The long and winding road of Deondre Francois' college football career has led him to Hampton, Virginia. The former starting quarterback at Florida State has landed at Hampton, the team announced Friday. He was seen suited up and practicing with the Pirates.
Francois, a former top 100 prospect, was dismissed by Florida State coach Willie Taggart after a woman posted an Instagram video alleging that Francois abused her. She later recanted that accusation and no charges were filed. It was rumored that Francois planned on joining coach Lane Kiffin at FAU this year, but that never materialized.
"I am very happy that Deondre Francois is joining our program," said coach Robert Prunty. "He is a cerebral football player with unbelievable athletic ability. More importantly, he is an outstanding young man who graduated Florida State in three-and-a-half years. We are ecstatic to have Deondre Francois in our program."
Francois spent two-plus seasons leading the Seminoles offense. As a redshirt freshman in 2016, Francois threw for 3,350 yards and 20 touchdowns behind an offensive line that struggled to give him time to throw the ball. He added 196 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. Francois suffered a season-ending injury in the season-opener vs. Alabama in 2017 but came back as the starter in 2018. He threw for 2,731 yards and 15 touchdowns but tossed 12 picks and only managed 16 rushing yards behind an offense live that struggled yet again.
"I want to personally thank our president, Dr. William R. Harvey, for the time he spent with Deondre while he was on campus during the recruiting process," Prunty said. "I also want to thank our director of athletics Mr. Eugene Marshall, Jr., for his assistance during Deondre's visit."
Francois was a four-star prospect and the No. 66 player overall in the Class of 2015. The graduate transfer will be eligible immediately for the Pirates, and he can have two years of eligibility remaining if he applies for and receives a sixth-year of eligibility stemming from his injury in the opener in 2017.