Tag: Elijah Blades

Gators cornerback enters transfer portal following early-season dismissal

This should come as a surprise to nobody, to be honest.

We are in the thick of the college football transfer portal season as players seek greener pastures from their current teams. For some, the sport’s de facto free agency system offers a route to a higher profile school after outgrowing current competition, while for others it opens up opportunities for those who saw limited playing time.

Florida football has been in the thick of the portal action, having lost leading receiver Jacob Copeland to the Maryland Terrapins and Mohamoud Diabate to the Utah Utes, as well Khris Bogle to the Michigan State Spartans and Gerald Mincey to the Tennessee Volunteers. Now, former transfer cornerback Elijah Blades will also be departing the program according to a source familiar with Yahoo Sports reporter Pete Thamel and confirmed by On3, reportedly moving on to the Buffalo Bulls for 2022. 

Blades has had quite a trip through the college football ranks since leaving the prep scene. A 247Sports four-star cornerback in the 2017 recruiting class, Florida became his first of a few commitments on June 22, 2016, beating out a host of other teams led by the Nebraska Cornhuskers. After an official visit to Lincoln in late January the following year, however, he flipped to the Huskers, signing his letter of intent on Feb. 1.

Things did not work out there and Blades never played a down for Nebraska.

Instead, Blades hustled out a season at the JUCO level with Arizona Western College, where he rebuilt his stock well enough to receive some offers from some major programs in 2018, including the Alabama Crimson Tide as well as another poke of interest from Florida. The 6-foot-2-inch, 185-pound corner ultimately latched on with the Texas A&M Aggies, where he spent a year as a starter in the defensive backfield during the 2019 campaign. He did not see any action in 2020, however.

Clearly dissatisfied with College Station, Blades hit the transfer portal, and it was a case of “third time is the charm” for the Gators as they won out the sweepstakes for his talents in 2021. However, the honeymoon in Gainesville came to an abrupt ending early on as he was dismissed from the team after three games, appearing in just two registering a pair of solo tackles and an assist.

Now he moves on as a graduate transfer to Buffalo, where he joins back up with head coach Mo Linguist, who was an assistant at Texas A&M while Blades was there. Hopefully, some familiarity can bring some stability to a talented player who has had a tumultuous ride through the college ranks these past five years.

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Florida updates depth chart after dismissing Elijah Blades from the program

Elijah Blades is gone, but who is replacing him on Florida’s depth chart against LSU?

Dan Mullen has not made many adjustments to his depth chart this season, but the loss of Elijah Blades has a new cornerback listed on the depth chart ahead of a Week 7 matchup with Lousiana State.

Blades was dismissed from the team after missing a few games with injury and not dressing for the Vanderbilt game. Replacing him is Ethan Pouncey, who has four tackles across four games this year. Kaiir Elam, Avery Helm and Jason Marshall Jr. are all still solidly ahead of Pouncey, so he’ll have time to ease into the new role.

Speaking of Elam, it appears he’ll be returning after missing three weeks with a knee injury. Starting running back Malik Davis is also set to return after sitting last week against Vanderbilt. Dameon Pierce and Nay’Quan Wright held up fine in Davis’ absence, but it was still a down week on the ground for the Gators.

Florida will be on the road again this weekend, and the offensive line struggled with penalties the last time they visited another SEC school. Richard Gouraige should be back at left tackle for Florida, giving the Gators their best available guys upfront.

Mullen mentioned that the team had been working on tweaking the snap count in preparation for Death Valley, but wouldn’t divulge any secrets ahead of the game. If the line can stay healthy, the preparation should help them perform much better on the road this time around.

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Gators cornerback Elijah Blades no longer with the team

Cornerback Elijah Blades has left the program, per reports.

Florida’s secondary took a hit to its depth on Sunday, as according to multiple reports, cornerback Elijah Blades has left the team. The news was first reported by G. Allan Taylor of The Athletic.

Blades arrived late in the offseason as a graduate transfer from Texas A&M, where he had played the last two seasons. He saw some action in the rotation behind starters Kaiir Elam and Avery Helm, appearing in three games this season and notching three tackles and a pass breakup.

He played in the season opener against FAU, but he missed the next two games with injuries. With Elam out against Tennessee and Kentucky, Blades saw some reps against those teams. But he didn’t dress for Saturday’s game against Vanderbilt, and now it seems his time with the Gators has come to an end.

Now, Florida will mostly be relying on true freshman Jason Marshall Jr. for depth, and he started the last three games in Elam’s absence.

Blades’ next step is unclear. His college career has been a bit of a journey, as he was initially committed to the Gators coming out of high school under former coach Jim McElwain, but he eventually flipped to Nebraska. However, he enrolled at a JUCO instead before transferring to Texas A&M.

But whatever comes next for him, it won’t be with the Florida program.

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Elijah Blades brings depth to Florida’s secondary

Blades will most likely provide good depth in the secondary and could compete for a starting job with other defensive backs.

Name: Elijah Blades

Number: 19

Position: Cornerback

Class: Graduate Transfer

Height: 6’2″

Weight: 185

Hometown: Pasadena, California

High School: John Muir

Previous School: Texas A&M

2019 Statistics:

TOT SACK PD
19.5 1.5 3

Overview:

This isn’t the first time Blades has attempted to join Florida. He was committed to coach Jim McElwain back in the 2017 cycle. The Pasadena native reopened his recruitment near National Signing Day and wound up signing with the Nebraska Cornhuskers. But he never made it to campus.

He then went the JUCO route where he played at Arizona Western Junior College for two seasons. Blades began to be recruited by several power five schools, including the Gators. He committed to Oregon for a short time before he decommitted and signed with the Aggies.

Blades started six games with Texas A&M in 2019 where he recorded 19.5 tackles, 1.5 sacks and three pass breakups. The new Florida cornerback opted out of the 2020 season with the Aggies to rehab an injury. After the 2020 season, he briefly submitted his name for the NFL draft but decided to return to school and enter the NCAA Transfer Portal.

He committed to Florida during the first week of August and enrolled at the University of Florida a week later. His arrival was well-timed because the Gators’ presumed starting cornerback Jaydon Hill suffered a torn ACL in a non-contact injury during practice. Blades will most likely provide good depth in the secondary and could compete for a starting job with other defensive backs like Avery Helm, Jadarrius Perkins and Jason Marshall.

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Defensive back transfer breaks down decision to join Florida football

Defensive back Elijah Blades joined the Stadium and Gale podcast to explain his decision to enroll at Florida.

The timing couldn’t have been better for former Texas A&M defensive back Elijah Blades to enroll at Florida after one of its presumed starters at cornerback in Jaydon Hill suffered a torn ACL this week. He joined the team Saturday for practice after he announced his commitment to the Gators last week. To discuss his decision to come to the Swamp, Blades hopped on the “Stadium and Gale” podcast.

This wasn’t the first time he attempted to team up with Florida. Blades was committed to the Gators under former coach Jim McElwain. He reopened his recruitment and wound up picking Nebraska. But he didn’t make it and was forced to go the Junior College route. After two years at Arizona Western Junior College, he signed with the Aggies. He played in 2019 but opted out of the 2020 season where he eventually entered the NCAA Transfer Portal and finally ended up at Florida.

“Growing up, I was a big Florida fan,” Blades said on “Stadium and Gale“. “Growing up, I used to watch Tim Tebow, after Tebow all the teams, so I can name really anybody. I was telling everybody ‘Florida is DBU,’ and I play DB.”

He added that the Gators offered him in high school and chose UF because it was his dream school. Blades said the plan was for him to come in and play early with former corners CJ Henderson and Marco Wilson, but he ultimately took a different route. The Pasadena, California product said he entered the transfer portal this offseason because he wanted to find a new home away from his home state.

“Where I come from, it’s just a lot of negativity and stuff you don’t want to be around,” Blades said. “[Southern California] to L.A., that really isn’t something that I need for my life because it’s close to home and just all that stuff is right there … I feel like that’s the biggest part for me, just getting away, just growing up [and] more maturity, everything really.”

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Coach Dan Mullen and defensive coordinator Todd Grantham contacted him after he entered the portal. Blades elected to not pass up playing for his dream school again.

“They needed somebody to come in and step in now, they needed an older guy,” he said. “I feel like it’s the right decision, I’ve been wanting to come here. [Defensive coordinator Todd] Grantham has been wanting me here, I know Grantham, I’ve known [head coach Dan] Mullen since Juco. Honestly, I wasn’t really trying to go nowhere else.”

He’ll have an opportunity along with Jadarrius Perkins, Avery Helm and Jason Marshall to compete for a starting spot opposite of Kaiir Elam in fall camp.

Florida fans can listen to the rest of the interview on YouTube.

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Graduate cornerback transfer arrives at Florida on Friday

Former Aggies cornerback Elijah Blades enrolled at Florida Friday after he committed to the Gators last week.

Former Texas A&M cornerback Elijah Blades graduated from his old school on Thursday and officially enrolled at Florida and arrived on campus Friday. Blades announced last week that he would use his final year of eligibility to play football with the Gators.

However, he will be a week behind after Florida’s fall camp started a week ago. Cornerbacks coach Jules Montinar and defensive coordinator Todd Grantham need to catch him up to speed quickly after coach Dan Mullen announced cornerback Jaydon Hill will miss the 2021 season with a torn ACL.

Blades is one of the few cornerbacks along with redshirt freshman Avery Helm and junior Jadarrius Perkins who have had some experience playing college football. True freshman Jason Marshall will also be firmly in the mix for playing time as he’s an incoming five-star recruit.

With the Aggies, Blades recorded 19 tackles, 1.5 sacks and three pass deflections in 2019. He opted out of the 2020 season, however.

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Texas A&M transfer Elijah Blades commits to Florida after wild college arc

After originally committing to the Gators out of high school, Blades will wear the orange and blue this fall, after all.

It has been a long, long road for former Texas A&M defensive back Elijah Blades to get here. But more than four years later than hoped, Blades will wear the orange and blue, after all. He announced on Friday he plans to transfer to the Gators, and he will join the team in the middle of camp on Aug. 13 after he finishes his degree in College Station.

The news was originally reported by G. Allan Taylor of The Athletic. Blades later confirmed the report.

Blades’ name may ring a bell for Florida fans: He committed to former Florida coach Jim McElwain in June 2016. The Pasadena native was one of the top prospects in UF’s 2017 class, but a week before signing day in January 2017, he abruptly decommitted from the Gators, signing with Nebraska instead.

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He never made it to Lincoln, instead joining JUCO Arizona Western. Florida’s current staff extended Blades an offer as a JUCO prospect, but he committed to Oregon. That commitment didn’t stick either. He again changed his mind just before signing day, enrolling at Texas A&M in 2019.

He played one season for the Aggies, appearing in seven games at cornerback and starting six. He made 19 tackles, three pass deflections and 2.5 tackles for loss. Blades decided to opt out of the 2020 season, initially planning on declaring for the 2021 NFL draft. He changed his mind, entering the transfer portal in June.

The senior has one remaining year of eligibility, but he could be a major addition to a Florida secondary in need of all the help it can get. Kaiir Elam is a bona fide star, but the rest of the unit has a lot of questions. It was expected that Jaydon Hill would become a full-time starter on the outside this season, but with the addition of Blades, the Gators have options.

He’s not the only big-time transfer Florida added at the position, either. The Gators also brought in Jadarrius Perkins, a former Missouri corner who was the No. 5 JUCO player in the nation (and was teammates with No. 1 JUCO prospect Diwun Black, who also signed with Florida). Blades, Perkins and Hill, as well as five-star true freshman cornerback Jason Marshall, will compete for action opposite Elam in 2021.

Blades brings much-needed depth to the position and should play some role on the field during his final season of collegiate eligibility.

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Florida football adds one last official transfer portal visitor for this weekend

Elijah Blades, a former 2017 UF commit, entered the NCAA transfer portal after one season at Texas A&M. He will be a graduate transfer.

Former Texas A&M defensive back Elijah Blades entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal earlier this month after he opted out of the 2020 season. He will be a last-minute addition to the five other official visitors making the trek to Florida this weekend.

Blades is a familiar name to Florida fans who have followed recruiting closely for the last several years. He originally committed to the Gators in 2017 under head coach Jim McElwain. The former 4-star corner then backed off his pledge and signed with Nebraska on National Signing Day. However, he was forced to go to junior college for two years. Blades signed and enrolled with the Aggies after two years at Arizona Western Junior College. In 2019, he started six games for them and registered 19 tackles, 1.5 sacks and three pass breakups.

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The Gators seem like the team to beat for Blades currently because of the program’s connection to him. He enjoyed Gainesville and UF’s campus as a high school prospect. Coach Dan Mullen and his coaching staff also recruited him out of junior college. He will also be a graduate transfer.

If Florida lands Blades, it’ll be the second defensive back it has snagged from the transfer portal this offseason who joins former Missouri cornerback Jadarrius Perkins.

This move doesn’t make that much sense for Florida because the coaching staff would add another body in a defensive back room with lots of bodies and young talent. The Gators just signed 5-star cornerback Jason Marshall Jr. this last cycle. In 2020, they grabbed 4-star corners Ethan Pouncey and Avery Helm. UF also has former 4-star Jaydon Hill from the 2019 cycle.

It’s likely one of these players besides Marshall will feel the need to transfer if they sign Blades because of the lack of playing time available. It’s also not likely that the former Texas A&M defensive back will slot into a starting position because Marshall, who signed in spring practice, will likely grab the spot opposite of star corner Kaiir Elam.

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