WEST PALM BEACH- Nick Saban and his staff at Alabama are always out looking for the best recruits, and right now they have their sights set on the 561.
This past week, the Alabama Crimson Tide have offered two of our county’s finest young talents, Hardley Gilmore (’25) from Pahokee and Chauncey Bowens (’24) from The Benjamin School. Both of these athletes announced their prestigious offer on their Instagram and Twitter accounts.
Hardley Gilmore is a dynamic ATH from Pahokee. The 6’0, 165 lb Sophomore recorded 1,000 receiving yards, 9 TDs, and 3 INTs this past season. Hardley has obtained multiple D1 offers such as Georgia, Miami (FL), Florida St, Maryland and Penn State.
When I asked Hardley to speak on what this offer means to him, he said “It felt great being offered by the University! It was like a dream. Getting these offers feels amazing and it makes you work even harder.
Chauncey Bowens is a 4 Star RB from The Benjamin School. He recorded 940 rushing yards, 8 TDs, and he had 4 100+ rushing games during his junior season. Chauncey is a very physical back, who is not afraid of contact and loves to run over opposing defenders.
Chauncey is a three-sport athlete, who is a member of Benjamin’s Football, Track and Lacrosse teams. Bowens was a member of the 2021 Benjamin State Champion Track and Field team. He knows that playing multiple sports will keep him in great physical fitness for football season. “This off-season is going well, I’m enjoying grinding, hitting the weights and playing lacrosse and track”
Chauncey has received 25 offers from multiple Power 5 schools such as Georgia, Auburn, Florida St., Colorado, Miami (FL), and Louisville. He has verbally committed to the University of Florida. When I asked him about how the Alabama offer effects his recruiting process, he told me “I am still 100% locked in with UF. They are still my number one, and I will be on campus tomorrow (1/21)”
A fun fact about both of these players is they used to be teammates together at The Benjamin School for the 2021-2022 season.
When I asked them both about becoming teammates again at the collegiate level, they both seemed very ecstatic at the thought. Chauncey said “That idea is exciting, reuniting with an electric player like Hardley” and Hardley said “Me and Chauncey in college. That’s a great deal but we will see.”
Hardley made that comment with a smile on his face.
