FSU football, buoyed by South Florida talent, poised for another impressive recruiting class

Just over two months after Florida State embarrassed Florida on the playing field, the Seminoles will chalk up another win over the Gators come National Signing Day on Wednesday.

The Seminoles currently hold the nation’s fifth-ranked signing class, according to 247’s composite rankings, while the Gators come in at No. 7. Florida State beat out Clemson for the Atlantic Coast Conference’s top class.

Coach Jimbo Fisher will welcome a class that features nine four-star players and nine three-stars. The sole five-star of the class is defensive back Levonta Taylor of Ocean Lakes (Virginia). Taylor committed to FSU on April 3, 2015, when he chose the Seminoles over a host of other offers, including one from his home-state school, the University of Virginia.

At the quarterback spot, Malik Henry of Long Beach Poly (California) committed to FSU over Notre Dame and UCLA. The four-star prospect is already on campus in Tallahassee, as he was one of several early enrollees for the Seminoles.

Rivals and ESPN rank Henry as the No. 2 dual-threat quarterback in the class.

Florida State also grabbed several commits from Miami’s home turf. Jamel Cook, a four-star athlete from Miami Central and U.S. Army All-American, committed in February 2015.

Outside linebacker Emmett Rice also made his FSU decision in February, but the three-star Norland player has since visited West Virginia and is on a visit to Louisville this weekend.

The sole running back of the class, Amir Rasul, committed to FSU at the end of July after he decommitted from Miami. The four-star Semper Fidelis All-American played his high school football at Coral Gables.

For now, Florida State seems prepared to restock on bodies across the offensive and defensive lines. At the quarterback and running back spots, the Seminoles were able to come away with a single high-quality player for each position.

But the recruiting work isn’t quite finished. Fisher visited four-star linebacker Dontavious Jackson on Tuesday in hopes of earning the Elsik (Texas) player’s commitment. Jackson, who is the fifth-ranked linebacker in the class, will choose between FSU, UF, Michigan, Texas and Alabama and make his announcement on National Signing Day.

Carlos Becker, a three-star athlete from Kissimmee Osceola, is projected to choose the Seminoles over Ohio State and N.C. State.

Meanwhile, four-star wide receiver Keith Gavin (Crawfordville Wakulla), a former Florida State commit, will choose between Alabama and FSU on National Signing Day.

The Seminoles also hope to land defensive lineman Brian Burns, a four-star player out of American Heritage. Burns will decide between UF, FSU and Georgia, though TomahawkNation reports he will spend the weekend at Florida State with four-star defensive end Jonathan Kongbo and four-star defensive end Shavar Manuel.

The Seminoles already have one of the most impressive classes in the country.

With only a few days left until commitments become official, Fisher and the Noles are pushing for more.

This story was originally published January 29, 2016 at 11:21 PM with the headline "FSU football, buoyed by South Florida talent, poised for another impressive recruiting class."