Florida Gators’ Janoris Jenkins dismissed from team

Three days after Janoris Jenkins was arrested for marijuana possession for the second time in three months, Florida Gators head coach Will Muschamp announced the All-SEC cornerback has been dismissed from the team.

“After meeting with Janoris Jenkins today, we both felt it was in his best interest to move ahead to the next stage of his career,” Muschamp said on his Twitter account. “We appreciate Janoris’ contributions to the University of Florida during his time here and wish him the best of luck.”

The star cornerback was cited for misdemeanor marijuana possession early Saturday morning when an officer from the Gainesville Police Department noticed a “burning marijuana cigar” in a car Jenkins had just left in a downtown Gainesville parking lot.

Jenkins had been previously cited for misdemeanor marijuana possession on Jan. 22, when officers found him trying to roll a marijuana cigarette in the bathroom of the downtown nightclub Status.

Those two issues likely led to his dismissal from the team. After his first arrest in January, Muschamp said the matter was being handled internally.

Muschamp and the University of Florida had not officially commented on his weekend arrest before the announcement of his dismissal on Tuesday.

Jenkins was also charged with disorderly conduct and affray and resisting arrest without violence on May 30, 2009 after an incident in Gainesville that led to him being tased. The affray charges were dropped because the evidence did not constitute a criminal offense, according to court records. He reached a deferred prosecution agreement on the resisting arrest charge.

The 5-foot-10, 183-pound senior from Pahokee was expected to be a starter for Florida during the 2011 season. He missed all of spring practice recovering from shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum.

During his career at Florida, he racked up 121 tackles, 25 passes defended, 10 tackles for a loss, eight interceptions and two forced fumbles.

He was widely considered the top returning cornerback in both the SEC and the nation.

Jenkins cannot enter this week’s NFL Draft, but could put his name into the NFL’s supplemental draft, which usually takes place in mid-July. He could also transfer to an FCS school and be eligible to play immediately in the fall.

His arrest Saturday was the fourth misdemeanor marijuana arrest for the Florida Gators since Muschamp arrived.