt real good. Me coming down here was a plus.”

Getting an in-person glimpse of the Gators operations, White was thoroughly impressed when departing on Sunday.

“This weekend been real. I got to meet with some players — Khris Bogle, Zach [Carter], Mohamoud [Diabate] — I really like the leadership that they have. Just bonding with the players, I can tell that [Mullen] knows how to coach. We talked a lot about if I came here how they would help me and stuff, so it’s been a good weekend.”

However, those three were not the only Gators White would interact with.

Having his weekend commence with a Twitter exchange between himself and the fourth overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft, White would speak on what Pitts’ recognition meant to him.

“For Kyle Pitts to see it, that’s heavy. For him being from Philly and making it and stuff and me seeing, it means a lot. I definitely want to follow in his footsteps but still be my own person.”

@GatorsFB make sure we show him a good time! https://t.co/MDfs2kUhI8

— Kyle Pitts👑 (@kylepitts__) June 4, 2021

Sharing that the highlight of his weekend occurred in the film room — learning the basics of his projected position — White would give insight into his role the Florida coaching staff looked to have him operate in.

“BUCK, outside linebacker. Outside rush guy, edge rusher. So 80 percent of the time rushing to the quarterback, I drop in coverage sometimes and stuff. So, that’s mostly what I want to play.”

Playing in the staple of the Florida defense — or any for that matter — White would be a crucial piece in the Gators defensive attack, something that defensive coordinator Todd Grantham made sure to stress to White during their time together.

“The way he told me it was important as a piece of his defense is like, the last 12 years an edge rush guy has led the SEC in sacks, so that shows you how important that is to his defense.”

With White willing to take his time to make a final decision, wanting it to come naturally but possibly eyeing a preseason commitment date simultaneously, the sought-after edge rusher will endure a busy schedule throughout the remainder of the summer.

As White is slated to attend the nation’s top schools on official and unofficial visits, Florida looks to utilize the success of talent from White’s region to reel him in during the closing stages of his recruitment.

“Just to see like, cause we come from the same thing, so just to see somebody go through that phase and get treated right and do what they got to do here helps it because it’s like I’m the same person for real. That helps a lot.”

While it was a long shot to land White before his trip to The Swamp, the Gators have seemingly got their foot in the door for another playmaker from Philly and hope the tight relationships he has built with Mullen, Grantham and primary recruiter Tim Brewster pay off in the long haul.