FSU Football: Understanding the 2023 recruiting cycle

The final hypothesis is that this staff operates in cycles of focus that match the talent pool and strengths of both the staff and high school prospects. Let’s look back to when the most obvious deficiency on the roster was on the offensive line.

Looking at the staff’s recruiting history since they arrived in Tallahassee, it seemed as though they heavily focused on their weaknesses and got five offensive linemen, including a transfer as a part of their transition class in 2020. The following recruiting class only got two high school linemen (Bryson Estes and Robert Orr), and transfer Dillan Gibbons. This past recruiting class in 2022, they again went hard at recruiting the offensive line and have five (maybe six) out of high school and three transfers with the possibility of adding another.

FSU football doesn’t have as much emphasis on o-line this year as they are concentrating on higher-level targets.

Further evidence of the coaches’ cyclical recruiting nature is the circumstances we currently see at the wide receiver position. In 2020, FSU took four at the wide receiver position, all from high school.

2021 saw the staff sign three from high school and 1 in the portal. This past cycle they took zero from the high school ranks and four from the portal to add diversity and veteran quality to the team.

While those numbers consistently have four total adding the program at the wide receiver position, it is important to take into account the attrition, lack of production, and enrollment issues that the position has faced. That means that only five total high school recruits have been added to, and are still with, the program since Norvell took over.

So taking the season off in the high school ranks, the infusion of talent from the portal, and the level of talent at wide receiver in the 2023 class makes this year paramount in high school recruiting.

FSU already has two committed this year who set a talented floor at the position so they can pursue highly rated targets.
As I said in the intro, the environmental and personal factors of 2021 made that cycle move relatively fast. The staff also put a lot of stock into last year because of that.
I set out three guesses for why we as fans see this lull in recruiting, but I think the current answer is a combination of all three.