Tampa (FL) Tampa Catholic Wide Receiver Christian Green signs with Florida State

Christian Green finally ended speculation as he signed with the 'Noles over the likes of Florida, Miami, Southern Cal (Green was the first player in the state of Florida to be offered by the Trojans), Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio State, Tennessee, and Michigan.  He has one of the most impressive offer sheets in the nation. 

VITALS:

Hometown: Tampa, FL (Tampa Catholic High)
Height: 6'2'
Weight: 200 lbs.
40-yd dash: 4.46
Vertical: 36''
ESPN Rating: 82 (4*), #9 ATH (#53 overall)
Rivals.com Rating: 4*, 5.9, #7 ATH (#61 overall)
Scout.com Rating: 5*, #5 WR, #1 overall prospect in Florida
Grades:  Not a qualifying concern

Continue reading for more!  Video, Scouting Reports.

Recruitment:

Early in the process, Green was an expected commitment to FSU.  His uncle is former FSU star EG Green, and Green has been a lifelong fan of the 'Noles.  He loves Coach Dawsey and Coach Fisher.  FSU has been on him since his freshman year.  However, after the struggles of the 2009 season, Green seriously considered UF and UGA.  He took an unofficial to FSU for the Miami game and had a great time. I think that Coach Fisher probably sealed the deal with Green when he sat with Christian's parents at the 2B State Championship in December.

Evaluation:

Green has a great blend of explosiveness, quickness, agility, and speed.  He has the burst needed to reach the second level and just run away from defenders.  Can really make people miss.  Primarily a scrambling quarterback in high school, he is comfortable with the ball in his hands.  He'll develop into a major weapon at FSU.  However, I wouldn't expect Green to come in and start - as mentioned above, he plays QB in high school.  He does play some wide receiver though, and he has dominated some camps as a WR. Many high school quarterbacks have made the transition to wide receiver.  Nothing to worry about there.

Two Florida scouts had one word to say about his March performance in the Tampa 7 on 7: uncoverable.  He was the best WR and was named Most Outstanding Player at that event, which included Chris Dunkley, Lamarcus Joyner, Jeff Luc, Matt Elam, Da'Rick Rogers, De'Joshua Johnson, and a host of other top prospects.  During the U.S. Army All American Game practices, Green was consistently one of the best receivers there.

From someone who watched AA practice:

To answer your question before I do the recaps Christian Green was awesome today, I dunno what the talk about Sticks being in that top group with Prater and Ambles is about, Green made twice as many plays on bad balls. Green actually has a little Golden Tate in him, he's jerky and looks like he's fighting his routes but gets it done when the balls in the air. Sticks is a nice player but soft in comparison.

Video: (This is from his sophomore year)

I think this Junior one is better:

Christian Green QB #5 Tampa Catholic High School (via benderk1967)    

More video!  Highlights of several of Green's games during his senior season!

Green (video below) highlights @ 0:38, 1:32, 3:00 (outstanding)

Tampa Catholic vs Lake Highland Prep (via HCUS3)

Green highlights @ 0:34, 1:56, 3:32

Tampa Catholic vs Trinity Catholic (via HCUS3)

Green @ 2:55 (this is outstanding - watch him escape from the pocket and later run through the angle)

Tampa Catholic vs South Florida Prep (via HCUS3)

 Green at 1:12, 2:04, 3:44

 

Green plays QB for his high school, only because he can make more of an impact for his team at that position.  It's quite common for a high school team to stick its best athlete at quarterback.  He has stated that he wants to play wide receiver in college, feeling that he has the most potential there.  Christian did play receiver his freshman year at Catholic, catching ten touchdown passes. 

The great thing about Green is that he can play many receiving positions.  His phenomenal athletic ability jumps out at you.

Comparison:  Arrelious Benn.  Green is a little raw and will need some time on campus to get the nuances of the receiving position figured out, but he will be scary once he does.  Both are around 6'2'' and 200 pounds coming out.  Green has the frame to get that big once he gets into the weight room.  Both have special YAC ability, with tremendous acceleration, speed, and COD. 

Video of Benn:

Arrelious Benn Highlights Mix (via heisBENN)

Arrelious Benn Highlights (via dashottcalla)

WR Class:

Kenny Shaw
De'Joshua Johnson
Jared Haggins
Christian Green
Greg Dent

One more thought:

One "kink" I hope FSU uses with Green is the "wildcat" or "Seminole" or whatever you want to call it.  Take advantage of his athleticism, and have him show off his arm every once in a while.  I believe it would be nice to have a QB that can throw from that formation.  And, for his freshman year, I'd expect FSU to find creative ways to get the ball in Green's hands, whether it be reverses, screens, anything like that.  He needs to learn the position.

Be excited, Seminole fans.  Green is one of the best offensive players FSU has brought in the last couple of years.

The TomahawkNation.com recruiting map has been updated to reflect the commitment.

Make sure to check the TomahawkNation.com Recruiting Board to stay current with all the 'Nole's current targets!