Florida State could sneakily be loading up its DB room with new Za'kari Johnson prediction

It’s been a rough recruiting cycle for Mike Norvell and Florida State. With Norvell on a scorching hot seat, the Seminoles have just 13 commits and a 2027 class ranked No. 59 in the country. However, even after striking out on four-star offensive lineman DaJohn Yarborough on Saturday, it seems Florida State is finally building a bit of momentum. 

Four-star safety Ta’Shawn Poole, who has long been predicted to the Seminoles, is set to commit on Friday, but that’s not the only good defensive back news this week. On July 1, Za’Kari Johnson, a 2028 four-star target for the Noles, reclassified to 2027 and scheduled a fall official visit to Tallahassee on September 5, ahead of FSU’s Week 1 matchup with SMU. 

In the wake of that news, Zach Blostein of Noles247 and Kolby Crawford of 247Sports both placed crystal ball predictions for FSU to land Johnson on Monday. Norvell and his staff offered the Fort Lauderdale safety in September 2025 and have not let up in their pursuit. Johnson has also recently transferred from Plantation High School to Miami Carol City for his final season. 

Florida State adds Za’Kari Johnson prediction to expected Ta’Shawn Poole commitment

No matter what, the plan has always been for Florida State’s 2027 class to be much thinner than the 2026 group that included 34 commits and ranked top-20 nationally. The program appears to be holding back its resources in case it has to pay Norvell’s $50 million buyout this year. 

With Norvell and general manager John Garrett forced to be deliberate with their spending in the ‘27 cycle, it's hard to imagine them building up a legitimate strength, but that looks to be the case at safety with the Noles trending to land both Poole and Johnson. 

Maybe the Johnson prediction points to concern that Poole will stun the program when he makes his announcement on Friday, opting for either Georgia or Tennessee. However, there hasn’t been any reporting to that effect, and since Poole’s official visit to Tallahassee this spring, everything has been trending toward an FSU commitment. 

Players who commit to FSU in this cycle have to understand the reality that Norvell may not be the program’s head coach by the time they get to campus. If FSU pulls the trigger on a move, many of the recruits may renege on their commitments, but if they hold firm, it’s because they were sold on a long-term plan by the newly hired front office that will likely survive a head coaching change. 

Let’s say that’s the case for Johnson and Poole: that they both commit and stay locked in with the program regardless of Norvell’s fate. Then the Seminoles will have built up an impressive group of safeties with Poole, the No. 6 safety and No. 64 overall player in the class, and Johnson, who ranks No. 349 overall since reclassifying. 

Johnson is technically listed as an athlete, as the 6-foot-1, 196-pounder has impressive wide receiver tape as well. But he’ll most likely play on the defensive side at the next level. 

With Poole and Johnson, FSU would have three safeties in the 2027 class, including three-star Jemari Foreman, and two of its six four-stars in the class would be at safety. It was never expected that FSU could build an actual position of strength in this cycle, but it seems to be on the cusp of doing just that.

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