Weekly column Sponsor: JFQ Lending

Contact: Chris Sabanosh / csabanosh@jfqlending.com / (480) 562-6267

Florida State fans weren't exactly overflowing with excitement on National Signing Day last month.

You guys are used to recruiting classes in the Top 5 in the country, not one ranked as the eighth best in the ACC. And certainly no supporters of the program could be happy with a class that is currently ranked No. 38 nationally by Rivals -- behind the likes of Boston College, Kansas and Vanderbilt.

That's scary stuff, I get it.

You don't want to be slumming in the same neighborhood as the Jayhawks and Commodores.

*** Don't miss our exclusive FSU football coverage. 30-day Free Trial***

But there are two things to consider as we evaluate Mike Norvell's first full recruiting class at Florida State. First, he's only got 16 high school signees so far in this class. With the way Rivals calculates the rankings -- factoring in quantity as much as quality -- that's going to hinder the chances of being slotted higher.

If you look at average star rankings, the Seminoles' 2021 class is ranked a slightly more respectable No. 25 in the country.

Again, I know none of you are going to send out a group texts to your FSU friends saying, "We're 25th! We did it!" That's not good enough around here either. Granted.

But then you start to ask yourself: OK, what if we were factoring in all of the new players who are now part of the FSU program into recruiting rankings -- even the transfers? Where would FSU be then?

What would McKenzie Milton be ranked? A 4-star? A 5-star if everyone was confident he was fully healthy? How many notches would the Seminoles move up then?

What about a guy like Georgia transfer Jermaine Johnson, who ranked second in sacks on one of the best defenses in the United States? A guy, who from Day 1, is the best pass-rusher on the team and could very well be one of the best in the conference.