Florida’s recruitment of C.J. Worton took a positive turn for the Gators Tuesday.
The Homestead South Dade receiver decommitted from Florida State, announcing his decision via Twitter.
Worton received offered on Jan. 9 from UF, where his older brother, Cody, was a walk-on safety for three years (2006-2008).
Offensive coordinator Kurt Roper and receivers coach Joker Phillips met with him Thursday before he officially visited Florida this past weekend.
Head coach Will Muschamp conducted an in-home visit Monday.
The 6-foot-1, 175-pounder has twice postponed an interview with The Sun this week, but described his trip to UF as “awesome” when he spoke with the Orlando Sentinel.
It is unclear if Worton will take any of his remaining official visits, but he is now expected to sign with Gators.
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This is great news. His other older brother did great at UCF this year. Hopefully, he’ll do as well in college.
Looking back at his defenders when they’re clearly beat is not cool.
That will change in college and with Coach Roper and Phillips.
Go GATORS.
I’m very excited about this kid. It seemed that he was an immediate target once Roper was hired and he seems like a great fit for his offense. Plus, the video on him looks great.
When Roper came aboard, he went after Brandon Powell, Isaiah Mckenzie, Treon Harris and CJ Worton much harder than the previous offensive staff. Productive playmakers who aren’t necessarily the biggest or will win a bikini contest.
malik- isiah mckenzie would be a great pickup amd more of an immediate impact with his speed. he is the closest thing to a must in this class after losing out on lane, rudolph and lauderdale
Looks like a good get to me.Stay positive guys. We’ll be fine!
wherever he ends up he needs to head straight to the weight room
good pick up, i dont think lane is all that hes cracked up,to be anyway, hes no,sammy watkins or major 40 inch vert Guy
He looks like another Riley Cooper and I’ll Def take that any day.
Like it or not, the type A, game changers that we desire will probably do all of the above (at some point) with great ARROGANCE and CONFIDENCE…and we’ll learn to love every moment of it! LUV UF!
he looks like a starter on day one with Grier
He’s a winner and will have as good a chance as anyone to play immediately. Remember there’s only one guy that is proven at wide receiver at UF. That’s Dunbar. No else has done anything to make anyone confident in their ability. But I wouldn’t count Worton yet, he hasn’t said yes to the Gators, just no to the Seminoles. He’s as important as anyone left on the board since McKenzie is going to the Irish, I believe. Since Lauderdale and Nelson are gone, and the kid from Jesup won’t make a visit, Worton seems to be the only option left unless there’s a surprise.
We’re getting guys who want to be Gators. Worton seemingly came out of nowhere to have a monstrous senior season. His ball skills are impressive. It’s going to take a variety of types of receivers to spice up the Kurt Roper aerial attack and Worton’s a high potential fit. If we don’t get Adoree Jackson, McKenzie may become really important. J.C. Jackson or Adoree could go at either WR or CB.
Kid is a play maker period. Glad to have you as part of Gator nation dude!
Saw this kid play in the 8A State Championship. Very talented with the ball in his hands and very selfless. He was not afraid to throw a block on the edge. Could be a really good player in a couple of years
C.J.- your film looks great. Hope you join the Gator Nation buddy!
A lot of things happen over the course of a kid’s recruitment. All that should really matter is if he wants to be a Gator and works hard once he joins the team.
I like his hands and route-running.
Florida signed what, five WRs last year and a few the year before so I think there is talent on the roster. What the previous offense didn’t have was slot guys who might create mismatches in space, and it’s interesting to see UF go after them.
That said, the most important thing the Gators have done this year in recruiting is finally get more numbers at offensive line. With no time to confidently throw, it doesn’t matter WHO the QB or wideouts are.
Roper went after his guys immediately, and the new O-line coach immediately started going after more guys for this upcoming year.
The kid obviously has talent.
I have no problem with Worton. I think he can play. I just hope this doesn’t prevent McKenzie from being a Gator. If there is a surprise flip then hopefully it is still in the works.
Has good speed, but is a bit of a HOT DOG.
welcome c.j. we gots lots of work to do! i think you will do just fine. play with a chip on your shoulder and know you play for a great univ. go gators!
Now all we need is an play making athlete who can be a beast of a tight end for us.
We could also line him up at running back and wide receiver too.
This would help open up running lanes as defenses wouldn’t stack the box all the time.
Who could be such an athlete for Florida? Bo knows.
can anyone else remember where they were when percy harvin had his press conference in the afternoon and announced for the gators? what a day that was. who was on his high school that also announced at that press conference? damon mcdaniel who ended up being a bust and is now a substitute teacher. wow have times changed- not too many percy’s out there
Strutting…It’s the Miami way…happens at all the games, it’s just the way it is down here.
For what it’s worth…..
I have kids that played at a school that played S.Dade and Homestead (beat S. Dade)…they and the coaches were more concern with Worton than Lane.
Kid is quick, has great hands and plays hard the entire game.
If he signs, he would definitely be a nice slot receiver!
Zach,
You are a really good writer and i appreciate the fact that you are giving us an article a day.
Big news right now is tweet that Adoree Jackson has eliminated Zvils, apparently now between USC and Florida. He and Prince would be great gets to cap off this class. Good things may be breaking our way.
Let’s hope so Gatormac! I love this class already but those 2 would really be a great finish! It’s great to be a Florida Gator!
This kid looks like a possession type receiver.Lane and Rudolph appear as big play types. There is only 1 football. Big plays are few and far between, especially against a great D. With Robinson, Fulwood, and DeBose, Florida will need a possession aka Travis McGriff style receiver.
Go Gators.
I like that this kid talks much smack. Not afraid of anyone. I like his moxy. Worton to UF. It’s great to be a Florida Gator!
Great reporting as usual, Zach! Any recruit UF steals from the crimmies is great, considering they picked Cook & soon to be Lane. From what I’ve seen on Adoree Jackson he seems like priority#1 to me. That dude is Percy light! He can go!! Only 1 week till the madness ends. GO GATORS!!
This kid reminds me of Travis McGriff – very quick, good route-runner, exceptional hands, and surprisingly good vertical for a 6″ 1″ teenager.
Hold your horses, there seems to be a lot of celebrating Worton’s decommit. He hasn’t pledged to the Gators. It said he is expected to do so. Wasn’t the same thing said about Lauderdale? Now if he doesn’t choose UF, a lot of you are going to feel UF lost someone they never had. If FSU gets Rudolph, Lane, and Dupre to come to Tallahassee, is this decommit worthy of celebration? If Worton says yes to UF, celebrate then, now is a little premature.
If you can’t prematurely celebrate when following recruiting, then where’s the fun to be had? 😉
Zach
In the video of Worton you posted, can you tell us anything about the level of competition he was facing? My assumption is that since he was at a large school and won a state title that the guys in the video he was juicing were pretty legitimate.
True?
MalikG,
Worton plays in the highest classification level (8A) of high school football in the state of Florida.
Good catch, Go Gators!!
If he does commit to the Gators, welcome to Gator nation that is heading into next Wednesday like a freight train!
What I want to know is who is the guy throwing all those passes??? He makes ALL the throws.
probable good news for the gators.
and we need all we can get.
we have desperate need at wide receiver, in addition to other positions.
worton would play for the gators..playing time…much sooner than at fsu(which already has loads of great talent at wide receiver).
Zach
I adore your writings a lot. I follow everything you write.
Great get for the Gators!
The kid looks fast and smart with his routes but needs to tone down his antics a bit.
I don’t think he is very good. Needs to learn how to run better routes. And he looks very slow from the start. Has good overall speed and good hands. Looks like a second stringer all the way. Go gators!
LOL! Saw this coming. Scared of competition huh Worton. What good will he be without a QB. GO NOLES!
Zach, I guess if only receives taunting penalties after 70 yard TD plays it will be okay. Just none after an 8 yard square in.
Sorry to hear your going Gators as they dont have anyone to throw to you. It eill allow you to start right away but if your as good as they say you are then who better to have throw youbthe ball then Jameis Winston! You might want to rethink thatdecision before you sign….just saying!
First play summarizes everything with this kid. He gets vertical in a hurry and has good top-end speed. He also showboats a ton and I’m hoping the coaches will correct that part of his game. Hope He chooses UF as most people seem to think. GO GATORS!
Isn’t it funny to see these Nolio fans come out of the closet, which has housed them for the past decade? LOL! They back in to one championship and they think they are the next dynasty. Had Auburn not gone conservative too early or Bama had been the one in the NC game, they would still be locked in that closet. During the first half, of the NC, they went back in to the closet and were peaking out of a cracked door. Through in the playoffs and things really look bleak for them. I can’t wait to see them running back, like a bunch of rats. It’s going to be better when the NCAA opens and official investigation. Seems like that Professor, that wrote the article about widespread academic cheating, isn’t backing off his comments. 🙂
From the highlights he seems to be another “self absorbed”, “it’s all about me”, showboat kid…..think he might be a better fit at FS-WHO!!
If he is good as advertised, him being a hot dog and having a little swag might be a good thing for our offense. Go Gators.
He will fit in well. I like the enthusiasm. Hopefully we can also add one or two more from the hit list.
He made a good decision. An athlete can get a good education and a pro career playing for Florida… not the case at F$U.
FSU does not provide academics to athletes. Athletics is foremost at the expense of academics. To support this claim, according to the NCAA FSU is close to losing NCAA athletic scholarships because their football team graduation rate is so low.
Beginning in 2012, the NCAA requires all teams to have a rolling, multi-year academic progress rate (APR) rating of 930 or better in order to compete in their sport. Previously the APR was 900. FSU posted a 2008-09 APR of 927 and only raised it to 932 in 09-10, the same APR as 07-08. They have dropped almost every year since the 2004-05 season.
NCAA APR: Check web1.ncaa.org/maps/aprRelease.jsp
Florida had APR ratings of 963 in 2007-08, a 971 in 08-09 and a 976 in 09-10. To contrast with the ACC’s best, Duke had an APR of 980 in 2007-08, a 983 in 08-09 and a 986 in 09-10. Vanderbilt, the best in the SEC, had an APR of 969 in 2007-08, a 975 in 08-09 and a 977 in 09-10. Florida has always been in the top 20% in the country.. Texas, with lower academic requirements than the SEC or ACC, posted an APR of 939 in 2007-08, a 947 in 08-09 and a 941 in 09-10.
Florida in 2009-2010 was ranked 34th of 244 while FSU has slipped to 175 of 244 in Div 1(latest available data).
No academics, no booster support, no fans in the seats… Why would an athlete want to go to FSU?
We didn’t do the strutting etc. when we won 3 National Championships or in any event it was rare because we don’t do that at Florida! We are not Miami – thank God but Miami doesn’t do it anymore anyway!!! It’s comes from the parents – if the parents allow it the kids will do it – it’s that simple!!! Hopefully, if he signs they will coach it out of him and tell him your in college now and this is not the Florida way!!! And besides that it’s taunting and a 15 yard penalty.
Agree he needs to head straight to the weight room. His highlights are impressive but he seems to always be taunting the DB’s. Like the confidence but I suspect the competition in college will change that behavior.
Worton no 15 yd penalties in front of the endzone other than that. Strut your stuff because I know our defense will #MUSCHAMPSTRONG!!!!!
He would have never gotten on the field at FSU.
I really think Worton is going to be a star. I would be willing to wager he will be a high draft pick one day, probably first round. Ive seen a lot of high school boys playing ball in the last few years and he is certainly one of the most impressive Ive had the chance to analyze.
Ga Southern!!!
From the size of this guy, he probably wouldn’t see the field anyway. FSU’s kicker is bigger than this guy. I guess with all the transfers & decommits, UF has to take what they can get.
Comical some of the idiotic comments from semis.
They originally offered and accepted his commitment but now “he probably wouldn’t see the field anyway” or “He would have never gotten on the field at FSU”
Ignorant comments from fans who simply do not know much about college football.