At first, it didn't seem that any more transfer portal help at linebacker was on the way for Florida State.

While the Seminoles heavily recruited Auburn LB transfer Cam Riley, he originally chose NC State over FSU in February as the school he would enroll at this summer.

The more he thought about it, though, Riley realized his decision wasn't right. Exactly two months after committing to NC State, he decommitted on April 26. A few weeks later, he committed to FSU on May 8, giving the Seminoles a recruiting win they didn't think they were going to get and some much needed linebacker depth.

"When you play football and you get into your final couple years of college, you have to think of which school is more of a fit for you and where you could see yourself being more productive in the defense," Riley said in his first interview at FSU on Thursday. "I watched the defenses, both of them are very great defenses. NC State runs a good defense, Florida State does as well. But I watched a lot of film and thought I would be more productive here."

Riley brings a great deal of experience to an FSU linebacker room in need of exactly that. The former three-star recruit from Evergreen, Ala., appeared in 46 games and made 10 starts across four seasons at Auburn.

Considering the non-DJ-Lundy division of FSU's linebacker room has made one career start entering the 2024 season, the 6-foot-5, 245-pound Riley was a shot in the arm to the position group when he changed his mind and flipped to the Seminoles.

Former Auburn offensive lineman Keiondre Jones, now entering his second season at FSU, also played a big role in selling the Seminoles to Riley.

"Talking with him day-in and day-out, he told me how good of a program it was and the people around the program," Riley said of Jones. "Coming down, seeing it for myself, it was nothing but icing on the cake."

Another big deal for Riley entering his final season of eligibility is finding the school that can maximize his abilities. Having seen what FSU has done on this front with a large group of transfer additions over the last couple years -- including UCF transfer Tatum Bethune -- only further sold Riley on the Seminoles.

"That's one thing that has stuck out to me throughout the process. I have seen what they can do with players from any school across the country. Bringing them in for one year and having them turn from good players to great players in a year or less," Riley said. "That was very big in my recruiting process. I feel like Florida State is a great place that can develop someone like me in the timespan that I have."

Over his extensive career with the Tigers, Riley racked up 121 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, four quarterback hurries and two pass breakups. He did a little bit of everything for Auburn, moving around to multiple linebacker spots and even getting some reps as an edge-rusher.

Asked how he expects to line up here, Riley said he's more of an inside linebacker. However, he also understands the fluidity of linebacker roles in today's college football.

"That's really where I played the majority of my collegiate career so coming here, coming into the great defensive scheme that coach Fuller has, he has inside backers working inside and outside," Riley said. "It complements my game style bouncing from inside to outside, but primarily inside...

"I feel like the biggest thing with a linebacker in this day and age is being able to play in space...Being able to play in space and being able to be versatile in your game and play fast because the tempo is very fast now as well."

While he was at one school for four years, Riley said in his introductory FSU press conference that he had four defensive coordinators in four seasons at Auburn. As such, he has a great deal of experience learning new defenses, something that will help him now considering he enrolled at FSU mere months before the start of preseason camp in late July.

From what he's seen of FSU defensive coordinator Adam Fuller's defense before even getting here, he has lofty aspirations both for himself and the defense as a whole.

"Watching the defense from last year, I see a lot of great stuff on film. Coach Fuller's defense is very aggressive and that's something I like," Riley said. "I like being in an aggressive defense where I can make plays in the backfield. Watching them last year and going into this year, I expect great things out of this defense."

FSU linebackers preseason preview

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