The uphill climb of the the UCF Knights new QB

Long before he became a coveted quarterback in the transfer portal, Alonza Barnett III’s journey was filled with a multitude of obstacles that tested his resolve.

But ever since playing high school football at Grimsley High School in Greensboro, North Carolina, head coach Darryl Brown described the young athlete in one word: winner.

From having a rough start during his first year playing college football to a near career-ending injury, Barnett’s character and determination have molded him into the player we know today.

Athleticism is no stranger in the Barnett family as his younger sister, Makenna Barnett, runs track and field at the University of Southern California, and his father, Alonza ‘Al’ Barnett II, played quarterback and defensive back for North Carolina A&T Aggies in the 1990s.

Al said his son experienced college football on the sidelines as a ball boy for the Aggies’ football program during his middle school years.

“He was around older kids and the environment, the players, and the coaching staff at A&T at that time,” Al said in an interview with Andscape. “It was a phenomenal time of success and work, and he learned a whole lot.”

Not only was Barnett competitive, but Brown spoke on his abilities as a team player and a motivator who inspired those around him.

“[Barnett] was the guy who was always laying it on the line for his teammates and battling for them. He made the guys around him better and was the leader of the practice, always pushing them to be their best,” Brown said. “When you have guys like that, your teammates are willing to play for them.”

Schools in and out of the state of North Carolina recognized Barnett’s talents, and he received scholarship offers from almost a dozen schools, including North Carolina A&T, Old Dominion, and Army. However, the young signal caller committed to James Madison University (JMU) in June 2021 and joined the team after graduating from high school early.

Sons of UCF spoke to the radio voice of the JMU Dukes Dave Riggert, who witnessed the highs and lows of Barnett’s collegiate journey.

According to Riggert, a member of then JMU head coach Curt Cignetti’s coaching staff said the young quarterback reminded him of NFL quarterback Russell Wilson.

Riggert said Barnett redshirted his first year and was given the opportunity to compete for the starting quarterback position during JMU’s 2022 Fall Camp, along with then-redshirt senior quarterback Jordan McCloud. But the experienced quarterback did not shake him, and Barnett earned the starting spot.

However, the first game of the 2023 regular season against Bucknell University at home was not an ideal start. Barnett threw one interception and went 3 for 11 with a completion percentage of 27.3 in the first half.

“The first half—he’ll be the first one to admit it—he was terrible,” Riggert said. “He was not good the first half of his first career start.”

McCloud then took over early in the second half and led the Dukes to a win (38-3) and kept the starting position for the remainder of the season.

“That was very hard for [Barnett] to take. He’s very competitive,” Riggert said. “It made him grow and become the player he is now, but he had to sit behind Jordan McCloud, who went on to win the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year, and watch him have a ton of success.”

Just when it seemed all hope was lost for Barnett’s future, there was a coaching change. Curt Cignetti went westward to Indiana University, and JMU brought in Bob Chesney from the College of the Holy Cross in December 2023.

Although similar to his redshirt freshman year, another challenge stood before Barnett.

JMU also brought in then-redshirt senior quarterback Dylan Morris to compete for the starting job, but after the 2024 Fall Camp, Barnett gave a performance that earned him QB1 once again.

“I don’t know that [Barnett] would have got an opportunity to play again just because of the Bucknell game. If Cignetti stayed, I think he probably transfers somewhere else,” Riggert said.

However, similar to his first year, Barnett struggled during the first half of the 2024 regular season opener on the road against the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, starting 0 for 6, according to Riggert.

But despite a subpar beginning, Barnett recovered in the second half and led the Dukes to a win, throwing for 10 of 18 with over 200 yards, and another 100 yards in rushing.

A few weeks later, the young quarterback put his name on the map with an eye-popping performance against UNC in a 70-50 win. Barnett passed for almost 400 yards and ran for over 100 yards, setting records, according to Riggert.

“He was phenomenal in that game, and he took off after that. [Barnett] had a tremendous year, never looked back [because] it was nobody else’s job but his. So, he started to grow into that,” Riggert said.

Just when Barnett finally gained momentum in his collegiate career, the unimaginable happened. On the final play of the 2024 regular season against Marshall at home, Barnett suffered an ACL tear in his right knee.

While most thought the knee injury is where his journey would end, Riggert said Barnett trained tirelessly throughout the offseason.

“[Barnett’s] in the training room the entire offseason. He missed all of spring and a lot of the summer, but he worked [hard] to get into a position to be almost cleared by the time fall camp happened. And he was the best I’ve ever seen,” Riggert said.

Once more, Barnett was tested during the 2025 fall camp, this time fending off the then-redshirt junior quarterback Matthew Sluka and then-sophomore quarterback Camden Coleman. However, because of Barnett’s injury, JMU was cautious.

“Early on, they were trying to run both quarterbacks. Sluka played the first couple of games, and it wasn’t working,” Riggert said.

But once Barnett stepped back out on the field against Liberty, he began to soar. He finished the game with over 200 passing yards and a rushing touchdown, which Riggert said reignited the confidence that propelled him for the rest of the 2025 regular season.

“[Barnett] had a five-game stretch where he was averaging about 283 passing yards per game and over 100 rushing yards per game. He was phenomenal,” Riggert said. “He finally got into a rhythm and was healthy coming off the knee despite winning the job.”

Barnett’s recovery and success led to being named the 2025 Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year after leading the Dukes to an undefeated regular season.

Even with all the accomplishments, Riggert said the young quarterback is out to prove himself one last time with the UCF Knights.

“[Barnett] is a tremendous football player, but an even better human being. UCF nation will love him and he’s going to work [hard] because it’s his final year,” Riggert said.

“There have been a lot of trials and tribulations for Alonza throughout his career at JMU, including this past year,” Riggert continued. “They weren’t sure he was going to play after the injury he had, but he’s overcome a lot.”