Thursday afternoon, three-star athlete Jamarrien Burt announced via his Twitter account that he has committed to play for the Gators. The tenth member of Florida’s 2022 recruiting class, Burt wasn’t on the media radar prior to his commitment and was listed as 829th player in the class by 247Sports.
Despite his low ranking, it’s not as though the Gators were his only good option. He had scholarship offers on the table from a number of quality programs, including Georgia, Arkansas, Penn State, Mississippi State, and others. It seems what pushed Florida over the top was a pair of trips to campus – once for a camp on June 16 and once for an unofficial visit on June 22.
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Appreciate allowing me to compete @GatorsFB Today 💙🧡🐊 @CoachJules_UF pic.twitter.com/PmCPMqJyLD
— Jamarrien burt (@DaRealBurt23) June 17, 2021
As a high schooler, Burt is a two-way player, but the Gators are more interested in him as a defensive back. It makes sense; he doesn’t fit their preferred mold as a pass-catcher and the coach who recruited him was cornerbacks coach Jules Montinar.
Interestingly, the Georgia Bulldogs were more interested in Burt as a wide receiver. They were also a finalist in his recruitment and their interest was evidently piqued by his field-stretching speed. They were one of the earliest teams to offer on Burst, but it seems that they let off the gas pedal when it came to his recruitment this spring, allowing the Gators to eventually snag a commitment.
“We went up to UF last week on Monday or Tuesday, and after the 7-on-7, they told me they liked how I played on defense, not just on offense, and then I met with all the defensive coaches because I already kind of had the offer from Florida,” Burt said to GatorsTerritory.
“They’re very genuine and showed me they want me and that I’m a perfect pick for their program,” he added, talking to Swamp247. “I feel like I’ll fit right into the football team.”
With the pieces coming together for the Gators’ 2022 recruiting class, Burt projects as a developmental player for the team and could be in line to redshirt his freshman season. Without much more information on him due to his unheralded national status, it’s tough to tell exactly how much of an impact he’ll have on the team’s plans for the rest of the recruiting cycle.
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