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Florida earns RPM prediction for EDGE recruit Frederick Ards III
TL;DR
Florida is the overwhelming favorite to land EDGE recruit Frederick Ards III, with a 94.9% prediction from Rivals experts. Texas A&M is the main competitor, but holds less than 1% of the prediction data.
Rivals' Florida insider Blake Alderman submitted a prediction for the Gators to land Jones (Orlando) edge defender Frederick Ards III on Tuesday.
Alderman is the third Rivals expert to pick the Gators as a landing spot for Ards, following vice president of recruiting and transfer portal Steve Wiltfong (March 4) and recruiting analyst Corey Bender (Feb. 26). With all three submitted predictions in Florida's favor, the Gators are the overwhelming favorite to land Ards with 94.9% of the prediction data.
Texas A&M is viewed as the team competing with Florida the most, despite holding less than 1% of the data.
Outside linebackers coach Bam Hardmon is leading the charge for Florida, along with Sumrall. Development is a driving factor in his recruitment, and Florida has convinced him that Gainesville is the right place for him to grow. There's also the staying close to home angle that plays well for Florida.
Ards made his first visit to campus over a year ago and was in town for each of the last two Orange and Blue games. He was a priority target for the previous staff and remained at the top of the board for Jon Sumrall's staff.
Ards named a top five of Alabama, Florida, Florida State, South Carolina and Texas A&M in January. He has official visits lined up with each of his top schools. Florida will host Ards from June 4-6. Florida State is also making a run at Ards, but the Seminoles remain a team outside the bubble for now.
Frederick Ards III Recruiting Summary
Ards is a consensus four-star prospect among the three major recruiting services â 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals.
Rivals values him the most at No. 85 nationally and No. 11 among edge defenders. ESPN has him at Nos. 112 and No. 8, respectively, while 247Sports has him at Nos. 109 and No. 15. The Rivals industry ranking, which considers all three rankings, puts him at No. 92 overall and No. 11 at his position. The 247Sports composite has him all the way up at Nos. 77 and 11.
As a junior, Ards recorded 73 total tackles with 13 being for loss and 11 sacks in 14 games played.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida football recruiting earns RPM predictions for Frederick Ards
Q&A
What is the current prediction percentage for Frederick Ards III to join Florida?
The current prediction percentage for Frederick Ards III to join Florida is 94.9%.
Which team is the main competitor for Frederick Ards III's recruitment?
Texas A&M is viewed as the main competitor for Frederick Ards III's recruitment.
Who is leading the recruitment efforts for Florida regarding Frederick Ards III?
Outside linebackers coach Bam Hardmon is leading the recruitment efforts for Florida regarding Frederick Ards III.