FSU football: What happened with Desmond Ricks recruitment?
By Kelvin Hunt
![Sep 18, 2021; Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA; Florida State Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell looks on from the sidelines during the second half against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Truist Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports Sep 18, 2021; Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA; Florida State Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell looks on from the sidelines during the second half against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Truist Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/21e7c68a0613bbd3abb4baf85e79dba416d6c0913b2c74b4cb2790e90e84370c.jpg)
Calculated Decision
I never bought into the hype of Desmond Ricks to FSU earlier this year. It’s a 2024 kid, and FSU was fresh off of the Travis Hunter debacle. It was great to see the young man on campus and giving love to the Noles, but it wasn’t long before he was visiting other schools, and the narrative of FSU leading in his recruitment dissipated quickly.
Ricks was on campus in early April and visited Alabama the next weekend, and the recruitment went from FSU as the leader to Alabama, and FSU stand out for him.
Desmond Ricks hasn’t been back on campus since April. Did the staff reach out to him after that and try to get him back on campus? Who knows, but if that’s the case and they couldn’t get him back on campus, they likely decided that ship had sailed and moved on.
That would have been understandable because Ricks is a national recruit, and lots of resources would be needed to get a commitment from him. I mean, the staff experienced that with Travis Hunter a couple of months earlier.
If this is the case, the mistake was not continuing to communicate with Desmond Ricks. It costs nothing but time to call and/or text with the young man.
That falls on Mike Norvell. How does FSU have all of these new support staff, and they can’t find anyone to keep that line of communication open?
That would have prevented the public debacle they’re experiencing now.