FSU Football: Understanding the 2023 recruiting cycle

Fans of FSU Football are understandably exasperated with the current predicament in recruiting. Hopefully, this article prognosticates why fans are upset.

Comparing and contrasting the recruiting classes of yesteryear and this year is a fascinating exercise. Everything last year was so fast-paced, and the class was mostly complete by the time the football games began.

The lockdowns and legislation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic influenced recruits to go out in droves to look at their options. The FSU football coaching staff capitalized on this with timely events and unique recruiting experiences to get players and families through the doors to experience the new FSU.

Not only that, but it was the first time the staff could build bonds and strengthen their ties in the state. It was helpful that they had a loud, bold, boisterous No. 1 national recruit committed.

All these factors lead to an accelerated and tumultuous decision cycle for many high school prospects, specifically those interested in FSU football. That hype didn’t stop until a loss against Jacksonville State undid all of the goodwill from going into overtime with top-10 ranked Notre Dame.

Meanwhile, the staff spent lots of time on the 2023 recruiting class. FSU’s recruiting staff were coaching a couple of years at a time to build the board but were moving behind more established programs. They were in a lot of conversations based on hype, and while they were building relationships with 2023 recruits, they were crumbling on the field.

The program managed to turn it around and finish 5-3 in their final eight games, but the staff seemed to lose momentum with the elite targets.

Then came the second-place finishes and the national stories on signing day in December. What had been an opportunity to regain momentum and add massive talent to the 2022 class while re-igniting the fire for the 2023 class was missed.

The staff did some work in the transfer portal that will offset some of the recruiting missing, at least for this season. That brings us as fans and FSU today to the predicament recruiting is in now.

With the new shine on the coaching staff dwindling, the winter and spring recruiting periods ending, and the summer period beginning, we look at what I presume is this coaching and recruiting staff’s philosophy, and how everything could play out.

I have three hypotheses for this staff’s recruiting mentality that I think could be insightful for restless fans.