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Seminoles Close With Solid Class

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By STEVE ELLIS The Tallahassee Democrat

The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 5, 2009

TALLAHASSEE - Florida State's football program did what it has done so many times.

In changing the minds of offensive lineman Aubrey Phillips and quarterback Will Secord, then snatching cornerback Greg Reid, one of the nation's top prospects, away from Georgia and Alabama, FSU finished another recruiting season with a bang.

The Seminoles added four players in the final 48 hours to their large list of previous commitments, putting together a class that has the talent to continue pushing the FSU program in the right direction.

This time, though, it wasn't the finish but the beginning that helped make the class special.

"The strong start was the backbone of this class," FSU recruiting coordinator James Coley said.

FSU signed 21 players, including 17 who had committed to FSU before the 2008 season began. FSU lost just one early commitment - defensive end Ed Stinson, who signed with Alabama and had eliminated the Seminoles long before Wednesday. The ones who stuck with FSU provided a detailed blueprint for the final weeks leading up to National Signing Day.

"That allowed us to start strong and finish strong," FSU director of football operations Bob LaCavita said.

Those early commitments also proved to be important recruiters, although local prospects were unable to sway West Gadsden defensive lineman Gary Brown, who signed with Florida. He was the rare athlete FSU had a real chance to get but did not.

"Some of them played in all-star games together," defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews said. "They met each other on different trips, and sometimes they get a little bond going there. ... That can't hurt."

Andrews and head coach-in-waiting Jimbo Fisher, who missed the signing day news conference because of a family commitment, had their fingerprints all over FSU's big finish and that early evaluation. So did Bobby Bowden. His stature, and what he still represents, influenced the decision-making process for Reid's mother and Secord's parents.

But LaCavita shared numbers that also showed just what FSU's improved recruiting process is about.

FSU evaluated 300 prospects before the end of March and received 1,329 unsolicited tapes of prospects - that's in addition to what they requested for targeted recruits. FSU sent out 73,800 pieces of mail to prospects, averaging about 145 per prospect, and 40,200 e-mails. How well that evaluation process worked didn't only show in the talent FSU signed, but in the fact that of the 26 prospects who visited FSU, 21 signed.

The Seminoles stayed largely in their back yard - plucking eight prospects out of the Big Bend and South Georgia areas, including Reid's teammate Gerald Demps, Leon linebacker C.J. Mizell and Madison County's Chris Thompson. But FSU went to Texas for needs in kicker Dustin Hopkins and quarterback Secord.

"We start off with needs. ... I think we did a good job there," Bowden said, citing areas such as both lines and the secondary where attrition and rebuilding made signing players critical. "I'm very pleased with it."

The solid effort from start to finish also landed FSU among the top 10 recruiting classes nationally, with Rivals.com ranking FSU sixth and ESPN listing the Seminoles at No. 10.

FSU Signees

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