Florida State football, recruiting news: Is James Blackman a future first round draft pick?

Football:

James Blackman is young, skinny, and already making NFL throws with plenty of anticipation; could he hear his name called on Thursday night in the future?

James Blackman, Florida State: Blackman, a sophomore, is a gangly pocket passer with loads of upside. He clearly needs to grow into his thin frame, but he has time to do so. He’s already throwing with decent anticipation, which helps to minimize his windup. He has flashed an ability to challenge and defeat safeties with NFL-caliber throws down the field.

Speaking of quarterbacks this might be FSU’s strongest QB room since 2012.

If these ten players have great off-seasons FSU will be in playoff contention.

Recruiting:

FSU’s recruiting grade for the 2019 cycle so far according to ESPN? A+. (Insider)

Grading the class: A+Florida State is quickly addressing key needs in the 2019 cycle. Winning out over ACC, SEC and Big Ten powers for Tar Heel State ESPN 300 quarterback Sam Howell was huge. The Seminoles are always loaded in the secondary, and the 2019 class will bring more elite talent to the fold in ESPN 300s Akeem Dent, Travis Jay and Renardo Green. Safety turned outside linebacker Jaleel McRae is one of two one-time Florida Gator verbals now on board with Florida State, along with 6-foot-5 outside receiver Maurice Goolsby. Continuing to bring in big-bodied athletes on the defensive front is also key, and Mike Morris, Quashon Fuller and Tru Thompson have set the tables for a tremendous defensive line class.

FSU coaches were at Grayson High School this past weekend to mend fences. (VIP)

Something went wrong at Grayson. FSU eventually lost three of their four commitments, only Tru Thompsonremains. Between FSU’s down season last year and a lack of communication at the end of the Jimbo Fisher Era, things between FSU and Grayson have been on ice. When Willie Taggart arrived at FSU the new coaching staff reached out, but it was too little too late to save the relationship.

Today, David Kelly is working to fix that. A source has informed Noles247 that Kelly, who has deep ties to the area and high school, is sitting down with the coaching staff to smooth things over and rebuild what was once looking to be a new pipeline for the ‘Noles. FSU is making Georgia a priority this cycle and it’s a must that they fix what went wrong at Grayson. Today is the first step in that direction.

Walt Bell visited 2020 QB Max Johnson. He’s Brad Johnson’s son.

Other Sports:

After getting the wins record; FSU dropped the second game of the series and will face Clemson in a rubber match today.

FSU Beach Volleyball fell to UCLA yesterday in the National Championship; odd that they loss a double-elimination tournament by only losing one match:

FSU Softball did what FSU Softball does to ACC opponents; another sweep to end the season:

Alumni:

This is why they call Florida State #DBU: