Jon Sumrall is already proving to be a problem with 4-star FSU target's commitment date set

As if Mario Cristobal wasn’t a big enough in-state pest for Florida State, Jon Sumrall has begun to show some impressive recruiting chops in his first offseason as a Power 4 head coach. Since arriving in Gainesville, the former Tulane head coach has assembled the No. 5 recruiting class in the country with 19 commits, seven of whom are in-state recruits. And now it looks like he has another four-star on the way. 

Four-star linebacker Ellis McGaskin has set his commitment date for Saturday, June 6, according to Rivals’ Hayes Fawcett. Florida State is technically in McGaskin’s final three, but the race came down to Florida against Notre Dame, and it appears that Sumrall’s Gators have prevailed. 

Rivals experts have logged seven predictions for McGaskin to commit to Florida on Saturday, including Steve Wiltfong, who was the latest to do so on Wednesday morning. McGaskin took his official visit to Gainesville last week, and while he has trips lined up to Georgia on June 5, Florida State on June 12, and LSU on June 19, the race seems to have been won. 

Jon Sumrall expected to best Mike Norvell for Ellis McGaskin

This isn’t just about McGaskin, the 346th-ranked player in the country by Rivals Industry and 30th-ranked linebacker. It’s about Sumrall cementing himself as a dominant recruiter in Florida alongside Cristobal. Sumrall’s predecessor, Billy Napier, had plenty of recruiting success himself, but it would be hard for Sumrall to do less with the talent he acquires than Napier did, so he’ll likely be long for the job in Gainesville. 

Of course, Sumrall and Cristobal are running roughshod over FSU this offseason. Mike Norvell is a lame-duck coach, and the FSU program seems to be keeping its powder dry to eventually pay his considerable buyout and move on to a coach with more motivation on the recruiting trail. Spending will increase with a coach who excites the FSU donor base, as it has at Florida, with Sumrall galvanizing the deep-pocketed boosters. The still question remains, though, about whether or not the Seminoles can elevate to the level of Florida and Miami. 

Norvell was never going to match them. He caught lightning in a bottle with an undervalued portal class in 2023 and rode it to an undefeated season in a weak ACC. Since then, however, he hasn’t built anything beyond one season, and though FSU has reconfigured the front office to improve his talent acquisition, the recruiting efforts haven’t picked up. The question is whether FSU can catch Sumrall and Cristobal once its new head coach is in place. 

It can be done. Complacency had seemingly set in at Virginia Tech as the Hokies sank into the basement of the conference. However, James Franklin demanded an increased financial commitment for him to come to Blacksburg, and now Virginia Tech has a top 20 class in his first offseason. 

After Mekhi Williams’ decommitment this weekend, FSU sits at No. 43 in the country, sandwiched between Stanford and Kansas. That’s unacceptable, and McGaskin’s announcement on Saturday will be just another reminder of how far Florida State has fallen behind. So, preparations need to be made now for the program to catch up under Norvell’s replacement.

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