Jamie Byrd, who was once committed to Boise State and then spent two seasons at TCU, will be an Arizona Wildcat after a stint in junior college.
Byrd, rated as the No. 2 junior college safety by 247Sports, committed to UA on Friday morning. The decision was first reported by Scout.com.
Byrd, who attended Pasco High School in Dade City, Fla., is spending this fall playing at Iowa Western Community College, the defending NJCAA national champion. He redshirted at TCU in 2011 and mostly played special teams last season, making one tackle.
He left the Horned Frogs in January and will have two years of eligibility at Arizona, with no redshirt year available.
“New position coach came in last year,” Byrd told the Tampa Bay Times, “and me and him didn’t see eye to eye, and the defensive scheme did not fit me well.”
Byrd is rated as a three-star recruit by 247Sports and Rivals.com. He is a two-star prospect on Scout.com.
Byrd is the second junior college defender to commit to Arizona this week. The other is Scottsdale Community College’s Antonio Smothers, the No. 2 JC linebacker in the country according to 247Sports.
Byrd is the ninth player to commit to Arizona in the past nine days.
He is expected to be able to enroll at Arizona for the spring semester. Smothers, JC defensive end Jerod Cody and JC offensive lineman Kaige Lawrence also are on pace to do.
The Wildcats have been loading up on safeties from Florida this offseason. They added a pair of scholarship freshmen who are eligible for the 2013 season — Jarvis McCall, who originally signed with South Florida but sat out last season, and Tellas Jones, who redshirted last season at Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College.
Here is an interesting Tampa Bay Times story on Byrd from 2011, when he signed with TCU.
And here is a look at the 21 players committed to Arizona, with ratings from the three major recruiting services:
| Player | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | School | 247 | Rivals | Scout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Devon Brewer | S | 6-0 | 175 | Central East, Fresno, Calif. | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Jamie Byrd | S | 5-11 | 190 | Iowa Western CC, Council Bluffs, Iowa | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Rodney Carr | DB | 6-0 | 185 | Salesian High, Los Angeles | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Darrell Cloy | TE | 6-3 | 220 | La Habra (Calif.) High | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Jerod Cody | DE | 6-3 | 265 | Glendale (Ariz.) Community College | 3 | NR | 2 |
| Brandon Dawkins | QB | 6-3 | 205 | Oaks Christian, Thousand Oaks, Calif. | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Cameron Denson | WR | 6-1 | 170 | Salpointe Catholic, Tucson | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Tony Ellison | WR | 5-11 | 170 | Granite Bay (Calif.) High | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Patrick Glover | CB | 6-1 | 181 | Scottsdale C.C. | NR | NR | 2 |
| Jonathan Haden | RB | 5-8 | 189 | Friendship Collegiate Academy, Washington D.C. | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Naijiel Hale | CB | 5-11 | 170 | St. John Bosco High, Bellflower, Calif. | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| J.R. Hunt | S | 6-3 | 190 | Chandler High | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Kaige Lawrence | OL | 6-4 | 290 | Chaffey C.C., Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Kwesi Mashack | CB | 5-10 | 190 | Murrieta High, Vista, Calif. | 3 | NR | 3 |
| Jordan Morgan | WR | 6-2 | 200 | Southridge High, Beaverton, Ore. | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Josh Pollack | P/K | 5-11 | 165 | Highland Park (Ill.) High | NR | 2 | 3 |
| Antonio Smothers | LB | 6-2 | 230 | Scottsdale C.C. | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| Jace Whittaker | DB | 5-9 | 150 | Oceanside (Calif.) High | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Sharif Williams | DT | 6-2 | 300 | Central East, Fresno, Calif. | 3 | NR | 3 |
| Nick Wilson | RB | 6-0 | 191 | Central East, Fresno, Calif. | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Trevor Wood | TE | 6-5 | 235 | Chaparral High, Scottsdale | 3 | 3 | 3 |