Maxwell Hiller, No. 2 OT in class of 2027, commits to Florida

Five-star offensive tackle Maxwell Hiller, the No. 7 recruit in the SC Next Junior 300, told ESPN on Wednesday that he has committed to Florida.

The 6-foot-5, 305-pound lineman from Coatesville, Pa., gave his verbal commitment to the Gators on Wednesday after a late March visit with the program. He is the highest-ranked recruit to commit to Florida under first-year coach Jon Sumrall.

Hiller, ESPN’s No. 2 offensive tackle in 2027, joins in-state athlete Tramond Collins (No. 147 overall) as the second top-300 commit in the program’s incoming class. Following his commitment, Hiller told ESPN he no longer expected to make trips to Alabama, Ohio State, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Hiller’s commitment marks Florida’s most significant recruiting victory since Sumrall replaced Billy Napier late last year.

Sumrall and his staff initially offered Hiller on Dec. 12, the same day ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Florida’s hiring of former Penn State offensive line coach Phil Trautwein. A two-time national champion with the Gators in 2004-08, Trautwein began recruiting Hiller to the Nittany Lions when Hiller was in middle school. Trautwein then handed Hiller his first FBS offer with Penn State in May 2023 and was at the forefront of the Gators’ efforts to recruit him this spring.

“I took so many visits to Penn State while he was there,” Hiller told ESPN. “I’ve trained with him. I’ve seen him work with players. He’s more than a coach to me. He’s my guy. That relationship is a big part of why we got interested in Florida.”

Hiller made his first visit to Florida in late January and “clicked right away” with Sumrall, he told ESPN. A return trip to the Gators in late March, after recent visits to Ohio State and Tennessee, finally sealed Hiller’s decision.

“Once you feel like this is the place you want to be, you know it’s time,” Hiller said. “I had that feeling there. I don’t think there’s another school that’s going to give me that level of comfort.”

Hiller’s commitment represents a key first win for Sumrall & Co. at a time when the Gators have struggled to recruit elite talent in recent cycles.

In the five classes since Napier’s 2022 junior, Florida has only three offensive tackles ranked in the SC Next 300. If Hiller ultimately signs with Florida, he will represent the program’s highest-ranked offensive tackle signee since Martez Ivey joined the nation’s No. 5 recruit in 2015.

Beyond Hiller, the Gators remain in the running for some of the nation’s top offensive line prospects this spring, including five-stars Kennedy Brown (No. 2 overall) and Mark Matthews (No. 10) and four-star lineman Layton Von Brandt (No. 41), a former Penn State commit. ESPN sources also consider Florida the favorite for four-star quarterback Davin Davidson (No. 175), who announced his commitment Thursday night.

A multi-year starter on the offensive line at Pennsylvania’s Coatesville High School, Hiller is also a standout basketball player alongside his brother Colton Hiller, a five-star small forward in the 2028 recruiting class. Colton Hiller, ESPN’s No. 3 prospect for the 2028 cycle, holds offers from Alabama, Indiana and UConn, among others.