The state of Florida remains a factory for blue-chip high school football talent. <\/p>\n
In the 2026 cycle, there are 52 four or five-star prospects from the Sunshine State, according to the\u00a0Rivals Industry Ranking<\/a>, a weighted average that utilizes all major recruiting media companies. All but one of those prospects have now signed with a Power Four program.<\/p>\n Of the top 15 players, just four are set to stay in-state. Below is a look at the top prospects in Florida this cycle and where they are headed to play their college football next season:<\/p>\n School: American Heritage<\/a> Scouting Summary: \u201cPrecision passer with the arm talent, size, and athleticism to translate to college football and beyond. Measured in at around 6-foot-2.5, 215 pounds with a 10-inch hand before his senior season. Mechanically clean with a smooth throwing motion that he replicates with consistency. Has polished footwork that is married to his upper body. Shows high-level arm talent, delivering well-placed passes to multiple levels of the field. A dangerous operator from the pocket. Able to evade pressure, reset his feet, and fire. Throws a pretty deep ball. Was a first-year starter as a sophomore and showed marked improvement while playing top competition as a junior. Flashed an added playmaking element and rushing component to his game down the stretch of his junior season. Ripped off long runs, including two 40+ yard touchdown runs against top programs. Completed 70.6% of his passes for 2,597 yards (11.4 yards per attempt) and 29 touchdowns against six interceptions in 2025. Also rushed for 561 yards and five touchdowns. Was tabbed as the Elite 11 MVP prior to his senior season. Also has a basketball background. Is the son of long-time NBA veteran guard Raja Bell. The level of improvement displayed throughout his junior season should be taken as an encouraging sign of his long-term upside.\u201d<\/p>\n School: IMG Academy<\/a> About:\u00a0Pepe saw playing time as a freshman on a loaded IMG squad in 2022, and was named to All-American teams both of his first two years on a really deep offensive line. This fall, he took over as the team\u2019s starting left tackle and helped anchor one of the country\u2019s best lines.\u00a0In May, he committed to the Trojans over Miami, Oregon, and a host of other programs.<\/p>\n 3. EDGE Jake Kreul<\/a> \u2014 Oklahoma<\/p>\n School: IMG Academy<\/a> About:\u00a0Kruel opted to transfer from\u00a0Bishop Moore<\/a>\u00a0in Orlando to IMG for his final two seasons of high school football. As a sophomore for the Hornets, he was an absolute menace to offensive lines. Along with 76 total tackles, he notched 34 tackles for loss and a whopping 17 sacks. Playing alongside tons of Division I talent at IMG, he still managed to total 39 tackles, six sacks and 11 QB hurries last fall.\u00a0He chose Oklahoma over Texas and Ole Miss on Aug. 12 in a massive win for the Sooners. He was then a part of an undefeated IMG squad this fall and put up impressive numbers for the Ascenders.<\/p>\n School: St. Augustine<\/a> Scout\u2019s Take:\u00a0\u201cWingo stands out as one of the premier yards-after-catch threats in this class. Every time the ball finds his hands, he\u2019s a legitimate scoring threat. As a runner, Wingo plays like a tank. His powerful leg drive and sudden change of direction allows him to tear through arm tackles and shake defenders in tight spaces with remarkable consistency. On top of that, he boasts some of the strongest hands in the cycle and is a natural playmaker above the rim. His ability to elevate and haul in acrobatic catches is striking. You see flashes of it under the Friday night lights, but his basketball background shows the same traits even more vividly. His bounce and explosiveness as a dunker translate seamlessly to the football field, making it easy to understand why he\u2019s so dominant in contested situations. Wingo\u2019s improvement though in his burst and ability to change gears made him an obvious rankings riser as a senior prospect.\u201d<\/p>\n School: Booker<\/a> Scouting Summary: \u201cFluid corner with size, movement skills, and coordination. Measured at 6-foot-1.5, 185 pounds with 32-inch arms, and big hands before his senior season. Has good speed in the track and combine setting, running an 11.08 mark in the 100 meters as a junior, while also qualifying for the state finals in the 200 meters (21.85). Lines up at corner and receiver for his high school team. A loose mover, especially at his size. Shows the ability to trigger and make plays on the ball. Plays with quality instincts. Got his hands on a bunch of passes as a junior, with 16 pass breakups. Also shows the playmaking ability on offense, scoring six touchdowns. Will need to continue cleaning up his technique in coverage. May not overwhelm in one area, but is a well-rounded prospect.\u201d<\/p>\n School: Northwestern<\/a> High School Recap:\u00a0The 6-foot-5, 195-pound Russell does it all at the high school level, playing quarterback and wide receiver. And that\u2019s not to mention the fact that he was a Division I basketball talent with multiple high-major offers there as well. During his senior campaign, Russell has 15 of 19 passes for 368 yards and four touchdowns at quarterback. As a receiver, he has hauled in 25 catches for 390 yards and five more scores.<\/p>\n School: St. Thomas Aquinas<\/a> Scouting Summary: \u201cPolished corner with the size, speed, and technical refinement to be one of the top defensive backs in the 2026 cycle. Measured at around 6-foot-0.5, 200 pounds with arms over 31 inches before his senior season. A good athlete who showed considerable improvement in his speed, consistently running under 11.0 seconds in the 100 meters as a junior, along with a 21.97 time in the 200 meters. Lines up as an outside corner for South Florida area powerhouse St. Thomas Aquinas. Has the strength to reroute receivers off the line of scrimmage. Fluid mover who makes smooth transitions in coverage. Has the long speed to stick with receivers on vertical routes. A good tackler in space and delivers with pop on contact. Had two interceptions and seven pass breakups as a junior. Lacks offensive experience, playing at a powerhouse that doesn\u2019t have two-way players. Younger brother of former Alabama star, first-round pick, and All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. Has the versatility to play corner, nickel, or safety at the next level with the upside of developing into an early-round draft pick.\u201d<\/p>\n School: Bolles<\/a> Scouting Summary: \u201cUltra-dynamic pass catcher that is a three-level receiver who separates from defenders in his route running and after the catch due to his hyper-athleticism. Verified 5-foot-10.5, 185 pounds with over 10-inch hands. Ridiculous top-end speed running 10.64 in the 100m and 22.41 in the 100m during his junior track season. Dominant in space with the ball in his hands, extremely difficult to bring down in the open field due to his elusiveness. Strong hands, able to attack the football and pluck the football away from his frame confidently. Caught 33 passes for 829 yards for an impressive 25 yards per catch as a junior. Also scored 12 receiving touchdowns. Needs to continue to get stronger and add mass while maintaining his top-tier athletic ability. Has the ability to be a dynamic number one receiver at the next level despite being on the shorter end of wide receiver prospects due to his tremendous ball skills and movement skills.\u201d<\/p>\n School: The First Academy<\/a> Scout\u2019s Take:\u00a0\u201cDevin Jackson is carrying over his dominant offseason into his senior season. He has been a playmaker early on in his final high school campaign. Whether it\u2019s man or zone coverage, he is able to make plays on the football and turn completions into pass breakups. Jackson has the size, speed and cover skills to be a true three-dimensional safety prospect at the next level.\u201d<\/p>\n School: Chaminade-Madonna Prep<\/a> Cooper on Texas:\u00a0\u201cThey showed a commitment to me,\u201d\u00a0Cooper told Rivals<\/a>. \u201cI just want to be a part of a program like that. I feel like I\u2019m the best fit for Texas.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s a really good school and a really good choice,\u201d he said. \u201cCoach Scott is a really good coach; he\u2019s done a lot of great development with guys.\u201d<\/p>\n Other top signees from Florida this cycle<\/p>\n 11. S Ayden Pouncey<\/a> \u2014 Notre Dame 16. CB Danny Odem<\/a> \u2014 Nebraska 21. EDGE Asharri Charles<\/a> \u2014 Miami
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 8 NATL. (No. 3 QB)<\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 40 NATL. (No. 7 OT)<\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 46 NATL. (No. 8 EDGE)<\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 47 NATL. (No. 6 WR)<\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking:<\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 52 NATL. (No. 7 WR)<\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 53 NATL. (No. 7 CB)<\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 61 NATL. (No. 8 WR)<\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 68 NATL. <\/p>\n
Rivals Industry Ranking: No. 74 NATL. (No. 4 RB)<\/p>\n
12. EDGE Trenton Henderson<\/a> \u2014 LSU
13. LB Izayia Williams<\/a> \u2014 Florida State
14. DL James Johnson<\/a> \u2014 Texas
15. CB CJ Bronaugh<\/a> \u2014 Florida<\/p>\n
17. CB Jaelen Waters<\/a> \u2014 Miami
18. OT Johnnie Jones Jr.<\/a> \u2014 Missouri
19. WR Tyren Hornes<\/a>
20. CB Kenton Dopson<\/a> \u2014 North Carolina<\/p>\n
22. DL Elijah Golden<\/a> \u2014 Notre Dame
23. WR Justin Williams<\/a> \u2014 Florida
24. IOL Samuel Roseborough<\/a> \u2014 Texas A&M
25. WR Jayden Petit<\/a> \u2014 Oklahoma<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The state of Florida remains a factory for blue-chip high school football talent. In the 2026 cycle, there…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":85025,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[9978,46065,46703,10550,46704,10552,46705,46706,46707,46708,46709,40387,46710,47,28,30,29,10556,46711,46712,46713,46714,46715,46716,46717,46718,46719,6524,46720,10561,46721,46722,10564,10565,10567,10568,46723],"class_list":["post-85024","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-american-heritage-patriots-plantation","tag-asharri-charles-26-venice","tag-ayden-pouncey-26-winter-park","tag-booker-tornadoes-sarasota","tag-calvin-russell-26-northwestern","tag-chaminade-madonna-prep-lions-hollywood","tag-chauncey-kennon-26-booker","tag-cj-bronaugh-26-windermere","tag-danny-odem-26-the-first-academy","tag-derrek-cooper-26-chaminade-madonna-prep","tag-devin-jackson-26-the-first-academy","tag-dia-bell-26-american-heritage","tag-elijah-golden-26-cardinal-mooney","tag-fl","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-img-academy-ascenders-bradenton","tag-izayia-williams-26-tavares","tag-jaelen-waters-26-armwood","tag-jake-kreul-26-img-academy","tag-james-johnson-26-northwestern","tag-jayden-petit-26-first-baptist-academy","tag-johnnie-jones-jr-26-venice","tag-justice-fitzpatrick-26-st-thomas-aquinas","tag-justin-williams-26-f-w-buchholz","tag-keenyi-pepe-26-img-academy","tag-kenton-dopson-27-norland","tag-naeem-burroughs-26-the-bolles-school","tag-northwestern-bulls-miami","tag-samuel-roseborough-26-clearwater","tag-somourian-wingo-26-st-augustine","tag-st-augustine-jackets-saint-augustine","tag-st-thomas-aquinas-raiders-fort-lauderdale","tag-the-bolles-school-bulldogs-jacksonville","tag-the-first-academy-royals-orlando","tag-trenton-henderson-26-pensacola-catholic"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85024","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85024"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85024\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/85025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85024"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85024"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85024"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}