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St. Pete Admiral Farragut Wide Receiver Zion Roland Verbally Commits to USF Football

In the midst of an incoming hurricane, USF picked up their highest rated Class of '18 verbal commitment over the weekend.

By Nick Simon
NCAA Football: Stony Brook at South Florida Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports

First things first, we hope everyone is safe and secure in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma. Please continue to take safety precautions over the next few days as the entire state cleans up what the storm left behind.

In the meantime, you probably missed USF football picking up a verbal commitment from one of their most prized 2018 targets — St. Pete Admiral Farragut wide receiver Zion Roland.

WR Zion Roland

6'0", 184 pounds

Admiral Farragut Academy, St. Petersburg, FL

Recruiting Ratings: Listed as a 4-star by ESPN, 3-star by 247 and Rivals. 0.8616 Composite score by 247.

Other Notable Offers: Louisville, Mississippi State, Maryland, Indiana, Cincinnati, UCF. He decommitted from Louisville back in May.

Having been sought after by the Charlie Strong and staff since they arrived to Tampa last December, Roland decided to hold off on announcing his verbal commitment until his 18th birthday this past Saturday. (Hopefully he and his family are fine after the hurricane.)

Scored as a 0.8616 by the 247 Composite scores, he becomes the highest rated recruit to join the USF Class of 2018, just ahead of Chiefland running back Brian Norris Jr.

The #BayMade-product chose USF over a handful of Power 5 schools, including Mississippi State, Maryland, and Strong's former school, Lousiville.

In an interview with 247's Corey Bender, the Admiral Farragut wideout cited the strong ties to the coaching staff, the proximity to home, and the chances to play right away as a true freshman as reasoning behind his verbal commitment.

I'm looking forward to playing with masterminds like coach Charlie Strong and coach Shaun King," Roland said. "All I heard was good things about coach Strong from very close relatives of mine that played for him, such as Louis Murphy Jr."

Roland's verbal commitment pushes USF to top of the Group of Five recruiting pecking order for now. 247 has them at the top of both the American and the G5 at 46 while Rivals has them tied with Houston at 33.

And even though this WILL change, look at who USF is directly ahead of...

"WHY CAN'T THE TIDE RECRUIT LIKE THOSE BULLS PAAAAAWWWWWLLLLL??!! SABAN'S LOST HIS EDGE!"

P.S. Don't tweet at recruits.