Knights get Lakeland offensive tackle

Miguel Maldonado never played football prior to last year.

Next year he’ll be lining up as a UCF football player. It’s an unfathomable path that even Maldonado himself finds difficult to understand.

“Yes it is, but it’s also amazing. I love this opportunity I’m getting,” Maldonado said.

That scenario used to be far from his mind. He was a basketball player for Lakeland. He certainly never figured he’d come to be a standout football player. But after a coach’s urging, he decided he would try to learn the game, and he learned quite well.

“The one reason why I didn’t try to play football was because I didn’t think I was, honestly, going to be as good as I am,” Maldonado said. “I didn’t think it would be as easy as it was for me to learn that fast. I never really wanted to step out there, but once I did and I went through that six months of training, and then getting on the football field for my first time, it was very exciting but very nerve-wracking at the same time.

“But as soon as the ball got rolling, it was pretty much easy. It took me a game, I’d say, but then everything came pretty naturally after that.”

Making the team was one thing, but Maldonado certainly never figured that, less than a year after he first stepped on a football field, he would be considering college football scholarship offers.

“I would have to say it has a lot to do with my coaching. I’ve had great coaches,” Maldonado said. “And I got to play against one of the best defensive ends there is. It’s helped me a lot going up against Gabe Dindy every day and my coach taught me the right way.”

Lakeland offensive line coach Caleb Pickrell was very instrumental. He persuaded Maldonado to give football a try, and finally the big guy was sold. Now colleges are sold on him.

Monday, Maldonado announced via his Twitter account that he was committed to UCF football. He picked the Knights over eight other scholarship offers from Football Bowl Subdivision programs Appalachian State, UConn, East Carolina, FIU, Iowa State, USF, Virginia Tech and West Virginia.

“It feels great. I was very excited and it was an amazing experience to go through,” Maldonado said of the recruiting process. “It’s cool and I’m lovin’ it right now.”