Numerous factors have led to the Florida State football team's recent downturn on the football field. One of most significant has been a precipitous drop-off in talent, which obviously goes back to recruiting.
FSU's recruiting started to deteriorate shortly after the team's impressive run between 2012 and 2014, and the stunning decline really began with the 2016 recruiting class. On paper, the group of 25 signees was as talented as any of the prior classes, carrying a No. 2 national ranking according to Rivals.com. It was ranked No. 1 overall per ESPN.
All in all, 13 of the 25 signees were ranked among the top 200 prospects in the nation. But very few of these elite recruits lived up to the hype.
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Class Ranking: No. 2 (No. 1 ESPN) / Number of signees: 25
Four-year win-loss record: 28-23 / ACC Championships: 0 / Top 10 rankings: 1
First-Team All-Americans*: 0 / First-team all-ACC: 1
NFL draft picks: 1 (Brian Burns - 16th overall)
Players still on the 2020 roster: Emmett Rice, Baveon Johnson, Janarius Robinson
* Includes first-team All-Americans listed by major outlets (ESPN, AP, Camp, FWAA, AFCA)
You can make an argument that Florida State's 2016 class will go down as the most underachieving group in school history. Among the 15 prospects that ranked in the top 250 nationally, not one made a major All-America list while at FSU, and only one (Brian Burns) made the All-ACC first team.
