Cam Akers looks to begin legacy at Florida State

Florida State has seen some talented recruits over the years, including RB Dalvin Cook, QB Jameis Winston, and DB Derwin James, among others. However it hasn’t seen a commit come into the program ranked as high as Cam Akers since Mario Edwards in 2012.

According to the 247 Sports Composite rankings, Akers is the No. 2 overall prospect in the nation and No. 1 among running backs and prospects from the state of Mississippi. The five-star out of Clinton (MS) has been enrolled at FSU since January 9th, shortly after he committed on December 27th, 2016.

Over this past summer, Akers made an appearance at Florida State camp and made an unofficial visit to campus on July 28th before officially visiting on October 28th, when FSU played Clemson.

The 5’11 213-pound back selected Florida State over 21 other programs such as Alabama, Ole Miss, Clemson, Georgia, Ohio State, LSU and Oklahoma, to name a few. This past season at Clinton High School, Akers ran for 2,105 yards on 242 carries with an astounding 34 rushing touchdowns— as a quarterback. Through the air, he added another 3,128 yards and 31 touchdowns.

In four years at his high school, Akers accumulated 8,140 passing yards, 5,103 rushing yards, and 149 total touchdowns. He joins fellow five-star running back commits Khalan Laborn and four-star commit Zaquandre White as players expected on the 2017 football roster.

Here’s our scouting report on Akers, from Juan Montalvo.

There is no replacing a player of Cook's caliber— but Akers will help fill that void.

There will be no signing day drama for Akers, the highest rated enrollee for Florida State since Mario Edwards, Jr. Akers enrolled for the spring semester, forgoing prom for the opportunity to spend the spring learning Jimbo Fisher's offense.

But while there may not be off-field recruiting drama, Akers will bring on-field dramatics; he lives up to his billing. His senior highlights are some of the best prep running back highlights since his predecessor at FSU.

Change of direction at top speed

Akers projects to fit Florida State's traditionally zone-heavy system very well. He is a fluid, one-cut runner with an innate ability to change direction at speed. Akers also has very good stop-start ability, and is a “two step” runner— meaning he's near top speed in two steps. And he does this north of 200 pounds.

Different than Dalvin

Akers is a different player than Cook. Cook has more fluid hips, while Akers is decidedly stronger, with a greater willingness to run hard between the tackles than Cook had at the same age. Akers compares favorably to former Ohio State and current Dallas Cowboy RB Ezekiel Elliott. Both are strong, yet smooth runners— and Akers will complement his new teammates well.

Cam Akers will not be able to replace Dalvin Cook. But FSU fans will have a lot of fun watching Akers play and mature in Doak Campbell Stadium.