'It's a blessing': ESPN Junior 300 Jaime Ffrench on Mandarin's ring pursuit, top schools

Jaime Ffrench has had a lot of recruiting interest over the last two years, but he said there are three programs that are starting to pull away from the group as he looks for a school to call home.

"I'd definitely say a couple of schools. Ohio State is pulling, Alabama is pulling and Florida State, those are the top three right now," Ffrench said after Mandarin had a spring jamboree with St. Augustine and Bishop Kenny. The 2025 five-star receiver recorded two touchdowns during the varsity portion of competition.

"[It's] the way they try to keep in contact. They make sure I don't forget about them," he continued. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound route runner was named as an ESPN Junior 300 earlier this month, landing at No. 12 in the historic ranking. "They're always sending mail, always a little something to let me know that they love me, stuff like that."

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He’ll have visits with each of those schools in June and that's on top of his 29 other offers — a list that still grows (he picked up an offer from Auburn after the jamboree) by the week.

“I want to say again, it’s a blessing. Not everybody could do that. So, I'm going to say that first, it's a blessing,” he said. “But when I do get to take those trips, I definitely enjoy it. I want to take every visit to see what it’s like. Just trying to look [and see] where is home right now. Just chilling out, trying to find where’s home.”

Alabama and Ohio State have produced elite NFL receivers for years, but Florida State is intriguing not only because of the love they’ve shown, but also because of his connection with 2025 Mandarin and Florida State commit, Tramell Jones.

The pairing is the best receiver-quarterback duo in Northeast Florida and Jones has an almost daily reminder to Ffrench that they could ride their connection all the way to Tallahassee.

“Almost every day, he always stays on me,” Ffrench said of Jones’ recruiting tactics while laughing. “‘Don't forget, we’re trying to be Seminoles,’ Stuff like that. It's great, you know, him being QB1. That's somewhere I definitely consider.”

Jones has no shame in his recruiting habits, as he stated last month in an interview with the Times-Union.

“You see the chemistry tonight. You see us connecting on fades, anything like that, but it's great to know he’s interested in Florida State. He sees them coming consistently to our school,” Jones said, sure to put extra emphasis on the word consistently. “They know he's interested, so that’s just a great thing to have. Us two going to (Tallahassee) would be a great connection.”

'Sneaky good human': Ffrench sets standard for Mandarin football

Mandarin's football team was fresh off back-to-back strong varsity showings during the jamboree had migrated to an auxiliary field away from the main stadium so its junior varsity team could prepare to compete in the final game of the night.

During the varsity games, their star players had their way in the contests, namely Ffrench who scored twice against St. Augustine.

On both touchdowns, he dizzied his defenders with quick feet and kept his concentration to reel in the scores. He also had a highlight sideline toe tap where he kept both feet inbounds after lulling a defender to sleep on a comeback route.

But instead of boasting about his play to his teammates after the game, he was one of the main varsity players actively helping the junior varsity squad get their gear on properly. He went from player to player, making sure they were able to strap on the pads and assisted with adjusting their jerseys.

“It's a blessing, man. Every time I get an opportunity to come out here with these guys that I love, it’s a blessing,” Ffrench told the Times-Union. “I just love coming out here with Mandarin football.”

Despite his personal achievements, he's a team-oriented player.

He looks for teammates to celebrate with after he scores touchdowns and is often seen laughing or talking with younger players. Not to mention how quickly he'll flash his trademark smile.

Ffrench was described as a “sneaky good human being” by his head coach, Toby Bullock, because he doesn’t help others for rewards or praise. He just does it.

“We had to plug our fields so we didn't have to measure every time and I’ve got pictures. I'm looking down on the ground and he's the guy banging the plugs into the ground,” Bullock recalled. “When our recon helmets came in, he was the first one down there to help put them up. He’s just a good kid.”

Through his first two seasons, Ffrench has recorded 787 yards and seven touchdowns. Modest numbers to some, but considering he put up more than 650 of those yards last season, he’s primed for even more improvement during his junior year.

And if his two-touchdown performance in the spring jamboree is any indicator, opposing defensive coordinators are in for sleepless nights this fall.

Bullock told the Times-Union that a then-sophomore Ffrench was the best player on the field in a star-studded showcase against Bolles last fall. That’ll still be the case in most games for the Mustangs this upcoming season. So, what makes him such a talented player?

“He's extremely confident in himself and confidence will take you a lot of places in life,” Bullock explained. “Secondly, he's an extremely gifted route runner, natural catcher. And then when you take that with, he has a very good quarterback and a very good receiving coach, those are great combinations.

“He can't have a day off when you have [four-star cornerback Jon Mitchell] and [three-star cornerback Antoine Belgrave-Shorter] going against you every day,” Bullock continued. Both 2024 defensive backs are committed to Penn State. “If you have a bad day, they're going to tell you about yourself.”

Another part is his quarterback, Jones, who offered a unique contextualization of Ffrench. To him, it’s not just his physical skill, but his mental fortitude that makes him an elite player.

“The ability to be a leader and also, listen to other guys around him. To be able to learn from other people because you can you always can learn anything from somebody else,” Jones said when asked what makes Ffrench special. “That's his ability. He has the physical gifts, but he's there mentally. He's getting better and better each week.”

Regardless of what school emerges as a favorite to land the 2025 standout, this season, Ffrench and Mandarin have other goals: to win a state championship.

To get there, they’ll have to outlast one of the strongest classifications in the state of Florida. But he has a message to Jacksonville and beyond. Get ready.

“We coming,” Ffrench said as he flashed his trademark smile. “Not just me. As a team, we coming.”

Juston Lewis is a sports reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on Twitter at @JustonLewis_.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaime Ffrench names Alabama, Florida State, Ohio State as top colleges