Georgia football and Florida football will always be hated when they play one other around Halloween.
However, there is still more tension between Bulldogs redshirt freshman quarterback Jaden Rashada and Gators coach Billy Napier. A broken name, image, and likeness (NIL) deal that was given to the signal caller during his high school recruitment in the 2023 class is the reason Rashada is suing Napier.
With Napier on the other sideline, Rashada’s presence with the lawsuit will still be felt even if he is not expected to play on Saturday and is down on the Bulldogs depth chart.
What you need know about Rashada’s case against Napier and other parties is provided here.
Rashada went to Pittsburg, California, to attend Pittsburg High School. With 32 total offers, he was a four-star recruit by consensus and one of the top quarterbacks in the 2023 recruiting class.
On June 26, 2022, Rashada made his first commitment to Miami, beating out Florida, LSU, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M. Rumors about a potentially wealthy NIL package from Miami immediately started to circulate.
However, this was just the beginning of Rashada’s recruitment process. In a mysterious tweet published on November 11, 2022, Rashada renounced his allegiance to the Gators. Prior to the right-handed quarterback’s formal visit to Gainesville, the pledge was made.
The NLIs for all of Florida’s prospects were received on December 21, 2022, the first day of the early signing period; however, Rashada’s was not included. Napier ultimately got Rashada’s NLI and was revealed as a Gator signee after postponing his press appearance to present the class.
But from here, things would only get worse. Online rumors persisted about a breakdown in a NIL cargo between Rashada and Florida. Rashada then failed to show up in Gainesville when it was time to relocate on campus and remained in California.
After failing to report and enrolling early for classes before the school’s drop/add deadline on January 13 for the spring semester, the four-star quarterback asked to be freed from his NLI with the Gators.
On January 20, 2023, Rashada finally decommitted from Florida, fulfilling his dream. He made an official visit to TCU a week later, signed with Arizona State, and the next day, he signed with the program.
Rashada is suing Napier, former football staffer Marcus Castro-Walker, and supporter Hugh Hathcock for allegedly making “false and fraudulent promises” in order to get Rashada to join with the Gators in 2022.
Rashada says he signed a four-year, $13.85 million contract with the Gator Collective, the now-defunct NIL collective representing Gators athletics, and then reversed his commitment to Florida, according to a copy of the lawsuit obtained by the Gainesville Sun. On December 5, 2023, the day after he was supposed to receive his $500,000 signing bonus, the collective ended the agreement.
The lawsuit was filed on Rashada’s behalf by Rusty Hardin, who has defended well-known players including Deshaun Watson, Roger Clemens, and Adrian Peterson. Rashada thought the Florida and Miami investigations would settle the matter, the attorney told The Athletic. However, the NCAA was temporarily barred from implementing the regulations and inquiry due to a preliminary injunction issued by a federal judge.
For some time, Jaden was undecided about filing a lawsuit, according to Hardin. “He personally enjoys Napier. However, he learned that more and more players were going through the same thing, although not at this level and with this much money up for grabs.
Rashada said he missed out on a $9.5 million contract he had with a Miami collective and the opportunity to seek NIL arrangements with other collectives as a result of that deal being terminated.
According to the lawsuit, Napier allegedly promised Rashada $1 million if he signed on December 21, 2023, National Signing Day, and the coach “would get it done.” Additionally, it claims that if Rashada did not sign, Napier threatened to leave him completely.
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida received Rashada’s lawsuit. It demands damages “exceeding (ing) the sum or value of $10 million,” encompassing six allegations of tortious interference, negligence, and fraud against Napier.
During the SEC spring meetings in Destin, Napier stated that he felt confident in his pursuit of Rashada.
According to Napier, “I can’t comment due to the litigation,” However, I do have faith in my legal counsel. I appreciate the university’s help and feel at ease with what I’m doing. That’s where we’ll stop and let the process unfold.”
Rashada allegedly signed with Arizona State as a high school recruit and Georgia as a transfer without “any promises, assurances, or offers connected to NIL money,” according to the lawsuit. His lesson had been learned.
During Rashada’s recruitment, the two main colleges with boosters who promoted their football programs and boasted about rich NIL deals were Florida and Miami. Rashada had already committed to Miami for his rumored $9.5 million NIL agreement by the time Florida made its initial offer, which was around $11 million.
From the start, Hathcock was actively involved in Rashada’s recruiting; in fact, he even got in touch with him while he was in the country in June 2022. Hathcock allegedly assured Rashada during that trip, “Hathcock would make sure Rashada had everything she needed to come to UF.” Additionally, Hathcock is accused of promising Rashada’s father, Harlen Rashada, a job.
Rashada committed to the Gators after his stated Florida boosters persisted in recruiting him and ultimately gave him a NIL package that was more than $4 million higher than Miami’s. Hancock, Castro-Walker, and Napier allegedly conspired to persuade Rashada to flip, according to the lawsuit.
Rashada transferred to Georgia a week after logging into the transfer portal from Arizona State on April 18. Rashada revealed his case against Napier and others less than a month later. Kirby Smart, the coach of Georgia, claimed he was unaware of the case until the day before it was submitted.
Say what you want, Smart remarked, he told me the day before they decided to file the lawsuit. I informed him that his lawyer and his family would handle that. I have nothing to do with it. Georgia has nothing to do with it.
Smart went on to say that his connection with Napier was unaffected by the case and that they “talk all the time.” Both were Alabama coaches under Nick Saban.