A year ago, Jim McElwain made no bones about it. Recruiting in the state of Florida had to get better.

The Gators landed just four of the state's Top 50 players in the 2016 class, getting trounced by Miami's 10 and Florida State's nine. Even Auburn matched Florida's output by pulling four of the state's Top 50 guys.

"We’ve still got a long ways to go, but we’ll continue to work that in all those areas," McElwain said on signing day a year ago. "I kind of like how we’ve got something from a lot of the areas as far as within the state and not just focused on one central area. That’s something we still need to get better at, and we’ll keep working at it."

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With McElwain's third signing day fast approaching, GatorBait.net stops to take a look at how recruiting in the state is shaping up.

Florida actually has a chance to land the most Top 50 players in the state when it's all said and done, despite currently trailing Florida State and Miami.

The Gators have seven current Top 50 commits (excluding non-Florida IMG Academy prospects) but remain in the mix for four others. Three are Florida leans (Tedarrell Slaton, Adarius Lemons and James Robinson), while a fourth is still a guy UF could land on signing day (Christopher Henderson).

Land all four and Florida almost certainly takes the state on signing day. However, if Henderson goes to Miami, the Hurricanes will likely take the state with 10 commitments, with the Gators potentially tying with a strong close.

You can view the current breakdown of the Top 50 players in the state, as well as the eight remaining uncommitted prospects and their finalists below.

Top 50 Players in State of Florida, 2017

8 - Florida State

8 - Miami

7 - Florida

5 - Alabama

2 - Ohio State

2 - Auburn

2 - North Carolina

1 - Nebraska

1 - Notre Dame

1 - Clemson

1 - Indiana

1 - Louisville

1 - Mississippi State

1 - Oregon

Uncommitted Prospects:

OG Tedarrell Slaton - Florida, Georgia

DE Jarez Parks - Alabama, Florida State

WR James Robinson - Florida, Oklahoma

CB Christopher Henderson - Alabama, Florida, Miami

RB A.J. Davis - Louisville, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, South Florida

WR Michael Harley - Miami, UCLA

CB Ameer Speed - Georgia, Virginia Tech

CB Latavious Brini - Miami, Oklahoma, USF, Virginia Tech

RB Adarius Lemons - Florida

And just as a reminder, here's how the state finished a year ago.

Top 50 Players in State of Florida, 2016

10 - Miami

9 - Florida State

4 - Auburn

4 - Florida

3 - Michigan

3 - Ohio State

2 - Clemson

2 - Notre Dame

2 - Ole Miss

2 - South Florida

2 - Tennessee

1 - Georgia

1 - Georgia Tech

1 - LSU

1 - Pittsburgh

1 - UCF

1 - USC

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Contact Thomas Goldkamp by 247Sports' personal messaging system or on Twitter at @ThomasGoldkamp.