Brian Burns Reveals Top 3: Which School Has Best Shot to Land 4-Star DE?

After finalizing his lineup for his five official visits last month, 4-star defensive end Brian Burns has narrowed his list of finalists to three schools, according to GatorBait’s Luke Stampini.

“Florida State, Florida and Georgia,” Burns told Stampini of his three leaders. “They jumped out at me. They were always early in my recruiting process, so I guess I talk to them the most. I’m more comfortable with them, and I think they are programs that fit me.”

All three schools visited the Fort Lauderdale, Florida, product during the contact period earlier this month.

Stampini notes that a decision could come on or before national signing day, but Burns still hasn’t nailed down concrete plans on a date for his announcement. 

All three programs currently have classes rated among the nation’s Top 15, but which school is in the best position to add Burns to their commit list?

Given that Burns has already visited each of his finalists, he admits that he’s looking for a couple of key factors that will help him make his commitment.

“I want to talk to the players, see the atmosphere outside of the campus, things like that,” Burns told Stampini. “I’ve already went and toured the schools, the academic part and facilities and whatnot. That’s basically it.” 

Florida is the perceived favorite with Burns, and the Gators made a move with him after he attended their last home game of the year vs. the rival Seminoles.

"It exceeded my expectations," Burns told GatorBait. "The crowd was hyped, and they especially get hyped on third down which I liked, because that's the money down for me especially to get a sack. I was very excited."

The Gators have a big need for defensive ends in this cycle, which only grew after a weekend in which head coach Jim McElwain dismissed starting defensive end Alex McCalister from the team for a violation of team rules, as detailed by Robbie Andreu of the Gainesville Sun.

Additionally, Burns has set two more official visits, with a trip to Georgia set for Jan. 16 and a return visit to Gainesville set for a week later.

The Bulldogs were an early leader with Burns, but the coaching turnover in Athens has contributed to Georgia slipping from atop his leaderboard. With the Bulldogs defensive staff still yet to be finalized, it makes the job of new ‘Dawgs head coach Kirby Smart a little more difficult in gaining traction with Burns.

He’s yet to schedule a trip to Florida State, but the Seminoles could be a dark horse primed to make a move with Burns down the stretch.

As noted by Josh Newberg of ‘Noles247, Burns recently stated that the ‘Noles have caught up with the Gators and were tied at the top for him.

While this battle is likely to go down to the wire between the Sunshine State powers, the Gators may hold the slightest of edges as things stand currently.

Sanjay Kirpalani is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand and all recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.