Florida adds talented prospect at position of need via transfer portal
Florida made a splash pickup in the transfer portal on Wednesday.
Jason Zandamela graduated early from high school and enrolled at USC for the spring semester. A blue-chip lineman in the 2024 recruiting class, Zandamela decided that Southern Cal wasn’t for him and entered the transfer portal.
After spending a few weeks in the portal, Zandamela landed on UF as his transfer destination. He shared the big news on social media.
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Out of high school, Zandamela was rated 4-stars, the No. 4 interior offensive lineman and No. 125 player overall on the 247Sports Composite. He picked up 33 scholarship offers and signd with USC over Florida State and others. In the portal, he was rated as the No. 1 IOL and No. 7 player available overall by 247Sports.
Zandamela was listed as measuring 6-3, 285 pounds as a recruit. On USC’s 2024 roster, Zandamela was up to 306 pounds.
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Florida addresses 2024 recruiting need, but Zandamela unlikely to have instant impact
Zandamela played for Clearwater (Florida) Academy International. There’s more to Zandamela’s background, though, than your typical in-state prospect.
Zandamela is from Mozambique (hence the international academy) where he grew up playing rugby. He moved to the United States in 2020, and his sophomore year of high school was his first season playing football.
In 2022, Zandamela was the starting center for a CAI team that went 10-1, rushing for 198.2 yards per game at a clip of 7.8 yards per carry. High school team stats, of course, offer little insight into a lineman’s outlook for playing in college, especially the SEC.
Zandamela’s recruiting evaluations indicated that his 4-star rating is based on potential and that he is likely a couple of years away from being a starting lineman for a Power conference program, an assessment Lincoln Riley offered last month.
Lincoln Riley isn’t concerned about USC’s depth at center, after freshman Jason Zandamela made clear today that he’s entering the portal.
Riley: “Jason wasn’t a factor to play this year for us. A good young player, but it’s, a long ways away from being ready to help us.”
— Ryan Kartje (@Ryan_Kartje) April 12, 2024
Even if Zandamela isn’t playing in a Florida football game any time soon, he’s a valuable pickup.
UF’s 2024 recruiting class is up to 33 members (including Air Force transfer TE Caleb Rillos, a preferred walk-on). Of those 33 players, Zandamela is only the second interior lineman.
While it was important for the Gators to bring in 5 tackles, including 2 transfers with experience, Billy Napier’s program needed to be building and developing depth at guard and center, as well.
#4StarRecruitingMachine
Sure does sound better than what I was posting a couple of years ago, good get.
4 star with a few 5 stars does sound better than the old 3 star line my friend !
So to follow up on the conversation between ole humper and StLouis, seems like Napier still has a ways to go to replace all that excellent Mullen talent that he ran off. But this is a good start
If he wasn’t so short and small I would look forward to us picking up this kid in next year’s transfer portal after the coaching change at UF
Won’t argue that one hump.. after the ucf game if Florida is worse that 5 and 2 Napier is done .. hope he can get those wins early as those last 5 games are brutal
You are right, won’t make it to UGA.
Not because his size but because he doesn’t get drunk and then go driving fast around town
Lane Kiffin will convince him to stay at UF in any case (I don’t see Jedd Fisch leaving UW after one year, but you never know. Seattle is nicer than Gainesville in the summer, but Gainesville is nicer in the winter). I’d be concerned about who Lane poaches from UGA next portal season.
4- or 5-stars come with the reasonable expectation that their developmental milestones against SEC level opponents will be accelerated, but that of course varies between individuals regardless of program. As we have seen in the past, often a 3-star with desire, who is trainable, will surpass expectations as well as others who are rated higher. What’s the key variable? A staff that dependably drills the fundamentals over and over until they are mastered, and then the advanced nuances of the position to the reflex level.
IMO, this is where programs like Georgia, Alabama, and LSU seem to have an advantage. Native talent is important, but good coaching perfects it. Naturally, draw your own conclusions.
The key to a 3-star getting to the top is relentless practice habits. Ricky Pearsall is a classic example of the 3-star that worked all the way to the 1st round of the NFL draft.
He is an excellent and needed depth piece. We need to get to 15 offensive linemen, wherein eight to 10 can play without a talent drop-off.
According to the Cube podcast you mentioned in the Bowman piece, finding OLs that can hold their own in the SEC is quite a feat of recruiting and coaching, let alone finding 8 of them. This group of Gator OLs has a chance to be good, IF they can learn to be disciplined and play together.
Yup, the rarest body type, with enough athleticism to play at a high level in the toughest conference.
I have come to find Lincoln Riley an immature man who can coach an offense.
Sort of like that other guy who got run out of USC before he finally grew up… somewhat.
Spot on. Kiffin at Ole Miss seems strange still.
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Can’t be 5-2 after UCF They will be 5-0 because UCF is the 5th game.
The Mozambique Mauler joins the Mighty Mertzilla to form the M&M Machine. Dominance follows in their wake, especially with Air Force 1, the screaming supersonic jet known as Caleb Rillos blazing down field, as impossible to locate and cover as a stealth fighter. Woe be upon all those who oppose the Gator Empire! They shall drown in smoke and ashes!
I’ve been trying to get UF’s graphics team to put up a 100 foot billboard in Times Square this summer to announce the start of Graham’s Heisman campaign, but they said the football program spent the money on a second assistant analyst for 3rd and 16 situations.
Keep trying! I believe Mertz in a Terminator outfit, presented on a Time Square billboard as “The Mertzinator” going for the Heisman would be an absolute hoot.
Marsh – I completely share your opinion of Kiffin, and to a lesser extent (work still in progress), Riley. By the Eternal, thankfully Florida hasn’t thus far been seduced into to going after Lane: “All skill and no character”.
Welcome to Gator nation young man!