100 Days of Florida Football: No. 36 Jorge Powell

Up next on our countdown to kickoff is another kicker who has a chance to make an impact during his time at UF. Jorge Powell will wear number 98 this season for Florida, but he checks in at number 36 on the countdown.

Powell is a highly rated kicker in the 2014 recruiting class. At Belen Jesuit Prepatory School in Miami, he excelled on the football field. During his senior season, Powell hit 12-of 15 field goals and 25-of-27 extra points on the season. He showed a strong leg as well, booting a 54-yarder in addition to several 40+ yard attempts. He also had 40 touchbacks in 48 kickoffs on the season, showing he has the leg to compete at the major college level. The three major kicking recruiting services all rated Powell pretty highly and gave him encouraging comments. Kornblue Kicking ranked him as the 2nd-best kicker, Kohls Kicking had him as a five-star kicker and the 11th-ranked in his class, and Chris Sailer Kicking put him down as a four-star prospect, ranked 40th in the 2014 class. Here’s what they had to say:

"Jorge is the most college ready FG kicker that we’ve seen in the class of 2014 and is also a standout punter. Because he is able to kick FG’s off the ground with great height and consistency, he could earn a starting place-kicking position right away. Jorge held multiple Division 1 scholarship offers but committed to Tulane last summer. Their coaching situation recently changed and his recruiting is now open. He is looking to attend a top academic school in a BCS conference. He is currently the #2 ranked kicker in our Fab 50 National Rankings. Of the 2013 Lou Groza Award finalists, we trained 2 of the 3. Jorge is in their category. There is no doubt in my mind he will be a standout D1 kicker. For his size, Jorge is very explosive and has shown continued improvement over the past 6 years. He has been training with Kornblue Kicking and competing in our Kicking Challenge events since he was in junior high. – Kornblue Kicking"

"Jorge has always been able to make FG’s, his height off the ground is excellent, his natural tempo is at the D1 level, he is a late bloomer who is now hitting 4.0 second hang-times on his KO’s and is a sleeper who has moved ahead of many in his class, D1 prospect, ball comes off his foot clean. – Kohl’s Kicking"

"Jorge is a talented kicker. He has a strong leg and makes kicks with excellent consistency. Field goals are solid and kickoffs are fast becoming college ready. Also shows some punting potential. A fine young man with a great attitude and excellent work ethic. A pleasure to be around. Should have a great offseason impressing college coaches nationwide. Nice prospect. – Chris Sailer Kicking"

Here’s his recruiting video:

And his highlights from the 2013-14 season:

Jorge Powell decided to attend UF after first committing to a couple of other schools. Tulane was the first to get his pledge, but decided to reopen his commitment. Penn State was the next to get a verbal commitment, but that didn’t last long. Florida offered Powell preferred walk-on status with a chance to earn a scholarship and he was sold. Jorge’s father went to UF, it was closer to home, and Penn State didn’t offer anything Florida couldn’t provide. He joined the Gators earlier this month.

The kicking position at Florida has undergone a rapid transformation. It’s gone from a sore spot from last year, to a position of depth. Powell will compete for playing time with scholarship kicker Austin Hardin, along with walk-ons Frankie Velez and Brooks Abbott, a transfer from Virginia Tech. With all that depth, Florida likely won’t use Powell and continue to develop his leg. Without a number 36 on the Gators roster, Powell fills in nicely here and will likely contribute down the line for Florida.

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