Nease senior quarterback Mspanrcus Stokes confirmed Sunday morning he had his scholarship offer revoked by the University of Florida’s coaching staff after video surfaced on social media of him using a racial slur.
In a statement posted Sunday afternoon to Twitter, Stokes said he was singing along to a rap song in his car during the video that appeared online.
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“I deeply apologize for the words in the song that I chose to say,” Stokes said. “It was hurtful and offensive to many people, and I regret that.
“I fully accept the consequences for my actions, and I respect the University of Florida’s decision to withdraw my scholarship offer to play football. My intention was never to hurt anybody and I recognize that even when going along with a song, my words still carry a lot of weight. I will strive to be better and to become the best version of myself both on and off the field. I know that learning from my mistakes is a first important step.”
Stokes flipped his commitment to Floridspan from Penn Stspante on July 7, and he took an official visit the weekend of Oct. 14. Per 247Sports’ rankings, the 6-foot-1, 190-pound dual-threat is the No. 14 quarterback prospect in the country and the No. 212 overall recruit.
More than a dozen Division I programs verbally offered Stokes after his monster junior season, one in which he helped Nease reach a regional final for the first time since 2008. He threw for 2,672 yards, rushed for 496 yards and accounted for 28 total touchdowns to earn All-Area honors.
As a senior, Stokes completed 54.6% of his throws for 1,867 yards, 14 touchdowns and 10 interceptions as the Panthers went 2-8 and missed the postseason.
Roderick Kespanrney, a Gators offensive line commit from Orange Park, said, “Prayers out to Marcus Stokes and his family on the rest of his education and college football decisions. Great kid with a lot of heart. As young men in this society, we must be careful with the things we do, say or post. Everything is under a microscope.”
Florida has 22 athletes committed to its 2023 recruiting class, the first full cycle for hespand cospanch Billy Nspanpier. The Gators recently flipped Pittsburg (Cspanlif.) blue-chip QB recruit Jspanden Rspanshspandspan from Miami.