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Devon Hunter, a 5-star recruit and the No. 1 safety in the 2017 recruiting class, will announce his college commitment on Friday. And it will have a huge impact on the 2017 season. 

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Alright, I’m officially having withdrawals — both from the lack of football and the lack of junk food in my life. New Year’s diets are the worst, especially when you live in Chicago, and there’s great food about 20 feet away in every direction.

I’m ready to hit fast forward and skip ahead to August when football is back on TV, and both pizza and beer are back on my menu.

Unfortunately, right now it’s weight cutting time. I’m set to be a groomsman in a wedding down in Florida, and need to shed some of the extra poundage to get ready for that shindig. The groom is my buddy Jonathan, who’s actually a former Virginia Tech linebacker. And I’m trying to get in the same kind of shape he’s in, which is a tall order because the guy played ACC football for crying out loud.

Anyway, speaking of Hokies, let’s dive right into the hottest subject on the recruiting trail.

Future Hokies Star

I know I talked about him last week, but 5-star safety Devon Hunter is set to announce his college commitment on Friday. Alabama, Auburn, North Carolina and Ole Miss technically “made the cut,” but the real race has been between Florida and Virginia Tech.

It’s not that the Gators didn’t impress Hunter. They did. He was blown away by Gainesville. But it’s hard to pull a kid away from his home-state school, especially when that school is as hot as the Hokies are right now with all the energy Justin Fuente has brought to Blacksburg.

Don’t expect him to choose Florida. There’s about a 10 percent chance he becomes a Gator, and that’s being generous. He’ll be a Hokie, will likely play on Day 1 for Virginia Tech, and will be a star in the ACC.

Consider how big this commitment is for Fuente and the Hokies: landing Hunter would make it the first time since 2007 that the program has signed the No. 1 overall player in the state of Virginia. That guy they got almost 10 years ago? Tyrod Taylor.

Florida Staff

When it comes to the Gators, Torrian Gray certainly did all he could to get Hunter. But even though he likely won’t pull it off, Gray is still a dynamite recruiter. In fact, he’s one of the better recruiters on a Florida staff that is currently reeling. Mike Summers bolted for another stint with Louisville, and now Jim McElwain needs to hire a new offensive line coach. That’s notable considering the Gators are trying to flip 4-star offensive tackle Kai-Leon Herbert from Michigan. One would imagine Herbert would prefer to know who his position coach will be.

There is also a rumor floating around that special teams coordinator and tight ends coach Greg Nord has been pulled off the recruiting trail with his contract set to expire. If true, then McElwain will have yet another spot on the staff to fill. Geoff Collins’ move to Temple bumped Randy Shannon into the defensive coordinator job, but Florida has more questions to answer regarding its staff, including the addition of a 10th assistant.

Director of Player Personnel Drew Hughes has actually been filling in on the recruiting trail and is doing an incredible job, so the Gators can be thankful for him. But Florida needs to get the staff in order, and it would be smart to do so before National Signing Day.

Tiger Tailback Trouble

It’s hard not to be happy for Dabo Swinney, Deshaun Watson and the rest of the Tigers for winning the national title. It was a huge win for the program. Clemson has another talented recruiting class coming in for the 2017 season, but it confuses me a little. It’s shocking that Swinney’s staff still hasn’t secured a commitment from a running back yet.

Wayne Gallman is gone, guys. He’s headed to the NFL. With five tailbacks set to be on the roster next season, Clemson won’t suffer by not adding one in this cycle — Tavien Feaster was a huge piece of their 2016 class. But I still expected Swinney to get one halfback in the class considering all the talented running backs to have played for the Tigers. They’re working on getting 4-star halfback Travis Etienne, but LSU, Tennessee and Texas A&M are all pushing for him. If Clemson can’t land, it’ll put more emphasis on adding a running back or two in the 2018 cycle.

Nebraska-fornia

Mike Riley’s staff has been heating up lately on the recruiting trail, and I love it. What I love even more is where the Cornhuskers are drawing from to fill their 2017 board: California. They already had pledges from Calabasas natives Keyshawn Johnson (WR) and Tristan Gebbia (QB). And they recently added former Ohio State commit Tyjon Lindsey, a 4-star wide receiver. Lindsey is originally from California, and he may not be the last Cali pass catcher headed to Lincoln.

Four-star Los Angeles native Jamire Calvin recently backed off his pledge to Oregon State after committing to the Beavers on Jan. 7. It appears he’s favoring Nebraska now, and if the receiver did pick the Huskers, they’d have four California prospects in the class. When you factor in 4-star receiver Jaevon McQuitty, the future of the Nebraska passing game is looking quite bright.

Jeff Thomas’ Recruitment

If you watched the 2017 Under Armour All-America Game, you saw 4-star wide receiver Jeff Thomas explode and earn MVP honors with his two offensive touchdowns (an Under Armour record). After the game he announced his plan to commit on National Signing Day. However, it appears Thomas has his mind made up and is considering going public with his decision before then.

He proposed an interesting offer on Twitter the other day, saying he would announce his commitment if he got 10,000 followers. First of all, I love that. It’s marketing 101.

Here’s why it’s genius: A) He’s building a brand, and B) he never said when he’d commit. So, even upon reaching 10,000 followers, he could simply wait until NSD to announce. Always read the fine print, people.

Anyway, I still expect Thomas to end up signing with Miami when it’s all said and done. Illinois, Louisville, Oregon and Tennessee will put up a fight. But the Hurricanes need playmakers on the outside, and he’d fit right in with all the speed Coral Gables has to offer.

MORE: How An Early Signing Period Will Change College Football Recruiting