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Florida football recruiting: Hybrid WR/TE Kalif Jackson commits to Gators

And, lo, did Florida stem the tide.

By Andy Hutchins
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

After losing four commitments and gaining just one over the last 10 days on the recruiting trail, Florida got back on the positive side of the ledger on Tuesday, picking up a commitment from Jacksonville wide receiver Kalif Jackson.

Jackson, who plays for Fletcher High in Jacksonsville, is a three-star wide receiver per the 247Sports Composite, but is listed at 6'5" and 200 pounds. That puts him closer to the body type of Florida's two tight ends in the 2014 recruiting class — DeAndre Goolsby and C'yontai Lewis — and the burly Moral Stephens, Jr. than it does to the more diminutive frames of 2014 signees Ryan Sousa and C.J. Worton.

And his junior year highlights make him look like a matchup problem, a potential red zone threat, and the kind of player who might fit perfectly in Kurt Roper's offense at tight end or B-back.

Based on that short exposure alone, Jackson profiles to me as a strider, not a burner, and I think we could see him playing that B-back role for Florida. Roper uses B-backs and tight ends extensively as pass-catchers, and there will be ample playing time for as many of them as he can rely on: Three tight ends recorded multiple catches for Roper-run Duke in each of the last three years.

This does, of course, rely on Roper — and Will Muschamp — returning for 2015, but that's the caveat to be applied at all points in recruiting with Florida at the moment. Jackson's commitment brings Florida's 2015 class back to eight members.