Florida football’s top recruit this year, Chris Steele, has announced he is transferring from the program and the reason falls squarely on Dan Mullen.
The transfer portal added another name as Florida cornerback Chris Steele entered his name as he looks to leave the program he joined five months ago.
Steele, from St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower, California, was the Gators No. 1 signee in Dan Mullen’s class this year. The four-star recruit told Mullen of his intentions to leave the program on Wednesday. The 6-1, 195-pounder was the nation’s No. 42 recruit, No. 5 cornerback and No. 6 recruit out of California, according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings.
According to Zach Abolverdi of GatorSports.com, Steele asked the staff to be moved to a different dorm because he wasn’t comfortable rooming with fellow freshman, quarterback Jalon Jones.
Florida didn’t immediately accommodate Steele’s request for a new roommate but had plans to move him over the summer. That didn’t sit well with Steele or his parents.
Earlier this month, Jones announced he was leaving Florida after he was accused of sexual battery by two Florida students. He hasn’t been charged but he left school and is determining where he’ll attend school and play football next.
Living situations in college can be difficult to adjust to, but in this case, it can be assumed Steele couldn’t tolerate sharing a living space with Jones. For whatever reason, the two couldn’t co-exist and it’s unfortunate Florida couldn’t accommodate Steele to make his living situation tolerable.
This falls squarely on Florida football coach Dan Mullen. No one should be forced to live with someone who makes them feel uncomfortable. For him not to make sure his top recruit is comfortable in his dorm room, that’s a disservice to Steele and his family.
Steele should be given the opportunity to transfer to any program of his choosing that will be able to put him on scholarship and be eligible to play in 2019. Steele shouldn’t be penalized and have to sit out a year. There are extenuating circumstances in play here and he shouldn’t be forced to miss his freshman season because of factors out of his control.
He should have a pretty good case to appeal the NCAA for immediate eligibility. The timing of which will hinge on how quickly Steele finds a new home. Expect that process to happen quickly with summer camp beginning in 2.5 months. Steele could look to return home to California where the one-time USC commit could potentially be an option if the Trojans can make the numbers work to fit him in.