The FSU offensive line is where I felt most confident that the Noles would add some quality pieces from the transfer portal, and FSU offensive line coach Herb Hand hasn’t let me down yet.
FSU added its third offensive line transfer portal addition on Wednesday morning when Troy’s Paul Bowling committed to the Noles.
UPDATE: BOOM! Troy offensive lineman transfer Paul Bowling has committed to Florida State.🍢 #GoNoles #fsufootball #paulbowling #fsutransferportal #noles pic.twitter.com/GlmvkZ6Ydc
— Norvell Central (@CentralNorvell) January 7, 2026
FSU seems to be taking a different approach to its offensive line haul compared to last year. The Noles took four players in the Winter Transfer Portal window a year ago. All four players only had one year of eligibility remaining, and all four became starters for FSU in 2025.
The line showed massive improvements over the previous few years, but all four players exhausted eligibility. It appears that FSU is bringing in players with experience and multiple years of eligibility remaining.
Why is that important? In theory, it should mean FSU won’t have to portal shop every offseason and can start integrating the high school players they sign each year. It’s almost as if they are signing a group of portal players, similar to those from the high school level, meaning they all start at the same time. However, the difference is that they are all physically ready to play and have college experience.
Bowling has played multiple positions, similar to other portal commits, which is valuable. Bowling should have three years of eligibility remaining. FSU will likely need a couple more offensive linemen from the portal, and I'd expect this trend of taking guys with experience and eligbility remaining to continue.