Exactly a week after Florida confirmed his desire to transfer, Chris Dunkley apparently has a front-runner for his services.
Speaking to Greg Auman of the St. Petersburg Times, Dunkley’s high school coach said that, while several schools are interested in the wide receiver’s talents, it appears that USF is the leader heading to the clubhouse. Blaze Thompson, Dunkley’s coach at Pahokee (Fla.) High School in 2009, told the Tampa Tribune that there are five schools in the mix, but the former report makes it appear that Dunkley is doing a heavy lean toward the Bulls.
“I think USF is the top one on his list,” Thompson told the Times. “A lot of schools have expressed interest in him, but USF is the only one he has actually visited. They’re interested in him, and he had asked me to look into them as well.”
Dunkley redshirted in 2010, and was suspended for portions of spring practice earlier this year due to academic issues. Thompson told the Times that Dunkley should finish the spring semester at UF strong academically and that will not be an issue in his transfer. An acceptance into USF is not a guarantee, but Thompson again sounded confident on that front, telling the paper that “things are moving forward” with the Bulls.
Regardless of where he ultimately lands, Dunkley will be forced to sit out the 2011 season but will still have three seasons of eligibility remaining.
Dunkley was a four-star member of UF’s 2010 recruiting class and was rated as the No. 9 receiver in the country by Rivals.com.