Florida State primarily recruits at the high school level after signing 17 potential prospects during the early signing period. There are still a couple of rough diamonds the Seminoles may be seeking but the majority of their focus will shift toward the NCAA transfer gate as the college football season approaches.
Read more: Florida State loses star running back to NCAA Transfer Portal
According to 247Sports, FSU ranks No. 16 in the overall recruiting class of 2023 in the nation. The Seminoles were able to power up during the early signing period by turning over four-star safety Conrad Hase of Penn State during touchdown commitments from three-star defensive back Edwin Joseph and three-star offensive lineman Chris Otto.
It wasn’t a picture perfect finish though as four-star defensive end Keldric Faulk flipped from Florida State to Auburn. During the 2023 recruiting cycle, the Seminoles ended up eliminating seven recruits and eventually signing with other programs.
We explore their landing points below.
– RB Cedric Baxter Jr. Five Stars, Texas
Committed to Florida: 7/29/2020
Moved out of Florida: 4/15/2021
Baxter Jr. was first commitment in the Seminoles’ class of 2023, and he ended up reneging on his pledge during his rise to the national draft. Florida State got back into the mix for a comeback as the season progressed but Trey Benson’s return to Tallahassee essentially ended the program’s chances. In addition, Baxter Jr. got a big NIL package from Texas. If things go wrong with the Longhorns, the relationship with Noles will be something to watch in the transfer portal.
Four-star Dee Keldrik Folk, Auburn
Committed to Florida: 7/5/2022
Moved out of Florida: 12/21/2022
The Seminoles made a huge step down the road over the summer when they managed to win the services of Folk over Auburn, Clemson, and Florida. However, Folk continued to visit the Tigers throughout his senior season, and that opened the door for a potential coup. It looked like Florida State would continue after Auburn made a coaching change but Folk surprised everyone with a late visit to the state program. He flipped and signed with the Tigers at the start of his early signing period.
– Four-star Gabriel Harris, Georgia
Committed to Florida: 2/18/2021
Out of obligation from Florida: 6/7/2021
When he joined Florida State nearly two years ago, Harris was thought to be part of a package deal along with fellow 2023 prospects – Denzel Moore (unsigned) and Stanavus Smith (USF). Instead, the mail was never fully delivered and the four-star prospect ended up stopping the commitment that same summer after just two days after entering the Seminoles campus. Harris has returned to Tallahassee twice this year but has not attended a game during the season, keeping a commitment he made to Georgia in April.
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– Four star OL Roderick Kearney, Florida
Committed to Florida: 6/26/2022
Discharged from Florida: 10/24/2022
This was a very quiet and uninteresting hire when Kearney pledged to the Seminoles over the summer on the Gators because of how realistic the coaching staff was with him. Less than two months later, for whatever reason, things started to turn the other way. Kearney made multiple trips to Gainesville before returning to Tallahassee in October for his state visit. A week later, he flipped to Florida and signed his December LOI.
Three star QB Chris Parson, Mississippi State
Committed to Florida: 7/22/2021
Out of obligation from Florida: 7/12/2022
The weirdest recruit of the entire course at Florida State, Parson committed to his ‘dream school’ in 2021 and appeared locked in for about a year. However, the walls came down as the Seminoles extended scholarships to Brock Glenn and Ricky Collins in May after Parson struggled in the Nashville Elite 11 Regional. He ended up making a drastic heel turn that culminated in Parson’s dismissal from FSU in July. Parson committed to Mississippi State in August, his alma mater, and has remained with the program through the unfortunate death of Mike Leach. Florida State finally got the man as the coaching staff turned on Ohio State’s Glenn in November.
– Three star DT Tavion Gadson, Kentucky
Committed to Florida: 8/11/2022
Moved out of Florida: 12/19/2022
The summer was a productive period for the Seminoles on the recruiting path, resulting in multiple pledges. One recruit who ended up jumping on board was three-star defensive lineman Tavion Gadson, who chose Florida State over Tennessee, Kentucky, and Georgia. A situation arose at the end of the fall that led to Noles offering him a gray jersey. Wanting a full scholarship now, Gadson chose to decommit and sign with Kentucky in December.
– Three star TE Randy Pittman, UCF
Committed to Florida: 4/16/2021
Out of obligation from Florida: 6/24/2022
At the time of his pledge, Bateman became the second member of Florida State’s class of 2023 along with longtime defensive end Lamont Green Jr. He built a strong bond with former quarterback commitment Chris Parson but Bateman continued to visit other schools over the past year. After an official visit to UCF in June, he resigned from the Seminoles and pledged to the Knights in October.
READ MORE: Hakeem Williams and Travis Hunter clash over early signing day comments
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