Florida’s top QB target picks Miami, NIL conversation sparked

The Florida Gators came close to landing four-star California quarterback Jaden Rashada, but the top-50 recruit chose the University of Miami on Sunday afternoon when he announced his college decision on CBS Sports HQ.

He chose between Florida, Miami, LSU, Ole Miss and Texas A&M, but the two Sunshine State schools were the two hottest programs near the end. He wrapped up official visits on June 7 after stopping by the Swamp, but he was able to make it to UM after pushing back his announcement from June 18 to June 26.

Coming out of the trip to Coral Gables, projections in favor of Miami began to pour in. Most were cast with medium confidence but Rashada was already locked in on the U. It’s a tough pill to swallow for most of Gator Nation, but this commitment has sparked some interesting drama.

On3 reported that California lawyer Michael Caspino represented Rashada in “NIL negotiations with collectives across the country,” and that the four-star quarterback had secured a $9.5 million deal with Miami booster John Ruiz. The Miami booster claimed that the report was inaccurate in a statement on social media.

Caspino told On3 that “Florida is the most dysfunctional collective in all of college football,” and said that Rashada would likely have been at Florida had it not been for the Gator Collective.

“Jaden left millions on the table,” Caspino said. “Millions. He did not pick the highest offer. He went there because he loves Miami, the coaches, and the opportunity.”

However, the Gator Collective responded to those comments on Sunday night and said that it never met with Caspino regarding Rashada before accusing him of putting athletes at risk with his negotiation tactics.

Whether those numbers are accurate is in question now, and Caspino’s name seems to be better known overnight for the wrong reasons. Still, he’s involved with plenty of high-profile players such as Rashada and his comments against the GC will hold some weight.

Regardless of the drama that surrounded the decision, Rashada is going to be a ‘Cane. Miami and Mario Cristobal got an important win over Billy Napier and the Gators, and Florida may have to turn to the transfer portal to fill a quarterback slot in 2023 after missing out on most of the top prep names.

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