Not long ago, Florida State was known for staying close to home when recruiting top players. Prospects from the state of Florida and Georgia made up much of the Seminoles' roster.
But since Jimbo Fisher's arrival at FSU, the Seminoles' recruiting boundaries have greatly expanded. New Jersey, Maryland, North Carolina and Pennsylvania are some of the states well represented on the roster. Now you can add California to the list.
On Thursday afternoon, the Seminoles landed five-star junior quarterback Malik Henry of Westlake (Westlake Village), Calif. He made the announcement during a live broadcast on ESPN. He picked FSU over Notre Dame, UCLA and Ohio State.
"I'd like to thank my parents, my coaches, my team and everyone that supported me. I'll be committing to Florida State," said Henry.
It's been awhile since FSU headed west to find a quarterback. Chris Rix (2001) was the most recent. The last five-star prospect the 'Noles landed from the Golden State was running back Lorenzo Booker in 2002.
Henry had plenty of schools to choose from. He narrowed his list down in August to FSU, UCLA, Ohio State and Notre Dame. He visited FSU this past summer (unofficial), where he worked out and got a chance to run a version of Fisher's offense.
"I got that all the time when I was down there; they compared me to Jameis [Winston] and their offense, they have a lot of formations that we do at Westlake, so I'd fit well in their offense also," he told Rivals.com in July.
Many believed Henry's final choice would be Notre Dame, but the 6-foot-2, 190-pound pro-style quarterback felt the chance to be coached by Fisher was difficult to pass up. Fisher boasts three NFL first-round picks - Jamarcus Russell, EJ Manuel and Christian Ponder and possibly his third quarterback in a row with Jameis Winston.
"I felt comfortable around coach Jimbo Fisher. I think he's a great quarterback coach. He knows his stuff and their offense is explosive and I really think I can see myself in their offense," he explained during his announcement. "Just the area of Tallahassee. I loved the atmosphere and everything about it. I felt at home."
"It doesn't affect me who is there. I know there's going to be competition wherever I go. For me it's about being at the place that I feel can help develop me the best and the one I feel the most comfortable with," Henry said in July.
Henry revealed during the broadcast he also plans to play baseball at FSU. He's already talked to the coaches and they are okay with him being a two-sport athlete.
So far this season, Henry has thrown for 1,805 yards and 14 touchdowns. He has also rushed for 259 yards and three touchdowns. As a sophomore, he threw for 2,362 yards with 21 touchdowns.
Henry is FSU's fifth commitment for the 2016 recruiting class. He is rated the No. 2 pro-style quarterback in the country, No. 9 overall and No. 1 in the state.