Second Former Florida State Defender Commits to Colorado on Same Day
Florida State has seen multiple scholarship players depart from the roster during the spring, including defensive end Derrick McLendon, linebacker Brendan Gant, defensive tackle Joshua Farmer, defensive tackle Antavious Woody, offensive lineman Zane Herring, and linebacker Stephen Dix Jr.
READ MORE: Legacy Wide Receiver Commits to Florida State over Alabama, Georgia, and LSU
Since entering the NCAA Transfer Portal, the six former Seminoles have been exploring their options and a couple of them have already found new homes.
On Wednesday, former starting defensive end Derrick McLendon committed to Colorado following an official visit over the weekend. One of his teammates in Tallahassee joined him with a similar announcement hours later.
According to his social media, former FSU linebacker Brendan Gant plans to transfer to Colorado to play out his final season of collegiate eligibility with the Buffaloes. Like McLendon, Gant is coming off an official visit where he viewed a sold-out spring game in Boulder.
The Florida native developed into a member of the Seminoles' rotation at linebacker in 2022 after beginning his college career as a safety. He was also a special teams ace and was named one of the team's special teams MVPs alongside former tight end Wyatt Rector following the season. Gant totaled 33 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, one sack, one pass breakup, and one recovery while appearing in 12 games.
Gant stuck with the program for four seasons despite originally signing under former head coach Willie Taggart. He played a large role in the defensive backfield earlier in his career. Gant's playing time began to diminish before the transition to linebacker
During his four years in Tallahassee, Gant totaled 112 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, one sack, three pass deflections, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery in 43 appearances, with six starts.
McLendon and Gant become the latest new faces to join Deion Sanders at Colorado. The program is in the midst of a mass exodus and has shed 46 scholarship players since Sanders was hired in late December.
Sanders hasn't failed to attract talent. Multiple players from Jackson State followed him north including star cornerback Travis Hunter and quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Five-star cornerback Cormani McClain signed with the Buffaloes earlier this year.
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