Production
Production! That's the biggest difference between this portal class and last year. Last year, it was former highly-ranked guys out of high school who had been at another school for a year or two but had little to no production.
We discovered that those high school rankings don't mean anything once a guy has been in college for a year.
All nine of the commits so far have proven production on some level. From the quarterback, offensive and defensive lines, tight eights, linebacker, and wide receiver.
When players bring production, it gives you a clearer picture of what's possible based on what they did at their previous place and how they fit into the offensive and defensive systems.
The good news is many of these guys have familiarity with the offensive and defensive schemes of the FSU coaches.
For example, we've seen what Randy Pittman can do in Gus Malzahn's offense over the past two years. We've seen what James Williams and Stefon Thompson can do in Tony White's defense.
That should translate to a shorter learning curve and could help younger players on the roster get up to speed quicker since it will be a new scheme for them. That increases the competition among everyone, which results in better play overall.