I want to start off by making myself perfectly clear: I think what Mike Norvell and his staff have done so far on the recruiting trail has been TREMENDOUS.
They had to go through the normal adjustments new coaching staffs have to make, such as re-recruiting their current roster, scrambling to keep/add to a transitional recruiting class mere weeks before signing day, evaluating the roster and making changes necessary to improve a poor culture, forming/strengthening relationships with in-state high schools and so on.
On top of that, they’ve had to deal with unprecedented challenges such as COVID-19, a weak governing body (NCAA) that constantly muddles communication and continually pushed back in-person official visits, and an entirely uncertain recruiting landscape. It cannot be understated how this staff continually rises to each challenge.
Having said that, June will be among the most important months yet for this staff on the trail. The NCAA finally announced that regular recruiting calendars will be reinstated starting June 1.
What does this mean? Official campus visits are finally happening again. On an official visit, the school pays for transportation, lodging, and meals for prospects and their families (during the season, recruits on OVs are also allotted game tickets).
Recruits are hosted by current players and given the chance to see a program inside-out. And believe me, after a year and a half without official visits, things are about to get crazy in the recruiting world with visits, commits, and decommits, so take Samuel L’s advice:
The FSU coaching staff wasted no time and put together an impressive slate of 2022 official visitors throughout June. As I scanned the names, a pattern emerged to me. Many of the uncommitted prospects visiting in June can be considered FSU leans, or at the very least highly interested.
You don’t see too many uncommitted big-name recruits scheduled this summer. This tells me the staff is looking to secure commitments from guys they’re favored to land, or guys in the final evaluation stages, prior to the season starting. This ensures spots in the class for guys unlikely to be swayed, while increasing the number of peer recruiters to help with larger names. It’ll also tell us who FSU is not yet ready to accept and will need to have a strong senior season to earn a spot.
I would anticipate them bringing the bigger names like Marvin Jones Jr, Julian Armella, Kevin Coleman, etc in for visits during or after the season. You can bet whenever the bigger names take their FSU OVs, a full force of FSU commitments will be on campus to help the coaches recruit (whether on official visits themselves or not). Doing this guards against shakier summer commitments losing momentum and in-season flips, and the negative publicity that comes with it.
Let’s take a look at the official visits scheduled to take place in the month of June for Tribe ‘22 targets (and a couple transfer portal OL). We’ll try to keep this list updated as names are added or removed, as this is expected to be a VERY dynamic period across the nation.
June 1
Transfer Portal OL Cain Madden (chose Notre Dame)
June 3-6
OL Elijah Pritchett (FSU is battling Alabama and UGA)
Transfer Portal OL commit Dillan Gibbons
June 11
OL Aliou Bah (FSU commit)
LB Omar Graham, Jr. (FSU is among his favorites-commit watch)
OL Daughtry Richardson (STRONG lean to FSU- commit watch)
TE Anthony Landphere (JUCO TE from California)
RB Terrance Gibbs (strong UF lean)
June 21
RB Jaylon Glover (commit watch if given the green light- teammate of commit Sam McCall)
DB Daylen Everette (Clemson is thought to be the leader)
June 25
OL Qae’shon Sapp (commit watch- FSU is among his favorites)
OL Antavious “Tae” Woody (FSU is among his favorites)
OL Kanaya Charlton (commit watch if given the green light- FSU is the favorite)
OLB (yes, OLB) Jaron Willis (Georgia Tech commit)
DT Bishop Thomas (commit watch if given the green light)
DT Kaleb Artis (FSU is among his favorites)
DE Horace Lockett (a newer name)
OL Emery Jones (likely a longshot with LSU pushing hard)
OL Jaylen Early (teammates with Powers)
TE Jerrale Powers (teammates with Early)
As always, head on over to Tomahawk Nation’s Florida State football recruiting thread for more info and discussion!
June 2 Update
Terrence Gibbs has cancelled his OV to FSU on June 6. This isn’t bad news- Gibbs seems to be all-UF and FSU doesn’t need to waste time here, but rather focus on other prospects more likely to come to Tallahassee.
June 3 Update
LB E.J. Lightsey has rescheduled his official visit for the Notre Dame game in September.
JUCO TE Anthony Landphere will officially visit the weekend of June 11. Landphere was offered a couple months ago by the staff.
June 10 Update
RB Terrance Gibbs’ official visit to FSU is back on for the June 11 weekend. My thoughts still stand from the June 2 update...
Per 247, JUCO TE Anthony Landphere is technically eligible to become a member of a 2021 recruiting class but has chosen to go back to his JUCO for another season. It is unknown whether the coaches would accept his commitment at this time, but Landphere is an intriguing prospect with great size.
ATH JaCorey Thomas has cancelled his June 25 official visit and will likely reschedule for a weekend during the season. Georgia recently offered, making things more interesting, so moving back his official visit date is likely a strategic move by the staff (similar to EJ Lightsey).
DB Daylen Everette has scheduled an OV for June 21. Clemson is considered the leader for him but he does like FSU.