FSU football: 4-star DB target Cai Bates sets July 26 commit date

FSU football coaches have had a strong recruiting month in July and look to close the month out with a bang as they await five-star cornerback Charles Lester III to announce his decision on July 28th.

The Noles locked down their first cornerback in the 2024 recruiting class when four-star Ricky Knight committed on July 1st.

The Noles have more uncommitted cornerback targets remaining, like four-star Cai Bates.

It looks like he could come off the board in a few days as he announced he will make his commitment decision on July 26th:

Cai Bates ranks as the No. 107 player and the No. 11 cornerback nationally. He ranks as the No. 14 player in the Sunshine State. Bates lists at 6’1.5″ and 180 pounds, hailing from Edgewater HS in Orlando, Florida.

FSU offered at the end of February 2023 and got him on campus for an unofficial visit in March. He took one of four official visits to FSU on June 11th, ironically the same time another cornerback target, Jameer Grimsley visited, who recently committed to Alabama. It was a weird weekend, with the official visits beginning on a Sunday.

Official visits this summer typically start on a Friday. Nevertheless, the other schools receiving official visits were Alabama (June 2), Tennessee (June 16), and LSU (June 23). However, Bates lists seven schools. There are no crystal ball predictions, but I believe it’ll come down to either Alabama, LSU or Tennessee.

Almost all of the targets FSU is in the mix for visited more than once this spring before taking their official visit. I also don’t see FSU getting him back on campus before his announcement.

However, if FSU gets Charles Lester two days later, that’ll make up for any defensive back target going elsewhere. I didn’t want you to get your hopes up for Bates if you saw this on social media or elsewhere.