TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

FSU at Florida: Recruits At Stake

ADVERTISEMENT

By ANDY STAPLES, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 24, 2007

Updated: 11/24/2007 12:22 am

GAINESVILLE - Most of the University of Florida's most important recruiting targets for the class of 2006 arrived on campus Nov. 25, 2005, and ran into the biggest salesman they'd ever seen. Carl Johnson, a perpetually smiling, 6-foot-5, 350-pound mountain of a high school senior, had been committed to Florida since the previous summer, and he had a message for his fellow visitors.

"Give us a look," Johnson said. "This is going to be the newest college powerhouse."

Florida coaches weren't so certain on the eve of the Gators' game against Florida State. Florida had lost to South Carolina two weeks earlier to fall to 7-3, and the idea of spending Christmas in Shreveport, La., wasn't that far-fetched. The Gators needed to beat the Seminoles to clinch a berth in a New Year's Day bowl, but more importantly, they needed to impress all those official and unofficial visitors sitting in the bleachers just behind the south end zone.

Fourteen of the 26 players who joined the Gators in 2006 watched Florida's 34-7 demolition of FSU the following afternoon. Florida coach Urban Meyer called the game a "program changer," and some of the visitors (quarterback Tim Tebow, linebacker Brandon Spikes, tailback/kick returner Brandon James) played as Florida freshmen and helped the Gators to a national title last season.

When Florida faces FSU today at 5 p.m. at Florida Field, another star-studded group of recruits will watch from behind the south end zone. Chances are, most are being courted by both schools. And both coaching staffs know the winner will earn an edge when it comes to actually signing those players in February.

Meyer calls Nov. 26, 2005, "an unbelievable day for Florida football." More than 90,000 fans, still unsure of their first-year coach, piled into The Swamp on a warm, sunny afternoon looking for a reason to believe. The stadium shook as the Gators, who looked woefully unprepared for South Carolina two weeks earlier, jumped to a 14-0 second-quarter lead when Reggie Lewis returned a blocked field goal for a touchdown. The lead would reach 34-0, and the crowd would scream louder with each score.

"I had a headache after the game, the fans were so loud," said Folkston, Ga., receiver Justin Williams, who had committed to Florida a week earlier.

Three days before the game, Zephyrhills High safety Bryan Thomas committed. Before kickoff, Hillsborough High's Jarred Fayson followed suit.

Then, after the Gators thrashed the Noles, it seemed everyone wanted to jump on board. St. Augustine cornerback Jacques Rickerson, who likely will start in place of injured Joe Haden today, committed in the locker room. Plenty of others wanted to, but Meyer had to be careful lest he give away too many scholarships.

"I remember walking around with my hands in my pockets," Meyer said, "because people started trying to commit and shake our hand."

Tebow and Spikes said the outcome didn't convince them to commit, but it did reinforce their inkling that Florida might be a program on the rise. Tebow committed 17 days later. Spikes waited until January.

"The game was kind of that final edge," Tebow said. "Coach Meyer was going to do something special here."

FSU coach Bobby Bowden knows a win today against the heavily favored Gators would send a similar message to the players the Seminoles are recruiting. Bowden revamped his staff last offseason, and FSU coaches have recruited more aggressively with the hope that they can bring in the kind of talent that can make FSU a perennial top-10 program again. Still, like Tebow and Spikes, Bowden doesn't believe the outcome will convince most recruits to choose FSU or cross the Noles off their list.

"There are some boys who will make a decision on who won it, but it's not like all of them will. There is always probably one or two that it will sway," Bowden said. "Boys are different now these days; they choose different reasons for going to a college. ... It doesn't matter who wins."

It mattered that day in 2005. The atmosphere, the crowd, the absolute domination and one jolly, orange-and-blue giant helped convince the nucleus of a top-ranked recruiting class to choose Florida.

"I told them this was the place that everybody was going to be," Johnson said. "You may as well be with us instead of against us."

Florida State (7-4) at No. 12 Florida (8-3)

KICKOFF: 5 p.m., Gainesville

TV/RADIO: WTSP, Channel 10/WFLA, 970 AM; WHBO, 1470 AM

THE LINE: Florida by 14

KEEP AN EYE ON
FSU - Sophomore WR Preston Parker is expected to see significant time at RB for the second consecutive week with starter Antone Smith nursing a bruised shoulder. Parker, FSU's leading receiver, rushed for 133 yards against Maryland in his first career start at tailback.

Florida - WR Percy Harvin returned to practice this week after missing two games because of a severe migraine headache. The last time Harvin took the field, he gained 113 rushing yards and 110 receiving yards against Vanderbilt.

KEY STAT
FSU - Though The Swamp is considered one of the toughest places in the country for an opponent to play, the Noles are 5-5 in their past 10 trips to Gainesville. The Noles' last win at The Swamp was also their last win against the Gators, a 38-34 victory in 2003.

Florida - The Gators have won three consecutive meetings. Five Florida seniors (TE Tate Casey, S Kyle Jackson, S Tony Joiner, C Drew Miller and FB Eric Rutledge) have a chance to go undefeated against Florida State for their careers. Neither team has won more than three in a row in the series since the Gators beat the Seminoles from 1981-86.

INJURY UPDATE
FSU - FB Marcus Sims (foot), LB Toddrick Verdell (foot), WR Richard Goodman (fibula), out; RB Antone Smith (shoulder), RB Jamaal Edwards (shoulder), RB Russell Ball (ankle), questionable; CB Tony Carter (shoulder), probable.

Florida - CB Joe Haden (ankle), DT Lawrence Marsh (foot) and DT Terron Sanders (ankle) are questionable; OG Maurkice Pouncey (ankle) and DT Mike Pouncey (knee) are probable.

AT STAKE
FSU - FSU clinched a winning season by defeating Maryland, so the Noles are playing mostly for pride and momentum entering bowl season. With three consecutive losses to Florida, FSU could use a win to show recruits around the state that the program is on the rise and that it can compete with the Gators even in a rebuilding season.

Florida - After being knocked out of the SEC race last week, the Gators are playing strictly for bowl position and pride. With a win, Florida still may earn an at-large bid to a Bowl Championship Series game if Georgia loses either today at Georgia Tech or in the SEC title game next week. If Georgia beats Georgia Tech and Tennessee beats Kentucky today to win the SEC East, the Bulldogs would get the at-large BCS bid and Florida probably would be Capital One Bowl-bound.

KEY MATCHUPS
When FSU has the ball - With Florida CB Joe Haden hobbled by a sore ankle, QB Drew Weatherford could have an opportunity to stretch the field by throwing downfield more than usual. He has WRs Greg Carr and De'Cody Fagg to throw to even if Parker is playing mostly in the backfield. And expect Parker to get 20 to 25 touches regardless where he plays.

When Florida has the ball - Gators QB Tim Tebow can solidify his status as the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy even with an average performance - as long as Florida wins. Besides Harvin, look for the Gators to try to get the ball to TEs Cornelius Ingram and Aaron Hernandez, who showed last week against Florida Atlantic that they can be matchup nightmares. Also watch FSU LB Geno Hayes, who predicted this week that Tebow was "going down." FAU S Taheem Acevedo trash-talked Tebow last week, then got run over the first time the players met on the field.

PREDICTION
Florida State has improved on offense and Florida's defense is suspect, but the Seminoles may have trouble keeping pace with a Florida offense that averaged 50.5 points the last two weeks without Harvin. If Weatherford has time to throw, the Noles could make things interesting. But if Tebow is hot and Harvin isn't rusty, an FSU secondary led by Patrick Robinson (six INTs) could be in for a long day.

Score: Florida 41, FSU 30

Compiled by Andy Staples and Scott Carter

Reporter Scott Carter contributed to this report. Reporter Andy Staples can be reached at (352) 262-3719 or astaples@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT