Florida Gators receive National Letter of Intent from five-star DE CeCe Jefferson

By Adam Silverstein
February 9, 2015

Five days after announcing his verbal commitment to the Florida Gators on National Signing Day, five-star defensive end CeCe Jefferson (Glen Saint Mary, FL) officially became part of Florida’s 2015 recruiting class by faxing his National Letter of Intent to the Gators.

Jefferson submitted his letter, which was signed live on national television last Wednesday, on Monday, finally ending speculation about his commitment status. The Gators subsequently confirmed receipt and

Though he never publicly wavered in his pledge to Florida, Jefferson was not able to send the letter last Thursday, as coaches expected. Various inconsistent explanations were offered by Jefferson’s father, who was reported to be refusing to sign the letter and even said so publicly only to backtrack and put the onus on his son.

Jefferson (6-foot-2, 275 pounds), the No. 7 overall player and No. 2 defensive end in the 247Sports Composite rankings for 2015, ended a long recruitment when he chose UF over Auburn and Ole Miss last Wednesday.

Head coach Jim McElwain, defensive coordinator Geoff Collins and defensive line coach Terrell Williams led Jefferson’s recruitment only for Williams to leave the Gators the day after National Signing Day. McElwain replaced Williams with Chris Rumph, who previously recruited Jefferson at Alabama and with Texas this past season.

Jefferson wrote on Twitter over the weekend that his father and Collins had a long phone conversation. He also bumped into the coordinator at Florida’s basketball game against Kentucky on Saturday.

“Today is the day that I officially become a Florida Gator,” he wrote Monday on his Twitter account. “Sorry for the wait #GatorNation!”

A dominant force for Baker County High School, he was selected to the 2015 U.S. Army All-American Bowl after recording 17 sacks and 24 tackles for loss as a senior.

Jefferson was the second five-star prospect to commit to the Gators on National Signing Day, boosting a signing class that began the week ranked No. 66 in the country and finished at No. 21.
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