GAINESVILLE, Fla. – As a kid growing up in Alabama, Jaydon Hill's allegiance in the Roll Tide/War Eagle rite of passage shifted to Tuscaloosa as he began to develop into a college prospect at Bob Jones High near Huntsville.
The Crimson Tide were winning national titles and with Hill turning heads for his dynamic play as a defensive back, a natural attraction developed.
"Bama was one of my dream schools," Hill said.
After a brief pause, he continued.
"But the situation here was just better. I feel like it's more of an opportunity."
While in high school, Mississippi State was the second school to offer Hill a scholarship, something that he held onto when
Dan Mullen left Starkville for Gainesville in late 2017.
Hill then watched as the Gators, in their first season under Mullen, reversed their fortunes in 2018. Despite a strong push from South Carolina leading up to the early signing period in December, Hill stayed committed to the Gators and signed.
He is one of nine mid-year enrollees to join the team this month during offseason workouts. He is not the first member of his family to get a scholarship to an FBS program. His mom's brother, Marcus Hill, played linebacker at Louisville in the early 1990s.
Why did he stay committed to the Gators as others made pitches?
"Really, just the DBU standard. That stands out to a player in my position, and then the situation I'm coming into,'' said Hill, a 6-foot, 174-pound cornerback. "There was no better situation than here. You walk in here and we don't have much depth at all at corner."
Like the rest of the newcomers, Hill is getting accustomed to college life and those early morning workouts under the watchful eye of
Nick Savage and his weight-room staff.
Some days are sorer than others.
"It's been work,'' he said. "I won't say it's been easy, but it's been fun at the same time."
In the first of our series introducing the newcomers on
FloridaGators.com, we caught up with Hill prior to one of those workouts for a Q&A:
Q: For someone who has never watched you play, how would you describe your style?
A: I'm probably one of them he-look-open-but-he-not-open type of guys. He thinks he's open. He might look open right then, but you throw it, I'm there.
Q: What's your first impression of Torrian Gray, your new position coach?
A: Marco [Wilson] and CJ [Henderson] were already telling me about him, that's he's a great coach and all that. And knowing his path, he coached Teez [Tabor] and Quincy [Wilson] here. Just in his history, he has to be good.
Q: What's a good spring camp for you in your own view?
A: Really just working on my game and perfecting my craft. I'm not really focused on much other than myself.
Freshman DB Jaydon Hill
Q: Did you play other sports in high school?
A: Yeah, I played basketball. Point guard.
Q: How difficult a choice to go with football?
A: Yeah, it was during my ninth-grade year because I used to want to play college basketball. I just knew I was real dominant in football, but I was real good at basketball too. But in ninth-grade year, that's when I really knew football for me was the way to go.
Q: What's the best day you ever had on a football field?
A: My ninth-grade year I caught a game-winning touchdown pass against our rival school. I liked that. It was real fun. I always think of that.
Q: Did you play both ways all through high school?
A: No, I actually moved to defensive back the summer before 10th grade. I've been playing really offense my whole life.
Q: What prompted that change?
A: Really, the coach asked me what position I wanted to play, and I just said, 'whatever is going to get me on the field.' I happened to be good at DB and it just turned out good for me.
Q: As an outsider looking in, what did you think of the Gators in Coach Mullen's first season?
A: From seeing what Coach Mullen came in and did compared to what they were before he came, that is tremendous. That's not common. Seeing him do that, made me, 'yeah, I'm definitely going to Florida.' I saw what they did at Mississippi State as well because he offered me. Just seeing that and our relationship just kept building, I just knew Florida is where I'm probably going.
Q: What are Gators fans going to like about you as a player?
A: I'm energetic. I'm all that. I'm one of them that fans love because I'm going to make plays and I'm going to have fun doing it.
Q: What are your thoughts on the position group you joined?
A: Coming into a program like this and being able to compete to be on the field early as a freshman is big. Playing with these guys is only going to be better for me in the future. Even if you're not playing, learning from Marco and CJ and [Trey] Dean, that only helps.
