TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Coach Mike Norvell spent years slowly rebuilding at Florida State and then suddenly turned the Seminoles into a championship contender last season.
His long-term plan included adding talented transfers, winning games and getting the program in position to recruit many of the state’s top players. It appeared on track in 2023 as the Seminoles went unbeaten in the regular season and won the Atlantic Coast Conference title.
Their current recruiting class, however, is shaping up to be as much of a debacle as anything that's happened on the field in the past three months. Florida State (1-9), the biggest disappointment in college football this season, has lost nearly as many recruits as games in 2024.
Norvell's class is down to 11 after offensive lineman Daniel Pierre Louis flipped to Florida on Tuesday. Pierre Louis made the move after watching the Gators upset LSU on Saturday — nearly a week after Norvell fired three assistants, including offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Alex Atkins.
The Seminoles also recently lost four-star quarterback Tramell Jones to Florida. Defensive end Javion Hilson and receivers CJ Wiley and Daylan McCutcheon also bailed on the skidding Seminoles. Their decisions came after defensive coordinator Adam Fuller and receivers coach Ron Dugans were let go.
“It’s hard for kids, but they also understand all the things that are in store for them," Norvell said. "And the opportunity that’s here has not changed. It’s just about being able to share as much as I can with them, just the vision for what’s ahead. We all know the expectation.”
Prospects surely believed they were committing to an FSU program on the rise, one that was expected to be in the mix for the College Football Playoff. Instead, the ‘Noles are last in the Atlantic Coast Conference heading into Saturday’s home game against lower-division Charleston Southern (1-9).
And their recruiting class doesn’t currently include a quarterback or a receiver, positions where a difference-maker is needed.
Even where Norvell's class was built early, with commitments from four offensive linemen, there is doubt about how many others will stay put with Atkins gone.
Norvell has had at least 17 high school signees in each of his first five classes in Tallahassee. But getting anywhere near that number appears daunting for an early signing period that has moved to Dec. 4. The potential lack of quality and quantity in the class could impact the program not just in 2025 but years down the road.
While Norvell said he spent a good part of the bye week talking with candidates for his three staff openings, Florida State’s commitments and targets might not know who their coordinators will be when signing day arrives.
Norvell, meanwhile, likely will have to turn to the transfer portal again to find production and leadership. It's an area where Norvell found success consistently but also fell short in this past offseason.
Regardless of how the roster is built, Norvell said it’s not as easy as just going out and hiring assistants who are known as recruiters.
“You’ve got to have the relationship, but you’ve also got to have the development factor that ties into that, and then making sure that the evaluation piece of it is critical, too,” Norvell said. “I think that’s one of the things that we’ve got to make sure that the guys that we’re bringing are the right fit as coaches, players, everybody involved that really can embrace and help us advance in all those areas.”
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