UNC Not Done Yet: Heels Add 2021 Corner Dontae Balfour on NSD

Florida three-sport athlete chooses Heels over Auburn, LSU

North Carolina coach Mack Brown had one more surprise for his 2021 recruiting class.

The Tar Heels signed a top 15 recruiting class on the December early signing day, but there was one more piece to add on February’s National Signing Day.

Brown and Carolina beat out Auburn and LSU to land Florida defensive back Dontae Balfour, who chose the Tar Heels in a signing ceremony on Wednesday’s NSD.

Auburn was the first to offer the Starke, Florida Bradford High cornerback and were considered the favorites to land Balfour in late January. Led by Dre Bly, the Tar Heels were able to close fast, however.

Balfour also had offers from Mississippi State, Illinois, Missouri, Oregon, Penn State, Virginia and Tennessee, among others.

Balfour was an All-Area first teamer as a senior, with 39 tackles and three interceptions at corner. He also caught 25 passes for 386 yards at wide receiver and also returned kicks. As a junior, he scored five touchdowns on 17 catches while getting seven interceptions and eight pass breakups.

Balfour also plays basketball for Bradford and runs hurdles and does triple jump on the track team. He had a big week: On Monday, two days before he made his college announcement, Balfour hit the winning jumper in a 68-66 overtime win.

He becomes the 19th member of the signing class, which includes 12 early enrollees who are already on campus. He joins Gastonia’s Dontavius Nash and Concord’s DeAndre Boykins, both safeties, and Jacksonville corner Tymir Brown as the only defensive backs in the class.