Bulls add JUCO forward Jaylen Wharton
Former Durant HS (Fla.) standout Jaylen Wharton will be heading to USF after a stint at Walters State College JUCO. The school announced Wharton's signing on Saturday. Wharton did a prep year at Massanutten Military Academy in Virginia before enrolling at the JUCO in Tennessee.
USF assistant coach Ben Fletcher reached out to Wharton once things settled down with the portal and that push to bring Wharton back to the Bay Area led to an offer and a commitment.
"Coach Fletcher reached out when he saw I still wasn’t committed yet," Wharton explained. "The staff showed me a lot of love and I grew up in Plant City back and forth. I went to high school 20 to 30 minutes from there, so I always knew about and wanted to play for USF."
Wharton explained the long saga that led him to USF via an unusual path.
"It feels great honestly because I was one of two players out of Hillsborough County to sign D1 for the 2021 class. that year. The other being my teammate. I ended up leaving after three months because I didn’t like how time-consuming the military part was, due to it being more important than sports at the academy. That decision always haunted me because I felt like I was letting a lot of people down. So to be back on the D1 stage but also having a chance to play for and in front of my city is an unbelievable feeling," he said.
Wharton played two seasons at Walters State College starting 30 of 58 games played with a 5.8 points per game average in his sophomore season. He shot 57 percent from the floor last season for the Senators.
Given his unique background, Wharton explained what fans can expect from the Bulls' latest commitment.
"I would describe my game as a versatile athletic forward that can contribute in a lot of different ways. Whether it be defensively switching one through five, rebounding, and helping protect the rim or offensively being able to stretch the floor and cause mismatches with my size and speed," he said.
Wharton is the fourth commitment for the 2024 class via the high school ranks and the Bulls added three portal pieces Jamille Reynolds (Cincinnati), De'Ante Green (FSU), and Quincy Ademokoya (Kennesaw State) this offseason.
