FSU football: Coaches emphasizing Florida/Georgia in 2024 recruiting

One of the knocks on FSU football head coach Mike Norvell and his staff was the lack of ties to Florida and Georgia when hired over three years ago.

There have only been three staff changes since then, with the latest being the hire of Patrick Surtain Sr. as defensive backs coach. Early on, the staff had to rely on existing relationships beyond the rich recruiting areas of Florida and Georgia.

The pandemic didn’t help the staff cultivate those relationships any quicker, and the product on the field didn’t entice them to pick up the phone when FSU coaches called about a recruit. However, the staff continued to grind each season as the relationships developed and the product on the field improved.

We now find ourselves with FSU back in the thick of things for the top players in those states. The staff has placed great emphasis on those areas based on the number of offers. FSU has offered 226 players in the 2024 recruiting cycle, and 110 (49 percent) hail from those two states.

That’s a huge increase from the 41 percent (151 of 364) we saw in the 2023 recruiting class. The 2022 recruiting class was even fewer at 38.8 percent (134 of 345).

The proof is in the work, as all eight 2024 commits hail from Georgia or Florida. When FSU had its highest-rated classes, those two states make up the bulk of the players. The 2011 recruiting class, ranked No. 2, is a prime example, with 24 of 28 commits hailing from those two states. FSU had 12 of their 17 high school signees (70.5 percent) come from Georgia and Florida in the 2023 recruiting class.

The thought is the Noles will likely take a larger high school class in 2024, which means they could potentially take more players from those two states. It’s an area FSU needs to concentrate more on instead of spending so much time and resources in other states like Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

Yes, FSU landed a couple of game-changers like Jamies Winston and Cam Akers from those places. However, for every one of those, there’s a Luke Altmyer, Charles Cross, Keldric Faulk, Henry Ruggs, Trevion Williams, and the list could go on.

Players that were either committed or heavily considering FSU, but chose to stay in-state. Usually, only a select few elite players from those states leave because they usually enroll at the in-state powers like Alabama, LSU, Auburn, and Ole Miss.

Usually, there are comparable players in Florida or Georgia who FSU would have a better shot at signing. Its true FSU has signed a handful of elite players from those three states, but that’s like depending on winning the lottery to pay your monthly bills.

It’s good to see the FSU coaching staff emphasizing more on the areas where they’ve historically gotten most of their best players.