Easley keeps turning heads

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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- One of the most dominating players this week has been four-star DE Dominique Easley (Staten Island, N.Y./Curtis), to the point that his teammates are talking nonstop about him when off the field. He continued to turn heads when he announced this college choice Saturday during the Under Armour All-America Game.

David De Pas for ESPN.comDominique Easley turned heads with his decision to play for the Florida Gators.

"I'm going to Florida," Easley said. "I've been wanting to go to Florida ever since the beginning of my recruitment. That just the place for me to go and I've been wanting to be a Gator for a long time. I was supposed to go there at the beginning of the process, but then some things happened. I talked it over with my family and they support my decision. I like everything about Florida. The university, the player and the coaches."

Easley, who de-committed from Penn State on Thursday night, said the news in the past week regarding the unknown future of head coach Urban Meyer didn't have an impact on his decision.

"It didn't have an effect on me," he said. "I know coach [Urban] Meyer is coming back, and coach [Steve] Addazio and Coach Meyer are tight, so I know things will be the same."

Time spent this week with a number of Florida commitments pushed the Gators over the top.

"Yeah, it helped that the Florida guys were working on me this week. I have never played with a group of guys like this," Easley said. "I've got close to Leon Orr and Demar Dorsey this week. Those are the main guys I've spent time talking with."

Easley becomes the 20th commitment for the Gators as they continue to hold the top spot in the ESPN.com class rankings. He is the 11th member of the ESPNU 150 to pick Florida.

"I'm excited to be a part of a great class. It's been great seeing all of the players going to Florida this week," Easley said.

The No. 41 prospect in the ESPNU 150 was the most dominant defensive lineman in practice, having won seemingly every one-on-one matchup. His get-off is explosively quick, and if redirected, he has shown an ultra-quick spin move remaining balanced and finishing with an explosive closing burst to the ball.

Gerry Hamilton has covered recruiting in Texas and the Southwest for more than a decade. He can be reached at espngerry@yahoo.com.

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