Top Florida signee Jaden Rashada reportedly asks for release from school

One of Florida’s big recruiting wins looks to already be playing elsewhere, as multiple reports indicate that Florida quarterback signee Jaden Rashada has asked the NCAA for a release from his scholarship. Brandon Huffman of 247Sports was the first to report the news.

Rashada originally committed to Miami before flipping to Florida and Billy Napier in November. Rashada is the No. 59 overall player in the 247Sports Composite and was Florida’s second-highest-ranked signee in the 2023 signing class.

The believed reason for Rashada’s decision stems from NIL, with multiple outlets reporting that Rashada had signed a $13 million NIL deal, only for Florida to elect to terminate the deal.

The Gators signed the No. 10 overall recruiting class in Billy Napier’s first season. It was not a great season on the field for Florida, as the Gators went 6-7, ending the season with three-straight losses.

Florida did bring in Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz at the quarterback position. The Gators also bring back quarterback Jack Miller, who started in Florida’s 30-3 bowl loss to Oregon State. Anthony Richardson, who started 12 games for Florida last season, entered the NFL draft. Florida now faces a lot of questions about the future and present of the quarterback position.

Florida lost 42-20 to Georgia this past season, with Kirby Smart sporting a 5-2 record against Florida since taking over the Georgia program. The Bulldogs, who did not sign a quarterback this recruiting cycle, have the No. 2 ranked recruiting class in this cycle.

Georgia will have to replace Stetson Bennett at the quarterback position, with one-time Florida recruiting target Carson Beck being the favorite to replace Bennett. Beck is a Jacksonville, Fla., native and was a one-time Florida baseball commit.

More Georgia football stories from around DawgNation