Florida Football Recruiting: Jason Zandamela will level you to the ground

Last week Florida Football had their class of 2025 take a hit when Peyton Joseph decommitted from the Gators after 60 days of initially committing to the program.

Hoping to get some much needed momentum, the Gators will have in town one of the highest ranked offensive linemen of the class of 2024 who just hit the transfer portal after one season out west.

Florida Football: Phone Home

Jason Zandamela is a center who was listed at 6'3" and 306 pounds. Originally from Mozambique, Zandamela moved to Clearwater in 2020 and signed with Southern California as part of the class of 2024, he was considered a top 50 prospect by 247 while On3, Rivals, and ESPN all still had him as a four-star.

Following the spring season for the Trojans, Zandamela entered the transfer portal.

His high school film showcases all the marks of a top-level center, though we may be inclined to agree with the ESPN grade the most. Even when paired up against opposition that could match his size, Zandamela had zero problems, making it known whose house the backfield belonged to. His ability to get defensive linemen to the ground in a variety of way, whether it was a traditional pancake or a straight up shoulder check, was impressive.

He was a willing run blocker when asked to pull, though his burst up the field is why we agree a little more with the ESPN grade vs the 247 grade.

Zandamela seems to be a reverse case of what happened with one time Gator commit Chris Steele, who was from California, came to Gainesville, and wound up leaving during the spring and played for USC, though Steele also had some infamous roommate troubles that sparked his decision to leave.

For Zandamela, he appears to want to come back to the Sunshine State. On3 is reporting that he has a visit lined up with UCF and is planning to be in Gainesville sometime soon as well.