Cardinal Mooney’s Teddy Foster chooses the Florida Gators

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - On Friday July 15, Cardinal Mooney Catholic High School Cougars football star Teddy Foster committed to signing with the University of Florida Gators to begin his college career starting in the Fall of 2024.

He chose to make his big decision on his birthday.

He’s one of the most coveted high school defensive backs in the nation. Foster received 28 Division I collegiate offers and narrowed his choices down to three schools (the University of Florida, the University of Miami, and the University of North Carolina.)

Cardinal Mooney’s head football coach Jared Clark knows tells ABC7 that he knows how it feels to be apart of a “Power 5″ school as student athlete. Clark is a Cougars alumnus (Class of 2000) and he went on to play his college football at the University of Notre Dame.

However, Clark also says the opportunity to play for schools with such high magnitude such as Florida and Notre Dame are not common many players throughout the history of the Cardinal Mooney football program.

“We have a handful of football players who have played Power 5 coming out of Cardinal Mooney,” Clark says. “I think Teddy probably ranks top 5 up there with the history of the school.”

Family ties may have also played a role in Foster choosing the Gators. His mother, Cecelia Davis, mentioned to ABC7 crews that Foster’s sister recently became a University of Florida alumna.

Foster says when he went to visit the campus in Gainesville it was welcoming atmosphere and he could sense those family like vibes.

“Those whole three days I felt like I had been there before many times,” Foster says. “The coaches were very supportive. [They were] trying to get to know me and the family. It was an amazing experience.”

Outside of his fantastic play on the gridiron, Clark says it is the person who Foster that makes him shine brighter than anything else.

“If you watch him people tend to gravitate towards Teddy,” Clark says. “Everybody on this campus, administration, teachers, other coaches. Everybody who comes in contact with Teddy says the same thing. He’s a great young man. He’s so respectful. He’s an incredible leader. His mother Cecelia has done an amazing with him. We’re lucky to have him here.”

Foster is gearing up to finish strong for his senior season which begins in August.

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