DONE DEAL: Florida Gators has officially announce the signing of former Alabama top Talent in a club record trade following the departure of former head coach Nick Saban.

There has been a significant addition to Florida’s 2024 recruiting class in the secondary. There is still a ripple effect in the college football landscape from the retirement of legendary Alabama head coach Nick Saban. In particular, the Crimson Tide have witnessed a clear departure of elite talent via the transfer portal throughout the last week, even with the hasty hire of Washington’s Kalen DaBoer to replace Saban. Jameer Grimsley, a rookie cornerback, became the latest high-profile player to leave the program on Thursday when he logged in through the site. Grimsley is a 2024 potential.

Grimsley’s stint on the open market, which came less than a month after he signed with the Tide on December 20, was brief as he swiftly declared his allegiance to the Florida Gators on Sunday.
With the impressive 6-foot-3, 185-pound frame, ball skills from his wide receiver days, fluidity of movement, and 10.84 100-meter dash time required to play boundary cornerback at the next level, Grimsely established himself as the Gators’ top target for the 2024 campaign. Grimsley thus stood out as Florida sought to acquire secondary talent in 2024. Despite Florida’s renewed interest, Grimsley committed to Alabama to fill a wideout hole and continued to toy with the Gators until the cycle’s conclusion. His official visit to Gainesville on December 8 demonstrated his sincere interest in UF, but in the end, he decided to support the Crimson Tide. He famously declared that the consistency of the coaching staff was the decisive factor. Then Saban announced his sudden retirement. Grimsley reconsidered his options as a result. It gets him to play defensive end at the University of Florida, where he is a four-star athlete.

Under new position coach Will Harris, the Tampa (Fla.) Catholic standout is the first addition to the prep secondary. In the Gators’ backfield, he joins Teddy Foster, Josiah Davis, and Gregory Smith III as true freshman. Trikweze Bridges (Oregon) and DJ Douglas (Tulane), two transfer portal talents, have also joined Florida this summer. The aggregate rankings from 247Sports put Grimsley as the No. 189 overall prospect and the No. 17 cornerback in the country. He is the second recruit in the class of 2024 to sign elsewhere in order to eventually align with Florida. D’antre Robinson, a defensive lineman who signed a contract with Texas in December, announced his commitment to the Gators on Friday following his release from his Letter of Intent earlier in the week.