OTB: FSU Recruiting is on a tear with more commitments on the horizon

welcome to on the bench I your host for this episode Brendan sonone Zach am I blinking enough for your liking oh you actually kind of freaked me out at first I was blinking too much or not enough no like not enough your eyes were very wide all right that's Zach bloting I got chrisy here as well we are OTB and we are here to talk about FSU recruiting specifically so if you're not in FSU recruiting right now you're not going to want to listen to this podcast or watch it uh if you are you're definitely going to want to and I think more of you are interested than you're letting on so let's get into it guys it's been a great few days for Florida state did we do a podcast when Kevin wi had committed had we already or we talked about as if he was going to commit correct I think it was that before he had actually announced I'm pretty sure I think so as well yes because for the for the commit draft Chris picked Kevin to go yeah first overall a wink wink wink all right so that was the a context of that for Kevin that was last week uh that was on the 24th so yeah so it's about a week ago um Kevin win fourstar defensive tackle from Green county Georgia uh goes ahead picks the seminal he's 57th nationally overall and guys that kind of was the first Domino to follow of what's been a really high-end week for Florida State uh before we get any further into this and and start breaking down what what has happened on the recruiting Show for Florida State a shout out to our sponsors first chattan nuga whiskey absolutely killing it in the craft Distillery game Chattanooga whiskey does an amazing job with her entry level bourbon their rise to me one of the better rise I've ever had and their 111 proof cast strength offering of bourbon is exquisite and an amazing value so chattano whiskey you find them throughout the southeast in Florida they're all over the place at this point you get them at total L you can go to local stores like Market Square Liquor and Tallahassee broes and Jacksonville all over the place uh and then also the Turner group if you're looking to buy or sell a home in the State of Florida Colin Turner Amy Turner no one we would rather or or no one we would send you to sorry no one who you no one other oh guys I haven't I'm just going to throw a Becky in here to save your ass recruit and get back to it Becky don't nope nope don't do that um thanks Chris sorry Colin um the video so before we get back to the tur group I haven't had anything to eat today uh I'm preparing for a colonoscopy tomorrow long listeners of the show know that the the GI issues have been a long uh a long-standing problem since back like when bir was here still I not the two were related um but anyways sorry Colin the Turner group is where you want to go to buy or sell a home in the in the State of Florida Colin is super connected uh he works extremely hard they do a great job there Zach can tested that personally the Turner group can can really help you out and get you where you want to go uh in the state so the Turner group sorry Colin but I think he loves it when when the ram ambling happens so all right guys uh it's been a really good week for Florida State uh I don't know Zach where do you want to start I mean we we talked about Kevin win which felt like a huge deal at the time and it was but it's just been good news after good news what what's the big takeaway or where do we want to start with this yeah I mean I think what you wrote yesterday Brendan if you guys haven't checked it out on no 247 um about not only FSU catching momentum on the recruiting Trail but they're Landing a number of prospects at premium positions and I think that's something that the staff views as super important obviously you want to load you want to load up at every spot but I mean if you're talking about the all-in investment like you want to prioritize those premium positions and that and that's what fsu's really done recently on the trail um they're going to venture into to non- premium position additions here soon and we we'll get to that but um over the last week I mean starting with Kevin win Brendan talked about this in the article but defensive tackles are becoming more and more of a premium position in football and you know Kevin wi is is all the way an interior guy probably a one technique um for for Florida State and FSU is just in in love with Kevin wi they have been they were his first offer um you know they've done a great job throughout um they you know FSU hasn't always let didn't always lead for Kevin win um before his official visits they were the leader but that thing really flu uated between South Carolina and then most recently Georgia but it just felt like with Florida State getting the last OB they had the best shots to close and that and that's what they did they closed on the OB committed to the staff um on that the last day of that official visit and Comm told us that he had committed in that interview afterwards and um you know told the media hey like hold off until I announced luckily like the entire media did so you know kudos to everyone for doing that but but yeah just a massive addition um and then you move into to the other additions that they've made to their 2025 class this week and um CJ Wy is is that next one that popped up and like to be completely candid I was you know I was not thinking Florida State for CJ Wy beforehand I had written that I was leaning towards Georgia I mean if you look at the attendance of CJ wy's commitment ceremony it was like six Georgia reporters I don't think it's single FSU reporter was there reaction to the commitment was the the most telling part is it waiting for to Switcheroo in a moment yeah so um and he admitted that afterwards in the interview he's like I think people were waiting for a hat hat switch or something um but he goes no I'm with the nolles so no I mean that was a that was a surprise but um just digging more into that recruitment I mean we had kind of heard some positive buzz like what five minutes before the ceremon Brendan we I mean we had heard some on that Sunday evening and then it went away so it was like yeah we had heard so coming out of the OV I reported that it was a Georgia vers FSU battle and that LSU who had been perceived as the in his top two before the the FSU visit was was not in it um and and I felt confident reporting that I did not feel confident going all the way and being like hey I think FSU is landing CJ Wy but we did hear some confidence coming out of the weekend um and that's to be expected with most official visits but confidence you know with two days ahead of his you know scheduled commitment on that Sunday like that was noteworthy um but like you said Brendan it kind of tailed off for a little bit and then right before he announced on Tuesday we we had started hearing some positive buzz but but nothing you know for us to go go ahead and drop a pick but yeah it was uh it was wild it it shocked everyone there like you said Brendan shocked the you know the recruiting industry no one had a pick in for Florida State but they land a a you know a super talented receiver at a POS you know a position of Need for FSU um 6'4 close to 200 lb runs a sub 11 in the 100 meter dash like this is a guy that you know not only is he you know receiver becoming a you know real premium position I mean it has been but uh if you look at the NFL these guys are making tons of money um and you know Wy kind of fits the billing of of the the top end like the premium of the receiver positions that you can get because you know I think slots are a little bit less valued um but if you look at that true you know shout out to danne Draper but like a nine wide receiver um I think I think CJ Wy kind of fits that and you know he could he can move all over because of his speed but yeah man he's just a massive get for Florida State um that you know just kind of started you know from Kevin wi to that I kind of started the week off um and and you know added yet another quality addition um at a premium position Chris Chris for the folks at home what what is a definition of a premium position what do you view as some of the top spots that you have to secure you're in you're out to have a a high-end football program well you wrote about it and you did it from the NFL Viewpoint I I would add in the college game it's and this goes back to arguments that Zach and us have had on this it goes back to the positions that are tough to come by the second time around via the portal we know FSC is a great portal play but you know defensive tackles are super expensive we definitely saw this past cycle a guy like you know Simeon Barrow for example fits that narrative not allowed to say that he was expensive that's not allowed and FSU was in that competition whatever offensive tackle is another one of those spots where it's very tough to come by a guy quarterback's obviously always going to be one of those that's the engine that makes your team go FSU also in the past week you know added Brady 2026 quarterback smeagle [Music] smigle had to deal for Brenan um so yeah it's just those positions where guys are tough combine there are the guys that help you win games and they're also the guys that at the next level get paid a great deal on CJ Wy I think as a network we rank him into 200s I think as a composite he's like 130 something I'm of the opinion he's a top 100 Talent he's got some awkward body movements but in general everything else about him I absolutely love he's Ultra athletic very good pass catcher very good at working down the field good route Runner good work ethic good kid if you gotten to know him I just I I think he's a guy that's going to Trend up he's he's very fun to watch play the game of football it's a massive get for FSU we talked on the podcast last time we all got together that receiver was somewhat not a concern but one that we were having trouble diagnosing exactly how it's was going to turn out for Fu while Wy changes that narrative entirely and one snap of a moment so to me that's an ultra significant one of the past week yeah I just wanted to add something on Wy because I know a lot of people um especially like Georgia fans were bringing up how you know it seemed kind of awkward in the room after he had announced like his parents weren't like super enthusiastic but I had talked to Ben wol who does an amazing job covering Georgia for for 247 Sports um after the announcement and actually he was at the uh the future 50 event um at IMG Academy this week that I attended and and him and another Georgia reporter that I spoke to there were basically like that family shows no emotion ever so like yeah um and I'd heard that on on wy's official visit to Florida State like getting a smile out of him is is difficult so yeah I wouldn't put too much stock into that like yes Georgia is going to prioritize TJ Wy like he was a top Target for them at receiver but I think a a a huge reason why Florida State won out here was because of Staff stability um James Coley is Georgia's wide receiver coach we're very familiar with James Coley used to coach at Florida State obviously in the Jimbo years he has been at three jobs in the last six months and I think CJ Wy and his family very much like the idea that Ron dugins has been at Florida State for as long as he has for you know norval's entire tenure and obviously a little bit before that and that you know stability really I think is was the deciding factor you know talking to some some people afterwards so I wouldn't get too you know overworked over the reactions and stuff after the uh and his comments after after the commitment ceremony um like I said there was all Georgia reporters there so obviously they're going to ask about Georgia um and I think you know I feel pretty good about about Wy sticking with FSU and I think you know Georgia from Georgia's side they you know they just landed another another receiver um and I'm not sure that they feel like they're going to flip wiely at this point on CJ one thing to add is Charles's father who played at LSU was a excellent defensive end there then played in the NFL both Charles and his wife CJ's mother wanted him to really go through this process with an open mind approach that way they spoke Charles actually spoke to Anna Adams about that during the process about a month out from the decision that they you know understood the perception that Georgia was leading but they wanted to see DJ to take his visits gather his information make his own decision and it was his decision and yeah I I think that's what occurred in that recruitment so I think that's a good sign I I think very mature group of people in that room the Wy both CJ and his parents I'm kind of with Zach you know I'm never dismissive of Georgia with an instate kid but I don't I don't like have a you know instant concern that oh he committed just a flip later like we got to get over to PTSD of other recruits and what they've done to us it doesn't apply in all situations it is I think for the rest of the cycle like that is going to I see get over it Chris that is until you actually maintain uh these commitments throughout an entire cycle people aren't going to get over it so it is what it is though like yeah exactly you can't be dwell wor about it it's not gonna make a difference FSU needs to go win and show they can throw the ball around and I think CJ Wy will stick if FSU is not good and Georgia is really good and we all know there's financials that's involved in recruiting the stay in age then yeah it's going to be something worth keeping an eye on but you know what when teams suck they usually struggle to hold on to commitments it's sort of the thing when they're good they usually don't ask much and I know fsu's had some bad luck here in recent years with retaining a few guys and I get that but like I'm just over this whole like wishing for Doom and Gloom like I I think the fan base needs to maybe you know sit in a happy chair for a minute realize they got a pretty good football team and recruiting seems be ticking up after all the complaints of earlier June uh two two words of wisdom one it's a lot easier to hold on to them then is to flip them right even if you've been burned before just statistically like you have a commitment you're probably going to maintain most of those commitments uh going into a signing day and then I can't remember the other one my brain is not doing well right now guys this is not proba was a poor idea to do this we need to get you another surprise commitment that happened My Oh I thought you said there was be another surprise yeah all right so all right so Kevin wi and CJ Wy were in the beginning of the week uh was a great start to the week premium positions top 200 prospects in the composite respectively um big wins for Florida State bring out SEC schools guys in the state of Georgia which is an emphasis for FSU so let's move to a surprise commitment Zach and it was a surprise in the sense that like we didn't know when it was going to happen uh we' heard I'll let you break down the recruitment but you had a little bit of an Insight that it could FSU was trending there uh but you got that heads up so quickly to where you weren't able to actually go ahead and prepare for anything so sometimes it be like that but let's talk about it myON Charles four-star defensive tackle from Port Charlotte Florida down in Southwest Florida we'll talk about his game and whatnot but Zack let's break down kind of the Recruitment and uh how he ended up becoming a seminal yeah well myON Charles I think back in either February or March I attended an Under Armour camp in Miami and my Charles was there he called FSU as leader there I entered a crystal ball I never moved off of it even though you know I'll get to some of the um up and down of that recruitment later on but but yeah I feel pretty confident reporting like now that that Myron Charles did indicate that he was a you know silently committed to Florida state in the spring um and and that kind of carried through until the beginning of the summer um I do think he genuinely gave other schools a shot um on his official visits in June most specifically I think Texas made the biggest move um and they made a strong nil push which I had reported on on our site I mean so much so that there is a Texas crystal ball entered for myON Charles when he committed to Florida state so they made a real push and it wasn't just like Texas feeling confident like Florida state was was definitely um aware of of you know the Longhorns in that recruitment but I think you know Myron admitted this to Chris and in his interview after he committed like he FSU was where he wanted to go um and it was described to me beforehand as like a a Fit versus like you know the nil Factor um with those two schools and and I really do think Florida State won out because of just the relationship that myON had with Odell hains um Odell did a great job fostering that through throughout this entire Recruitment and that kind of uh allowed Florida State to to win out despite maybe not having the highest offer on the table um but yeah like Brendan mentioned I was driving back from future 50 which is in Braden was with in Bradington at IMG Academy driving back to South Florida you know made a few phone calls got some positive buzz on myON Charles I didn't know that it was you know imminent in the in the matter of like he was going to commit within 30 minutes of of that phone call but I mean if I had gotten home I I probably would have put something up on no 247 expressing you know more confidence about FSU standing there nevertheless a massive pickup for FSU um just you know huge because you know we've noted on here countless times that Florida State needs to continue to improve it's recruiting at not only premium positions but especially along the defensive line and more specifically on the interior they just haven't landed a number of Blue Chip guys at that spot specifically in recent Cycles well now they have two committed in the span of a couple days and Kevin wi and Myron Charles and those were their top two guys on the board I mean that those essentially the only two besides an unrealistic guy like justice Terry who visited in June um but you land those top two and um they you know they can kind of go big game hunting for justice Terry now um with with those two secured so yeah just a massive win for Odo Hagen and the staff and uh like I said just seeing that uptick at that that position specifically is a super encouraging sign for Florida State yeah Terry's a Terry's a plus one kind of guy um yeah on Charles I always really thought FSU is where I want to be I took the official visits to go through them I didn't want to be wrong I never want to touch the portal none of that so I wanted to be sure of my decision I also very directly just asked him essentially did Texas finish second here and how close was it it actually was really close he said came down ultimately to the people so relationships as Zach brought up I think FSU deserves some credit for shutting this one down getting it done um myON said he committed on his official we all know that only means so much uh you know in this day and age even a public commitment only means so much but a private commitment means even less um with a public commitment there's at least kind of that built-in pressure of your word which still matters to some um but yeah FSU got this done I think it's an excellent job on their part it's the best defensive tackle do I can remember Odell Landing in some time uh you know that's a position where I think maybe FSU learned the lessons of the portal this P go around of you can't mess around and come up short you know as as good as it was two years ago to land of Braden Fisk and even before that aaban love it I don't know that maybe this pass go around not to not grd Kelly I like gr Kelly personally a lot but I think FSU understood that it's better to have them in house than have to go searching for them maybe and when you value two guys as you did Kevin Went myON Charles for the length and the substance you put into those recruitments you want the return on it they got the return on it and that's an excellent job on their part it got me thinking Chris what was the probably the best D tackle Duo commitment since what Demarcus Christmas and Derek nauy would have been 20 were they together yeah that's that's a really good one I mean Christmas battled injuries throughout it naught's a multi-time Super Bowl champion longtime NFL career guy um so yeah that that's really good Duo yeah it's been a while it's been about a decade um and definitely S A Jimbo years yeah and uh yeah Odell going and retweeting stuff on Twitter just just like being on Twitter to me amuses me because it's not his wheelhouse so it's not like doing this crazy Victory lap but like by his standards I've enjoyed it it's been fun to see myON Charles is a lot of fun very raw I feel like whereas Kevin wi you know exactly what he is a one technique he's super strong dominant I mean the level of competition where's that it's a little different um but Kevin win is a three Tech they move him all over the place what you said Kevin win again Kevin win again my Charles sorry again brain uh fasting not great um myON Charles has moved all over the place they put him at defensive end sometimes um interior like they'll put him at as a one Tech also and he just does all sorts of fun things athletically super long arms moves really well uh production isn't exactly what you want it to be uh and there's some some green elements to his game kind of clean up the body a little bit but like those two guys both wi and Charles like in a a projection basis like they're going to complement each other really well I think from a skill set perspective uh which I which I like a lot and so those are again two top 200 defensive tackles you have secured talk about premium positions like d tackle is huge that just that's becoming an increasingly important position in football and money's going there we saw that with the defensive tackles in the portal cycle certainly in the NFL as well if you can get to the quarterback from the heart of the The Trenches right having to go around the edge given how fast quarterback get rid of the ball now like that that's huge and so you get two top tier guys inside like that's a really big deal for Florida State uh and that establishes what you can do for the rest of the class now you're going to start building out a little bit uh so that's another really big victory for Florida State that was Friday night now moving to Saturday let's talk about not a a commitment per se but a a solidification I made up a word I think is that a word I don't don't think that's the word but let's roll with it all right solidification uh let's talk about the trell Jones recruitment this has been a a fairly Hot Topic for about a month now as Florida was making a legitimate push at Florida State's longtime quarterback commitment uh trell goes ahead and shuts it down uh on Saturday evening does it publicly uh Zack let's talk about kind of the ups and downs of that recruitment what was happening you know behind the scenes and the impact I guess of of getting your quarterback to go ahead and and say no to arrival and and yes to you again yeah I mean the uh there was a lot of ups and downs in this recruitment um and I think it all kind of starts back in the spring I mean Florida you know to go all the way back to when when trell committed to Florida State LA in April of 2023 Florida offered tral JS before FSU did um so they've been in on this recruitment for a long time but they really turned up the heat with him kind of working their quarterback bored um this year and got him on campus multiple times in the spring there was some worry there but FSU still felt pretty good about you know holding on to him the summer rolls around and and that's where things get a little bit more interesting um I think UF you know for the longest time pretty much the entire month of May was you know whether TRL was going to take an OV to UF and I was basically told like if he takes an ovd UF he's not going to end up in fsu's class so that was a huge topic of discussion he doesn't take an OV to UF but he does make a mid June unofficial visit to Florida which you know obviously caused a lot of uh talk around that recruitment again well you know the the big weekend um was Was His official visit weekend from June 21st to the 23rd and and that was hey let's get it questions answered for both sides let's see where this thing's at we're not going to exit this weekend without having a clear answer as to whether you know TRL is going to be in the class or not um and I think you know just just working the behind the scenes of this recruitment like I think trell genuinely wanted to be locked in and shut down with Florida state but I mean his dad was was you know being a good dad and trying to you know make sure that that he was making the right decision and and Florida was making an allout push for him so wanted to give them a shot so you know not not faulting them there um but FSU you know from their perspective they obviously want to have their quarterback one locked in and you know candidly like before the official visit weekend I thought there was a real chance that he was not going to end up in fsu's class um but coming out of the weekend sounded like both parties kind of you know talked it through and trell told me that he had informed quarterback coach Tony tokars that he was locked in and shut down and they would' be announcing that you know within the next week he on Saturday morning called Mike norell they talked a little bit um just about different prospects that fsu's after and you know trell's we'll get into that but trell's super in into uh to helping Florida State on the recruiting Trail he let Norvell know of the news that he'd be shutting it down that later that day around 6 pm he goes ahead you know he tweets it out saying hey like I'm I'm shut down we had a whole story that we dropped um and I talked to sh earlier that day just kind of breaking down the decision you know what went into it and you know the impact of um I asked him about the impact of of him kind of announcing that he was shutting it shutting it down and how he might you know how he thinks that that could help Florida State on the recruiting Trail um especially with guys that he knows so yeah man I mean he's he's super active uh like I said in in helping Florida state recruit um you know he knows all their top targets that they're after he obviously was joined by around you know 18 other official visitors that weekend that he took that trip to Florida State um so he's very familiar with a lot of those guys and their recruitments um so yeah I mean he he kind of teased a big month of July um for for Florida State on the recruiting Trail um and and yeah I mean I agree with him I think it it is going to be a big month and it is you know I viewed it as you know this recruitment I i' kind of been talking about it like you want to exit the month of June knowing your plan a quarterback for this class whether that's trell in the boat or without him right like you you need to you need to have that answered and and I thought it was a really good sign for Florida State um to get that that that question answered and and have it you know in a public fashion like that with him shutting it down glad to have it put to bed I think the young man was able to pick the place he wanted to go ultimately I really have no issue with how he went about it I think this day and age all the factors that are involved in recruiting for a young man who committed as early as he did at the position he plays he's more than welcome to truly figure it out I'd rather him figure it out than show up and decide to leave immediately um with the portal I just think that's sort of a thing I get it leads to a lot of hand ringing and uncomfortableness but like it is what it is type of thing in recruiting this day and age I I I am fully comfortable with guys who commit early kind of understanding maybe I shouldn't have and I think in tr's case he wanted to make sure he did for the right reasons and on the case of what Zach brought up about him being a premium recruiter for f ISC he is uh one thing that impressed me exiting uh on J une 23rd at the end of that Sunday of the official visits multiple guys unprompted brought up TRL talking to him about FSU and why he chose it and what he liked about it and Solomon Thomas kind of had a similar narrative where he he did that with a few guys too and you know I think that's good if a young man can tell another young man in a pier situation why they chose a place they went to without being prompted it's pretty good reinforcement that's the place they want to be at or they at least understand why they are choosing that place I think that's a good thing for Fu I think I always thought even as things were getting kind of weird behind the scenes that Florida state would hold on to him just in the vacuum of like if you're a quarterback and stability is going to matter a ton there like who are you going to to commit to um given what Florida state has did with Jordan Travis not to say that Florida hasn't done a good job with their quarterback development but just the potential instability of the coaching staff there I just I always thought that trell would end up at Florida State and a cool heads would Prevail that seem the most logical thing to me um I'm trying to think whether I want to instigate Zack and call him Chicken Little but we'll just keep moving along I just kind of pass it instead Fair um yeah there a lot of phone calls of like it's not based on any intel right yeah but of course it's based on Intel but also like yeah I was just freaking out for no reason a kid is gonna flip to Florida with the coach on the hot seat this year when he's been committed to Florida State for year there are other recruits that Florida State are Florida State's after that are you know trending to Florida or committed to Florida but go ahead that was it I'm gonna move on and talk about tight end Chase Lofton who committed to Florida State last evening by last evening I mean Saturday evening uh another good case of FSU winning a battle kind of like we talked about with CJ Wy they went into Georgia and beat out Georgia for a kid that Georgia really wanted well FSU went into Nebraska got the number two I believe Prospect in that state over Nebraska but truthfully I think they beat out Texas even more than they beat out the Huskers um it's a credit to Chris Thompson really good recruiter I know people think I'm an ass kisser when it comes to Chris Thompson I don't care I like the guy I think he's a hell of a recruiter um and he does a good job he's great at relationships he's known the Lofton family for a long time because he dealt with Braden who's at Kansas State Chase his older brother a little bit and they liked him and he got him here I think it was April 12 for a visit that laid the foundation got him back for an official visit he realized this is the place he want to be you know but they're good at what they do like I I don't know man I I am I think I'm being contener maybe to a degree but like at some point can we give the staff a little credit for what they're doing like recruiting wise not in June that's what July's for but like in general like they are kneeling a lot of top targets and yes they're going to miss some too and that stinks and there's probably G to be a position that pisses us off at the end of the day I'm gon to lean towards Edge just because it feels like the safest bet right now but like in general they're doing a good job if they can pull off what we think they might pull off in the next week with like linebacker then well there's non narrative going down a drain and dying a brutal death and at some point like they're pretty good at this like they get paid pretty good money and they do a pretty good job and the returns have been pretty good anyway they have stuff to sell now and that's people were mad last cycle and I understood it it was December did not feel good for a variety of reasons um and people were like well you know we just had the best season ever and why aren't we closing on stuff I remember asking Mike about this on Signing Day of like how quickly do the onfield results uh manifest dividends yeah and his answer I I wish I had pulled it up and thought of it before but it was it was thoughtful in the sense of like like yes it's helping now but it's going to help more like down the road too I think was the the the Baseline of that and it can take a while for that the transfer portal instant results or in you know results show up instantly I think High School recruiting it takes a little bit of time and so you're now seeing 23 wins over two years how you in the class that you have eight commitments right now and all eight of them are blue chip prospects uh until Chase Lofton committed think about this a blue chip Prospect lowered your average ranking you were you had the highest ranked average commit in the country going into the weekend fourar tight end lowered it like lofton's a good example too of like you you feel good about Hollis Davidson and you go and get a guy who the industry says is a better player and like you may still get Hollis that's to be determined it's going to be FSU or Auburn it truthfully wouldn't surprise me either Which Way But like coming out the official holl felt like he was in the bag and you still land Chase often I just you know I think they're doing a very good job personally in recruiting you know other than Edge and we'll see how offensive line plays out but they got a real shot of putting together really special offensive line class yeah it's pretty impressive as a whole like I I just struggled to like man I sat through last June and thought man some of these people are just idiots this June I'm like they can go be idiots if they want to I'm not going to give them the time of day because it's a waste of time but I would hope that maybe when August rolls around they have a pretty damn good class assembled that like maybe at some point people decide oh they're they're actually pretty good at this job they're doing and to be fair to the edge stuff real quick they do have the number one Edge player committed I understand there's some volatility with hson to an extent but like he did publicly shut it down like you should feel as good as you possibly can they still need to get a second in that group and they need somebody that we feel was quality Clayton would have been a a basement level guy not to bring that back up but he would have been your base of that class and you passed on it because you felt like you had a good shot at guys above it one of those off the board immediately as Z on Grady to Ohio State so now it's a Jared Smith situation or a Jaylen Wigan situation I can't sit here and honestly state that I feel confident they land either of those two guys so it just is what it is I'm not sweating it they've done a good job in the portal at the position but I think their goal as a staff is to have two highle High School edges in this class and I'm not sure that they're gonna attain that based on current results and the skepticism is warranted just based on prior history can I talk quickly about Chase Lofton sure sorry I got on my sub box I apologize no you're good um good points but but yeah with with Lofton um I just found it a really intriguing recruitment just because I mean he took so everyone was kind of watching Nebraska and you kind of mentioned that Chris like they got the last official visit predictions started going in across the industry for Nebraska that weekend but like I had heard coming out of the weekend that it was Texas A&M and FSU and those were kind of the two that were battling it out in the months prior but it was a real battle that last week like Florida State spent a lot of hours on on the you know phone with with Lofton and his Camp you know combating narratives like I heard a big narrative here was the SEC versus ACC stuff um and FSU did a good job of of kind of Lay's going to be in the and whatever they're gonna take did they just send them all to court filings and like yeah more we're not celebrating the ACC becoming 18 teams on July 1 yeah I think more so with with A&M it's like they have like one 10- win season and however long it's you know been like you know they had an 11- win season with Johnny menel C yeah and ALS so like it's like you're going to bang your chest about the SEC but like you haven't actually done anything in the conference um so you know if you I think the the point was like if you want to win like you're gonna have a better shot to win at Florida State um and and I think that messaging really hit home um and I want to give you know shout outs here like Mike norell played a big role in this recruitment like he was he loves Chase Lofton and and uh and you know in that last week like that was that was a big factor then um another shout out tight end assistant Preston Brady did an awesome job here like just you know obviously Chris Thompson kind of leads the efforts um with fsu's tight end recruiting but he has two uh assistants and DJ Daniels and and Preston Brady who do an excellent job at at relating to to recruits and um was told that he did a really good job with with uh with Chase Lofton Chase lofton's recruitment so no just a big big win for FSU on the trail um they got their guy at tight end and then um I kind of mentioned this on the board and and you kind of brought it up Chris like paace Davidson's going to be an interesting one like how this commitment impacts that I think FSU would be open to taking two commitments but I think they're kind of kind of make re-evaluate where things are at now um and and yeah I'll leave it at that like I I you know I'm not ready to predict Hollis Davidson to end up in Florida State's class um but like Chris said like I think after the OV weekend um that you know Hollis Davidson was at Florida State for like I felt pretty good about their chances but now I'm I'm gonna have to uh to do some more digging on on whether he'll end up at FSU or or he'll go back to um Auburn where he was formerly committed I think there was an idea that you would maybe take both uh but but Chase Lofton was the priority probably and now that you have that I think you evaluate what the rest of the board is starting to look like too some of the other commits you've gotten room becomes a thing too I really do like there's also a of first come first serve like yeah yeah you have an opportunity when you exit That official visit when you're meeting with Mike Norville to commit to him and hollis's case he he rushed into his prior decision him and his family want to take time so you're welcome to do that but like in that time things may transpire Chris has EV you ever I'm sure they have at some point the last time they've gotten a Nebraska commitment oh man don't I don't know off handar know that yeah that's so Chase lon's fun like we didn't really talk about his game he's 6 foot6 25 pounds so like that's the first thing he has to to bulk up right so there's yeah yeah he he also needs a good quarterback like on his film well the whole the whole Nebraska level of competition thing doesn't look particularly great um but but what is so the positives here is one the athleticism right like he is extremely athletic at 6 foot6 I think he's like verified stuff he's running the 46 range unverified like at a Nebraska camp last year was like in the 44 range uh you vertical jumps above 30 inches verified I think again like he's he's been at like 35 inches in the vertical at the Nebraska camp so there's a good smattering of like Baseline athleticism you watch the tape like the route running is really really crisp at his size very fluid natural athlete uh in the length like the wingspan project I think framewise like he'll be able to get to 240 eventually just might be somewhat of a of a slow burn there but like athletically there's a lot of of a lot of upside and a lot of potential of of what he can become as a receiving threat at tight end I think usage wise like people are asking know is this gonna be a Johnny Wilson type of guy no like this is a tight end I think they view him as as what Kyle Morlock was used at as his past year built similarly to to K Morlock I think you project him into that sort of frame the upside is that he he probably going to be more flu and and Nimble than than Kyle Morlock is I think that's the hope at least and that's what he projects as so um those are all the commitments that they've gotten this week and we're recording this on Sunday morning Sunday evening is going to take us into a commitment ceremony with fourstar cornerback Z Thomas we talked about the premium positions uh quarterback wide receiver offensive tackle defensive tackle defensive end and cornerback that's the only one they don't have as a corner right now Z Thomas who could play corner or safety is a guy that has crystal balls multiple in for Florida State right now but it is a Clemson FSU battle Zachary let's talk about Zade Thomas real quick what time is it at8 o'clock yeah it's kind of up it's it'll be around like 8 to 8:40 pm. sou South Florida commitment yeah it's gonna be it's gonna be a big event um I mean it's literally so he's a z Thomas is we've talked about here on here before he's a member of the simal tribe of Florida and they're holding the event at the simal heart Hard Rock Casino and Hotel um in Hollywood Florida and I'm told it's going to be a big big deal um so yeah I'm sure uh I think he's gonna go live on his on his Instagram I'll be there to to cover it in person um tonight so yeah I think you mentioned uh you know FSU doesn't have a a corner yet I think they're GNA start Z Thomas if they land him out at corner um and you know I don't I they're just so like they they move guys around so much in the secondary like I don't think it's a huge deal where you know where you have them listed to start but they like to start him at corner generally if there's some for what it's I think I think pater tan like prefers like that you you know that that guys can play Corner um but I think his highest upside is probably at safety um but he he is a really solid corner at the high school level like he plays that for American Heritage High School and I don't know if there's a high school in the country that's doing a better job of turning out defensive back Talent than than Heritage um in recent years so yeah I mean I've wrote about this countless times but it just feels like FSU is destined to land say Thomas I mean there's just so many connections there like I mentioned with the simal tribe um he also was coached in his freshman year of high school by current FSU defensive backs coach Patrick ceran Senor it's you know a match made in heaven and and I think I'd be super surprised if he didn't pick FSU tonight Clemson is a strong Factor like they you know they've been involved um for quite a bit and and they made a strong push on his OV there um but I but I do think FSU will win out um and yeah I mean he's one of the top cornerbacks defensive back talents in south or South Florida and the entire State of Florida this this cycle uh looking at what's ahead as well so Chris mentioned that there might be some narratives uh that that get busted in the next few days we'll see right um but there's a chance for that to exist uh on July 1 so that is on Monday uh Z zidas Rainey Sal from right Sal Zach yeah okay from from Washington fourar linebacker uh top 150 guy nationally is making a decision I think FSU Washington UCLA are kind of the the trio there that probably stand out the most and then the next day Tuesday tavan Wallace from South Georgia is making a decision he's another top 150 Prospect and uh you has a smattering like SEC interest I think Georgia Florida and then Florida State uh in the mix there how we feeling about those Zach and what are you going to do if they go two for two are we doing like a rapid like instant reaction podcast that you just have to Chris just gets to scream at you maybe would be the fair uh result of that I'm not sure what we do to celebrate it but but let's talk about the we'll get Zach a Randy cooking shirt if they get both of them yeah one of those meme shirts no I mean it would be Matt like those are obviously two of their their top linebacker targets um are they are they both signing uh in the next few days I didn't know I was asking you guys um but anyway no Ian it would be it would be big um to land both those guys um rainy s you know he he might be from the West Coast but like he's he's a guy that FSU loves um they worked him in person last summer I mean Chris was there like he's he's a a real dude um at that spot and I'll put it this way I've never seen Randy Shannon be as like into watching a kid work out as I was that day and Mike Norvell was right there with him yeah also I did I under sold Tavon Wallace he said he's a top 150 guy because Randy yeah yeah he's he's awesome so sorry um no but yeah with rainy s's recruitment um I've kind of talked about this a lot like the the mom factor and and her being okay with with him going across the country to to play college football and um I think they've kind of alleviated that like I don't view that as a concern for Florida State and because of that I feel pretty good about fsu's Chances with with Rainey s a day ahead of his you know scheduled commitment tomorrow um I don't know what time he's he's announcing at but it shows it as 3:00 on the network I don't know if that that's 100% correct okay yeah we'll three o' flashbacks West Coast commitments that Jaden Lars would be Marathon forget legendary a cord did we need a cord I think it was a cord um so Washington and UCLA are the other finalists for for Z Ry Sal and I think Washington's probably the uh the other school to watch but um it's kind of been up and down like in the past week or weeks since his official visit to Florida State just who's kind of in the lead spot but at last check it feels like FSU is in the best position to land him tomorrow um but we'll definitely update you if anything changes on that on the site I had somebody tell me in recent days this week about zrs that FSU has made it very all caps compelling that person who has a lot of West Coast ties still thought he would stay home but they weren't overly confident and at this point I don't think he had formally made a decision I think Zach's information is more current than my information which is earlier in the week yeah and think you moved to Tavon Wallis who is just I mean by every sense of the word is a is a freak at the linebacker position um you know ranked as a a top 36 player in the country the number three linebacker in the nation on up by 247 Sports 6'1 25 pounds like those measurables don't stand out a ton but he has super long arms and I think the most important thing for him is he runs a 1061 in the 100 meter dash as a linebacker um which is absurd his older brother just got drafted in the third round by the Carolina Panthers trevan Wallace who played at Kentucky shout out Kay thinkink and yeah man I mean I don't have a you know final word on on Tavon Wallace I know Florida State felt pretty good about their standing with him coming out of the OB that he took on the the 21st to 23rd weekend from my perspective just talking to Tavon like I just genuinely think he likes Florida State more than any other school and it's it's wild to say that considering like the other schools involved for him he grew up a fan of Florida Florida's a top three finalist for him and then he's from the state of Georgia and Georgia is prioritizing him like a top Target at linebacker so it it's this isn't like a a layup recruitment for FSU by any means but I just think Florida State's going to win out I've had a crystal ball logg for Tavon Wallace for I think since uh January yeah um so I felt like FSU has been in the lead here and he's kind of admitted that um you know not as much recently leading up to to his decision which makes sense like you want to have more Intrigue but but yeah I just I you know right now I'd probably predict FSU um but I don't feel good enough to like you know stand on the table and and you know be super confident in that just because I don't know if he's actually made a final final decision um but we should have more on that um here com coming up FSU offered him in March of 2023 they were like his fifth or sixth offer at that point he has visited here I believe five times since that offer um kind of indicative of it he's always consistently spoken very highly of FSU after each and every visit where do we think the term stand on a table comes from uh probably revolutionary America I would presume they probably used to do that to address a room yeah Fair seems like some like Parliament like people in I may be channeling Hamilton right now I don't know I think that's a good I think that's as good I just looked it up men once stood to show respect when a woman elderly person or dignitary entered the room or approached the dining table but on the table on the table I don't know I mean I feel like they stand at the table to show that I feel like on the table is to address people regardless Zach's not willing to stand on the table regardless of who walks in the room right now one other linebacker making a decision I believe in between the two we just chat about was Gavin Nicks uh FSU is a finalist we expected to go elsewhere probably Miami Bradington IMG Academy talented kid smart kid but yeah that that one's kind of Miami's been a pace car there for a good while we think that maintains and then I'm not sure what our schedule's going to permit with the holiday coming up with fourth July in the next few days here I do love the idea of Zach having to come on and just do a a linebacker of FS go two for two podcast with him just getting I'm I'm like I will happily do that like I would be the the first one to complement their efforts there like if they if they guys dunk tank but regardless we'll see how the schedule permits if we don't talk before then I at least want to acknowledge there might be another uh prospect that FSU would be trending for on the fourth of July and that's pton Joseph the fourstar offensive lineman from from Middle Georgia I think Warner Robins I'm usually a big uh opponent Fourth of July announcements opponent no opponent you don't want um but I'm cool with his because it's been set forever so like you know he's not pulling rabbit out of hat on me late now if he gives me a pre-write I'll really love him just remember that big pee but yeah FSU vers Memphis for pton Joseph I think we all think it's FSU ains has been recruiting him for almost four plus years now a long overdue when I just put in a crystal ball I probably should have a while ago but um put in so you're real Trend Setter thank you Zach was the first uh going back to our commit draft guys that we did last episode let's take a little like time just to reflect I'm not going to say it's because I'm the front runner right now that I wouldn't do that I wouldn't if I was losing I would be doing this right now this isn't me patting myself on the back type of deal even if I said Pat myself on the back Chris you currently have one which that's oh you've only had one person announced so far and that's Kevin win uh so you're one for One Tavon Wallace Josh Petty Tai and Gavin Knicks also on the board Nicks were not feeling great on so that'll be a guy eliminated for you but you know if you get you get two set at three and a half oh that's an under I think I lost by the way because I just saw that an Auburn riter on on three posted that prediction for Hollis Davidson to that brings us at the time of the draft it was a great pick Zack it was Chase often just went and stole his Thunder uh so Zach has pton Joseph which feeling good with right now so you'll you'll be on the board potentially by July 4th um better late than ever I guess Hollis Davidson next D McCutchen the wide receiver and then Jaylen Wiggins and Shamar no who committed to USC so not only are you not going to have guys that seem like they're like actively like committing to Florida State at this time but you're also just getting options eliminated or getting close to eliminated so not looking great for you Zach we'll give you Lamont Rogers as like a throwin yeah yeah you might have to just not as farfetched as it felt when did that draft I still don't think it's here sorry your truly has Byron Lewis uh which Zach you had shared that that might be a later commitment timeline correct yeah like I heard like maybe September no so we may have to wait to crowny the champion but real quick on Lewis should FSU make an effort like they did with myON Charles to get it done yeah I mean I there's a lot of context to these recruitments and like I think uh it might be a thing where they you know they wanted it for that date for like a special reason or something Florida State's not going to like push back on that they obviously want to get these guys to commit as soon as possible but they're also not going to lockett's doing it on someone's birthday Kik lockett's doing it on someone's birthday I think Josh Petty's August 12th is specific to something on that day yeah um no I mean they'd love to get Byron Lewis in the boat as soon as possible but if he wants to do it in September like they're gonna they'll probably just be cool with that um obviously the the other top running back Target um who decision timeline is probably going to be Suter than that I last check is Usman croma out of uh Lee County High School in Georgia like we I'll update on that if I hear more but um haven't heard any sort of you know Trend in that recruitment as of late well so we'll have to wait to Crown me the champion I think maybe until September Byron Lewis but Z Thomas feeling good with Myron Charles already in the boat CJ Wy already in the boat then Vernell Brown which with tremell Jones now like locked into State I think that that makes that a better value ad as the final pick so just saying I draft well but you're not going to go five for five we're not going to have an LSU moment here okay we'll see the the old people in recruiting will understand a five for five LSU reference I don't get it shout out shade Dixon they they had a closing where they thought they were going to go five for five and if I recall correctly they might have gone one for five it became a thing for the next summer cycles for them because fans really struggle to let things go in recruiting do they they do all right anything else before we get out of here we're going up to an hour uh my blood sugar is not great and I have to start the colon cleansing process in the next two hours so I um just a few guys that that could possibly make decisions here coming up um I think Tai Haywood is is one to to watch um I think it's an FSU Alabama battle I'd probably lean Alabama but FSU feels like it has a real shot there Corell Brown could be making a decision in the month of July I think that's the FSU versus UF battle with with the gator probably trending um Lamont Rogers is another one that um could be a soon decision and then um still checking in on a recruitment like leari and Clardy um want to get more info there but obviously we felt like FSU LED in the month of June after their early June OV with him see where things are at um Bryce fitgerald I think is a a fourar DB at um out of Miami Columbus I think that's a UF versus FSU battle and another one I could decide soon Dal McCutchen um the receiver out of Lovejoy Texas fourstar um he could be making a decision kind of in the the next week is what I've heard so um just a few few guys to watch there and um I dropped a a huge like Intel piece which is some rapid fire bullets um in the last day on no s47 with with the up-to-date Intel on a bunch of these guys so definitely go check that that out cool all right guys that was a fun episode it's fun when things are going well in recruiting and we have stuff to to go over and uh the analysis can kind of carry us and yeah it's nice The Message Board generally a little happier oh there's a few doom and gloomer out there still but Christy's gonna eradicate them I think they're welcome to have their opinion all right guys we'll talk to you later