PAHOKEE – There have been many memorable moments for Tamarick Best.
First things first, the Pahokee 2020 alum made sure to secure his future at FIU. He will be heading there to start his college journey tomorrow (June 15).
“First of all I want to give a huge thanks to God for giving me this opportunity to finally have my dreams come true,” the defensive end said on his Facebook page. “Thank y’all for supporting me all the way through and believing in me when I didn’t. Pahokee has taught me so much while I was down here and I’m taking that knowledge with me to college…Only thing is I’ll never forget where I came from; I have dreams to change my whole city around and it’s going to happen before I leave this earth. Bye Pahokee.”
Best (No. 1-ranked DE; No. 14 overall player; 2020) was the first player in his class to commit to FIU. He has been solid with the Panthers since January 2019, the month he received his first scholarship offer.
Best went on to sign his letter of intent to FIU in December 2019. His special signing ceremony was held on Feb. 5.
“In January after my junior year, I took an unofficial visit to FIU,” Best said on National Signing Day (Feb. 5). “When I took a tour of the campus, I instantly fell in love with it. My whole family loved the school. I’m glad I made the decision to commit to FIU. I’m glad I get to play under [head coach] Butch Davis and their whole coaching staff.”
Best also made sure to have a senior season to remember with the Blue Devils. Led by head coach D.J. Boldin, the menacing defender went on to have a strong finish, as he helped Pahokee (6-6 final record) reach the Class 1A semifinals.
The most impactful game for Best came in the 1A regional finals against Chiefland. In what turned out to be a battle right down to the final buzzer, he had 8 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, and 1 fumble recovery in a 32-27 home win.
Best went on to share MVP of Week 14 with hybrid defensive end/linebacker and Syracuse signee Latarie Kinsler, who had 3 sacks and made the game-ending tackle.
Other accomplishments for Best include the following:
•Muck Bowl win over Glades Central (21-17 road victory in Week 11)
•Three Muck Bowl wins throughout his high school football career
•Key figure in 4th and Forever: Muck City documentary series
•Appearance in Pahokee movie
These four highlights are something that only he, Kinsler, and lineman/East Tennessee State signee Octavious Bouie could put on their football resumes.
Best on how his high school football career went:
“Thank you Pahokee for the 4 years,” Best said on his Twitter account. “I loved every moment of it.”
PHOTO CREDITS: FIU Football and Ronaldo Garcia
