Reports: Florida QB signee Jaden Rashada asks for release

Reports: Florida QB signee Jaden Rashada asks for release

Florida quarterback signee Jaden Rashada has asked for a release from his letter of intent following a dispute over a lucrative Name, Image and Likeness contract, according to multiple reports.

Rashada, a four-star recruit and a Top 100 national prospect in the 2023 class from Pittsburg, Calif., signed with the Gators in December but did not enroll as expected earlier this month. According to multiple reports, Rashada and his family are unhappy regarding promises of future NIL payments.

Rashada originally committed to Miami (a school well-known for its boosters paying out big-money NIL deals), but flipped to Florida in November. As recently as last week, he was expected to join the Gators program after playing in the Under Armour All-American Game.

However, Rashada never showed up in Gainesville, reportedly unhappy after the Gator Collective terminated an NIL contract he had signed because financial backing fell through. The deal was reportedly worth more than $13 million over the course of Rashada’s Florida career, an astronomical figure that has set the college football world abuzz.

Legislation approved by the NCAA two years ago allows athletes to profit from their fame once they are already in college (in ways such as starring in television commercials or earning money from autograph shows), but promises of NIL payments are not supposed to be used as recruiting inducements. However, the NCAA and various states with NIL laws on the books have shown little desire to try and enforce anti-”pay for play” statutes.

It is not immediately clear if Florida head coach Billy Napier will release Rashada from his letter of intent, allowing him to sign with another school and play immediately. Should he seek to enroll elsewhere without getting a release, he would have to sit out the 2023 season.

Florida — which went 6-7 in Napier’s first season — has an uncertain situation at quarterback after starter Anthony Richardson entered the NFL draft, backup Jalen Kitna was dismissed following an arrest and two others transferred. The Gators signed Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz to compete for the starting job with holdover Jack Miller, who started the season-ending loss to Oregon State in the Las Vegas Bowl.