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Thomas Holley commits to Gators

Florida Gators coach Will Muschamp has flipped an ESPN 300 commitment for the third time in the past week.

The No. 51 prospect in the country, defensive tackle Thomas Holley (Brooklyn, N.Y./Lincoln), switched his commitment Wednesday from Penn State to Florida.

Last week, five-star cornerback Jalen Tabor (Washington, D.C./Friendship Academy) and four-star running back Brandon Powell (Deerfield Beach, Fla./Deerfield Beach) flipped their commitments from Arizona and Miami, respectively, to the Gators.

After Bill O'Brien left Penn State to become coach of the Houston Texans, Holley reconsidered his decision.

"I think it was just kind of hard for me to build a relationship with a coaching staff in two weeks, when I had spent 10 months building a relationship with the previous coaching staff," Holley said. "It really came down to the why between Penn State and Florida. At Florida, I already had a great relationship with the coaching staff, so it made it an easier decision."

Holley's primary recruiter at Penn State, Larry Johnson Sr., was hired this week at Ohio State, leaving many to speculate that Holley could switch to the Buckeyes.

Holley, however, said Ohio State was never an option.

"It wasn't a place I felt like I fit in to," Holley said of his two visits. "I just kind of took them out of the list. ... I stuck to what I knew and what was best for me, and that was Florida."

Holley took official visits during the season to Florida, Ohio State and Penn State and still could take two more, but the 6-foot-4, 303-pounder said he doesn't plan on using them.

"I'm not trying to be a person that is constantly changing up what they want to do," he said. "When I make a decision, I want to make sure it's the right decision, and that's why I've been taking my time with the process.

"Even after the coaching staff change, I took my time, I sat down with my family and weighed out all my options, and that's what it came down to. This is my last hoorah, as far as schools. I don't plan on changing up anytime soon. I don't plan on decommitting from Florida and going somewhere else. This is it for me."