Former Florida, Texas A&M defensive back transferring to Buffalo

Former Florida and Texas A&M cornerback Elijah Blades will transfer to Buffalo, according to On3’s Matt Zenitz. The move, first reported by Yahoo’s Pete Thamel, will reunite Blades with head coach Mo Linguist, who served as his position coach at Texas A&M in 2019.

The 6-foot-2, 170-pound senior was ranked the among the top junior college transfers in 2019, choosing Texas A&M over Alabama, Oregon and others. After recording 19 tackles with 1.5 sacks and three pass deflections in 2019, he did not play in 2020 and made the move to Florida in 2021. With the Gators, he played in two games, recording three tackles and one pass deflection.

Now at Buffalo, Elijah Blades will use his additional year of eligibility granted by the NCAA during the COVID-19 pandemic to try his trade in the MAC.

Florida quarterback still on campus

Florida Gators quarterback Emory Jones is still taking classes in Gainesville and participated in a team meeting on Tuesday, according to On3’s Matt Zenitz. The quarterback was expected to enter the NCAA transfer portal after playing in the Gasparilla Bowl.

Earlier in December, GatorsOnline’s Nick De La Torre reported Jones’ plans to enter the portal following the game against UCF. Following the game, Jones answered questions about his future following the 29-17 loss with uncertainty.

“I’m not really thinking about my future right now,” stated Jones. “I’m still thinking about what just happened there on the field. Just feeling bad for the seniors, and just wish I would’ve sent them out the right way.”

For the time being, it looks like Emory Jones isn’t done with the Florida Gators. The team has a new skipper in former Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns head coach Billy Napier, so it’s possible the quarterback wants to feel out the new situation.

Jones was a four-star recruit out of high school from the Class of 2018 and was the No. 11 quarterback from that class, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

This season, Jones ranked No. 10 in the SEC with 213.6 passing yards and 58 rushing yards per game. The dual-threat quarterback was a big part of the Gators offense under Dan Mullen and interim coach Greg Knox. In fact, he accounted for 57.8% of the Gators’ offense this year.

In the Gasparilla Bowl, Emory Jones went 14 of 36 for 171 yards. He also had 62 yards on 10 carries rushing.