Exclusive: Bartram Trail 3-star quarterback Riley Trujillo announces college commitment

Editor's note: Bartram Trail junior quarterback Riley Trujillo has written the following first-person story to announce where he plans to play college football.

The 6-foot-4, 210-pound dual-threat quarterback earned a nomination for Volusia-Flagler-St. Johns All-Area Offensive Player of the Year during the 2022 season, throwing for 1,910 yards, rushing for 710 yards and accounting for 20 total touchdowns as the Bears went 12-1 and reached the Region 1-4S final.

Trujillo has collected 26 Division I Football Bowl Subdivision scholarship offers, including Arkansas, Coastal Carolina, Duke, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Maryland, Pittsburgh, South Florida, Syracuse, UCF and Virginia Tech.

I still remember the first speech I gave inside a huddle, and it's one of the reasons I knew, deep down, that I wanted to be a quarterback.

I was 10 years old, and my Pop Warner team was set to play an opponent that had not let up a single touchdown all season. I don't remember exactly what I said, but I'll never forget the way the other kids looked at me, loving both the role and the feeling of my teammates relying on me to make plays.

We scored twice that day.

I've had some great mentors in my life who have helped me get to this stage. My parents are loving and supporting, and have done everything for me. Darrell Sutherland has always preached about becoming the best man I could be, on and off the field. Cole Northrup, who I started working with in the eighth grade, saw something in me when not a lot of coaches did. I appreciate him for that, and I'm also grateful for my trainers at Tork Sports Performance, Tom and AJ.

Rod McKee, quarterbacks coach at Bartram Trail, has helped me through everything. Going into my sophomore year, I competed for the QB job with two seniors and a junior. It's not easy to start a sophomore; him seeing my abilities was huge. And Chad Parker has been instrumental in handling our recruitment, building relationships and finding the best spot for each and every one of us the last few years.

There are definitely a lot more people I would like to thank, but that would make for an incredibly long list.

This process has been all about relationship building, talking to coaches over the phone so that you're not a stranger to them when you get on that campus. I used to think recruiting was simply about getting your name out there, but it's more about the people around you, giving your teammates the chance to get noticed.

And you see which coaches really care about you as a person, and which care more about the football aspect.

With all that being said, I know where home is. I am committing to the University of Central Florida.

I've visited twice, for junior day and on the first weekend of March. I fell in love with the school and the coaching staff. The atmosphere around UCF is different, and I could really feel that energy when I walked in for the first time.

Offensive coordinator Darin Hinshaw is a genuine dude who knows what he's talking about. I've thrown in front of him, and he's critiqued several videos of mine; I think he can help me master the position, and to have success in college.

When I returned in March, talking to Gus Malzahn and the rest of the coaches, I knew this is where I wanted to go. UCF is in the Big 12 now, and this is the place to be.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: UCF Knights football: Bartram Trail quarterback Riley Trujillo announces commitment