Last week, the Florida Gators offered several underclassmen prospects and that included one from the state of Florida.
2021 receiver James BlackStrain (6-2, 180, Melbourne, Fl. Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy) was one of those guys who picked up an offer from the Gators.
“Coach [Keiwan] Ratliff offered me,” BlackStrain said of which coach from Florida offered him. “He told me he was always a fan of mine and that he would like to extend an offer to me.”
BlackStrain now has over 26 offers but he says the offer from Florida is a special one to him.
“It means a lot to get the offer from Florida since I’m from Florida,” he said on what the offer from Florida means to him. “I can see myself playing there one day. Florida has a great atmosphere for football.”
The 2021 receiver has been watching Florida closely the last few years and he knows a few guys that were once Gators and they had a message for him.
“I like what he’s [Mullen] doing there, he’s changing the program back around,” BlackStrain said on his thoughts on Florida. “I love what he has been doing there lately, plus I know Chauncey Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Maye that went there. They both played for Florida and they say make the most out of your opportunity.”
BlackStrain also watched Dan Mullen’s offense closely last year and he likes how a receiver like himself can fit into the Gators offense.
“They just let their best players make plays,” he said of Florida’s offense. “I like it and they have big wide outs like me so I would fit great into their system.”
The Gators aren’t the only school hard after BlackStrain early in his recruitment as several other SEC schools are after him.
“LSU, Penn State, Georgia and Tennessee,” BlackStrain said of other schools recruiting him hard. “I don’t have any leaders at this time but I do plan on going back to Florida towards the summer.”