Former James Madison quarterback Alonza Barnett III is committing to UCF, the program announced on Sunday.
Barnett led the Dukes to the College Football Playoff this year after they won the Sun Belt Conference title. He threw for 2,806 yards and 23 touchdowns, while adding 589 more yards and 15 scores on the ground.
He’ll have one year of eligibility remaining, as a graduate transfer, and should bring some stability to a position of need for the Knights. In coach Scott Frost’s first year back at UCF, the Knights used five different quarterbacks en route to a 5-7 season. Tayven Jackson received the bulk of the snaps for Frost, and threw for 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions before entering the transfer portal.
Editor’s Picks
2 Related
Barnett played parts of four seasons for the Dukes, throwing for 5,433 yards and 49 touchdowns all told. Last season, with Barnett under center, James Madison went 12-2, and defeated Western Kentucky 27-17 in the Boca Raton Bowl. This season, the Dukes also went 12-2 and saw their season end in the CFP first round, via a 51-34 loss to Oregon.
In the loss to the Ducks, Barnett filled the box score, throwing for 273 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 45 yards on 12 carries, adding another touchdown.
“He can move with his legs, but I think what he doesn’t get enough credit for is the ability to connect on deep balls downfield. They are a team that has a great play-action game,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said of Barnett before the game. “They are able to hit shots on post routes and able to attack you down the field vertically.”
Frost, a former coach and quarterback at Nebraska, has put an emphasis on his quarterback room as he eyes the second season of his second term in Orlando. In December, the Knights received a commitment from four-star high school prospect Rocco Marriott from Platte County High School in Missouri.