Cormani McClain transfer: Report links former top Lakeland prospect to Florida Gators

Could Cormani McClain be headed to Florida?

The former five-star recruit from Lakeland, who entered the transfer portal after one rocky season at Colorado, reportedly visited the Gators last week and is expected to be back this week.

Pete Nakos of On3 Sports reported that McClain was in Gainesville on Friday and likely will be back sometime this week.

Where is Cormani McClain transferring?

McClain has yet to announce his next destination in college football.

As a high school prospect, Florida was one of McClain’s initial top three schools — along with Alabama and Miami — as the nation’s top ranked cornerback in the 2023 class. He initially committed to Miami as senior but shockingly did not sign during the early signing period and later flipped his decision to Colorado.

Despite high expectations that he could team with Travis Hunter to give Colorado an elite, young cornerback tandem, McClain played in just nine games and recorded 13 tackles last fall.

Why is Cormani McClain transferring?

McClain entered the portal on April 16, the first day players could submit their name. The next day, Colorado coach Deion Sanders said he hoped McClain would find a program that could develop him.

"I'm always in prayer for our young men and I want the best for them," Sanders said on DNVR Buffs Live. "I pray to God that he goes to a program that challenges him, as well as holds him accountable and develops him as a young man. Unfortunately, we weren't the program that could accomplish that. So, prayerfully, he understands that this is his second go-round and gets it. Go get it, man. He has a tremendous amount of talent, but he has to want it."

A few days later, McClain released a video in which he said he wasn’t interested to “play for clicks.”

"Some people just gotta take a step back from things sometimes, certain people, you know," McClain said. "I feel like I just don't want to play for clicks. I actually want to be involved with a great leading program that's going to develop players."