Quarterback Jaden Rashada wants out of a commitment to Florida due to a failed Name, Image and Likeness agreement worth a reported $13 million.
Rashada originally committed to Miami in June 2022 but changed his plans to sign with Florida four days before Christmas. When an expected NIL deal with Gator Collective wasn’t formalized, per reports, Rashada didn’t enroll at the university last week.
Florida coach Billy Napier visited transfer portal option Walker Howard last week. The four-star Louisiana product left LSU after playing only two games in 2022, but he committed to Ole Miss on Wednesday.
Napier said at the Under Armour All-American Game on Jan. 3 that he expected Rashada to enroll early to join the team in January.
Rashada said on Nov. 11 before attending the Florida-South Carolina game that he was committing to Napier based on what the Gators were building.
“I have watched this season and Coach Napier and his team are building something very special in The Swamp and I want to be a part of it,” Rashada said via Twitter.
On the heels of 2022 starter Anthony Richardson declaring for the NFL draft and the dismissal of Jalen Kitna due to child pornography charges, the Gators might be left with Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz and Jack Miller III competing this spring. Miller, a redshirt freshman, started for Florida in the Las Vegas Bowl.
Gator Collective had a binding agreement with Rashada that AP reported was worth $13 million over four years before it was canceled.
Rashada was the top recruit in Florida’s incoming class, ranked in the top 50 by most recruiting services — No. 27 at ESPN — and a top-10 quarterback.
Rashada left Gainesville to return to his home near San Francisco after opting not to register at the Jan. 13 spring deadline, his mother told 247 Sports.
–Field Level Media
