Florida Gators Have Chance to End Another Drought in Latest OL Recruiting Battle

By Cam Parker Sports Illustrated

Updated May 4, 2026 7:10 AM

Middletown (Del.) Appoquinimink four-star offensive lineman Layton Von Brandt on Sunday released his final four schools in his recruitment, which included the Florida Gators alongside Auburn, Notre Dame and Penn State, where he was previously committed.

At 6-foot-6 and 285 pounds, Von Brandt ranks as a top-five tackle in the 2027 recruiting class in the Rivals Industry Ranking and 247 Sports Composite while also being a consensus top 150 overall recruit in the country. That top 150 ranking, which includes a high of No. 40 nationally by ESPN, gives Florida an opportunity to end another recruiting drought should Von Brandt commit to the Gators.

NEWS: Four-Star OT Layton von Brandt is down to 4 Schools, he tells me for @Rivals

⁰The 6'6 285 OT is ranked as a Top 5 OT in the 2027 Rivals Industry Rankings

He's locked in official visits to each of his finalists https://t.co/nahnWxww3a pic.twitter.com/Czza7ZnsxO
- Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) May 4, 2026

Already holding commitments from a pair of top 150 offensive linemen in five-star Maxwell Hiller and four-star Peyton Miller, gaining a third in Von Brandt would give the Gators three top 150 offensive line commits in a single class for the first time since 2006. Hiller's and Miller's commitments marked the first time since 2012 that Florida had two top 150 commits on the offensive line in a single class.

In 2006, Florida signed five-star Carl Johnson, four-star Jim Barrie and four-star Marcus Gilbert, all of whom ranked inside the top 150 in both ESPN's and Rivals' rankings. Now-UF offensive line coach Phil Trautwein, ironically, was a junior starter on Florida's offensive line that season.

A commitment from Von Brandt would also give Florida three offensive line commits in the top 10 offensive linemen recruits in ESPN's SC Next 300. Hiller headlines the group at No. 1, with Von Brandt and Miller following him at No. 7 and No. 10.

However, Gators have a tough battle ahead of them to do so.

As it stands, On3/Rivals lists Notre Dame as the favorite, but the Gators have history and familiarity on their side. Von Brandt previously committed to Penn State when Trautwein was the offensive line coach and decommitted shortly after then-head coach James Franklin was dismissed.

While Florida had already offered Von Brandt under the previous staff, Trautwein's hiring after the 2025 season ended made the Gators contenders. Now, the Gators have two more recruiters on their side in Hiller and Miller, who have both made Von Brandt a priority target.

"We will work on him. I know Max is already on him like crazy," Miller told On3's Corey Bender shortly after his commitment.

Von Brandt has not announced a commitment date but is slated to visit each of his four finalists this summer. He will visit Florida on May 28, giving the Gators the first crack at him this summer before trips to Penn State on June 2, Auburn on June 12 and Penn State on June 19.

Florida Gators 2027 Recruiting Class

Florida Gators on SI is tracking all of Florida's moves in the 2027 recruiting class in our official tracker. After landing seven commits in April, Florida's 2027 recruiting class currently ranks eighth in the Rivals Industry Ranking and in the 247 Sports Composite. That ranking has a chance to improve in May with three prospects, all of whom have at least one expert prediction to choose Florida, set to announce their decisions this week.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/florida as Florida Gators Have Chance to End Another Drought in Latest OL Recruiting Battle.

This story was originally published May 4, 2026 at 7:00 AM.

Florida Gators 2027 Recruiting Class

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