Per Scot Brantley: Johnny is 110% Gator

A good news day for the Florida Gators got even better Wednesday afternoon when former Gator great Scot Brantley told Gator Country that his nephew, Trinity Catholic quarterback John Brantley, has switched his commitment from Texas to the University of Florida. Scot Brantley said that the Gatorade National Player of the Year called Urban Meyer to confirm his decision.

“It’s done … Johnny is 110% Gator,” said Scot Brantley, who hosts a sports talk show on AM 1470 ESPN Radio in Tampa. “He made the switch this afternoon. This is the final decision. He’s going to be a Gator.”

For weeks there had been plenty of speculation that the five-star rated quarterback, a US Army All-American, was going to make the switch from Texas, where he committed back during the summer, to Florida, where his dad John and his uncle Scot played football in the 1970s. The speculation ended Wednesday afternoon.

For the Gators, it was a double dose of good news. Earlier in the day Oakland Park Northeast running back Bo Williams, rated the number 19 running back in the nation by Scout.com, committed to Florida at a news conference at his school.

Brantley’s commitment gives the Gators three quarterbacks in the recruiting class of 2007. Florida has commitments from juco All-American Bryan Waggener and from Atlanta Westlake’s multi-purpose threat, Cameron Newton.

Franz Beard
Back in January of 1969, the late, great Jack Hairston, then the sports editor of the Jacksonville Journal, called me on the phone one night and asked me if I wanted to work for him. I said yes. The entire interview took 30 seconds. It's my experience that whenever the interview lasts 30 seconds or less, I get the job. In the 48 years that I've been writing and getting paid for it, I've covered Super Bowls, World Series, NCAA basketball championships, BCS championship games, heavyweight title fights and what seems like thousands of college football, baseball and basketball games. I'm a columnist and special assignments editor for Gator Country once again, writing about the only team that ever mattered to me, the Florida Gators.