In the recruiting world, some prospects make a commitment choice but remain open to hearing what other schools have to say while others wait until National Signing Day to make their selection. Still others commit to a school and truly shut down all further talks with any other programs. Cedric Wood is a prominent example of the last type of recruit, showing his loyalty to Florida State by ceasing talks with all other schools despite some prominent scholarship offers.
Wood, a Tallahassee native out of nearby Amos P. Godby High School, is a 6'4, 285 pound defensive tackle. 247Sports, Rivals, and ESPN have him rated as a four-star recruit while Scout is a bit harsher, rating him at three stars. Per the 247Sports composite, Wood is rated as a four-star recruit, the No. 22 defensive tackle and 198th best overall player in the 2016 class.
In his high school, Wood played in 32 games with the Godby varsity squad, racking up 137 total tackles (93 solo), 22 tackles for loss, 10 sacks (with seven of those coming in his standout junior season), four forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
Wood committed to Florida State nearly two years ago in February of 2014 and since making the commitment, he has visited FSU either officially or unofficially on 16 occasions, in large part due to his close proximity to campus. Wood has shown undying loyalty to the Seminoles, taking no other visits despite also receiving offers from Alabama, Auburn, Florida, and South Carolina. Wood has been planning on early enrolling for nearly an entire year and arrived on campus a few weeks ago poised to take advantage of the spring practices that non-early-enrolling freshmen will not have.
Wood will have the cards stacked against him if he wants to compete for starting time early in his career. Florida State returns Derrick Nnadi, Keith Bryant, Demarcus Christmas, Arthur Williams, and Fredrick Jones at defensive tackle next season, all of whom played in nine or more games in 2015. Additionally, redshirt freshman Darvin Taylor II and junior-college transfer Walvenski Aime could compete for reps in offseason practice.
Bud Elliott's take: Wood is sort of the forgotten man in the 2016 class because he committed early and never wavered, not attending many camps or recruiting events. That would be a mistake. Wood shows very good balance and is able to control the run game with his strong hands. He also penetrates into the backfield quite well and he seems to find the ball once he's there. Wood could work on taking on double teams and will need more pass rush moves at the next level, but he's absolutely one of the best 15 or so defensive linemen. With more mass, he should get better at anchoring.
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