CARROLLTON, Ga. — Chief Borders surprised many last November when he committed to Florida. The athlete out of Carrollton was communicating with numerous schools, taking visits almost weekly, then up and out of nowhere, announced he was a Gator.

Things had looked to be rolling smooth since then for the most part, but then Stanford offered, and the Cardinal program in Palo Alto may be some competition for the Gators.

"Stanford and Florida are like neck-in-neck to be honest," said Borders. "I have been loving Stanford since I was like four or five years old, so to get that offer, it was a big deal.

"It is Stanford. They are right there with Florida, or just a little behind them.

"The academics Stanford offers, what they can do for you after football makes them really stand out. They think of the 40 year plan so it is a school I have to consider. My parents preach academics, so I am going to consider Stanford because once football is over, their education could set me up.

"Since they offered, I have been talking with coach Anderson, coach Eubanks and coach Shaw. I am hoping to visit out there."

Borders said outside of Stanford, official offers from Florida, Florida State, LSU, Michigan State, Tennessee and others have arrived.

The interest in Stanford is evident, but he still has much love for Florida.

"Florida is my baby. That is the school I committed to, I love the fans, the coaches are cool and all I can say is Go Gators."

Since committing almost nine months ago, Borders has spent time at the Swamp, he has been on the phone with the Gator staff, and bonds have been created.

"I am close to all of the coaches at Florida," said Borders. "I have that natural relationship with coach Dan Mullen because I have known him since he was at Mississippi State. He is a great guy, he is real and I love coach Christian Robinson and coach Todd Grantham too. The whole staff is great and I love them all.

"I am closest to C Rob — he is my guy. He is a great coach, we talk a lot and he is the coach I know I can talk to at any time. C Rob, Mullen, Grantham — they are all great people."

It is more than just football too. Borders is an honor-student, academics are first for him and that has played a role in him being committed to the Gators.

"Florida is ranked No. 7 in public universities academically, then they play stellar football, so they have it all for me. If you go to Florida, you get the best of both, and that is why I chose them."

Communication is still ongoing with other schools outside Florida and Stanford. He said Tennessee has come on strong recently and he mentioned Michigan State a couple of times as a school still in pursuit.

Borders is going to keep his ears open.

"The pandemic has halted everything for all of us," said Borders. "I feel great about Florida, but I really hope to take more visits. The main thing now is communication. That is all we can do.

"It is about that relationship and how coaches believe and communicate with me. If that is there, then I am going to roll with them and keep that communication going."