Another one gone: Four-star Florida football signee unable to qualify

By Adam Silverstein
May 13, 2019
Another one gone: Four-star Florida football signee unable to qualify
Football

Image Credit: @GatorsFB/Twitter

For all the praise the Florida Gators and head coach Dan Mullen received for closing strong in the 2019 recruiting cycle, the team’s heralded class is falling apart fast. For the third time in as many weeks, Florida will lose a four-star signee from the Class of 2019, all for different reasons.

Linebacker Diwun Black, the 151st-ranked prospect in the nation, announced Monday that he was unable to academically qualify to attend UF, a result that was a poorly kept secret over the last couple of weeks. Black’s academic issues were known throughout his recruitment, but the Gators accepted him with hopes that he would be able to achieve the necessary marks to enroll.

“im very upset right now but I’m here to tell y’all that I will not be attending The University of Florida,” Black wrote on Twitter. “in stead [sic] I will be attending a community college this fall. Maybe to y’all I fail but to me I’ve came a long way, I wasn’t post to [sic] graduate, & for me to come this far I’m so dammm proud of myself. … I’m going to wipe these tears away become a man & finish what I started, I’m not done yet . Still screaming Go Gators.”

While Black may be rooting for the Gators, his inability to qualify negates his National Letter of Intent, meaning he will be able to commit and join any program for which he can qualify next spring. It is far from a certainty that he will either decide to go to Florida or qualify for UF, though the community college he chooses could speak to his mindset.

Regardless, Black is the third four-star signee who will not wind up playing for the Gators — at least not this year. Four-star cornerback Chris Steele (42nd nationally) entered the NCAA transfer portal, and four-star quarterback Jalon Jones (306th) was accused of sexual battery by two women; though the women did not press charges, Jones and Florida mutually decided to end their relationship, and he entered the portal as well.

Steele (No. 1) and Black (No. 8) were two off the top 10-rated prospects in the Gators’ 2019 class, which was ranked ninth nationally at the close of the recruiting cycle.

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