Florida football is hosting a handful of high school juniors this weekend on campus for the first junior day event of the calendar year.
Among those in attendance was three-star defensive lineman Jarquez Carter out of nearby Newberry High, who stopped in on Saturday. Given his proximity to campus, it was not his first trip to the Swamp but it certainly made a significant impression on him — especially after receiving an offer from the program.
“It felt great to get the offer,” Carter told Swamp247. “I have been putting in the work this offseason since the regular season ended. I feel like I deserved it after all the work I have put in.
“I feel like it finally showed when Billy Napier cut my tape on today during the visit,” he continued. “He said that I impressed him a lot with how I move off the move and my change of direction. He said he knows how hard I have worked. So it felt great to get the offer.”
The 6-foot-2-inch, 284-pound lineman also had an opportunity to see the academic side of UF as well as the off-field work of the team during his recent trip.
“We got to see more of the educational part of Florida today and more about the college,” Carter said. “That was good to see. Really seeing what they do on a normal day, and what the players do on a normal day. Just seeing part of what they do for their offseason workouts. That was a good experience.”
Florida is not the only school with eyes on the area native. The Miami Hurricanes, UCF Knights, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Tennessee Volunteers, Penn State Nittany Lions and Ohio State Buckeyes have also reported interest in the Alachua County product.
Carter is ranked No. 44 at his position and No. 58 in Florida according to 247Sports. On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine gives the Gators a 53.0% chance of signing him, followed by UCF (26.8%), Miami (6.2%) and Notre Dame (5.1%).
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