We are launching our series that ranks the best all-time football recruiting classes. Here's the first write-up by Corey:
Ranking the best recruiting classes in FSU history
My comments on part one of this six part series:
It's amazing to look back at all the great players that have donned the Garnet and Gold the past few decades. Seeing so many All-Americans, NFL greats and Seminole legends in these classes reminds you of the truly incredible run FSU has been on since the late 70's.
If there's one thing missing from our countdown is a way to quantify the importance of each class to the program as a whole. Corey touched on this in his story, but it's worth noting that although the 1985 class finished No. 8 overall it might No. 1 in terms of importance.
Led by 'Prime Time' Deion Sanders, this group of 24 set the foundation for one of the most remarkable runs in sports history -- 14 straight years of top five finishes. That streak not only put FSU football on the national map, it made Seminoles a household name with Bobby Bowden having his team in the national championship hunt every season for a decade and a half. Outside of North Carolina women's soccer and UConn women's basketball I can't think of another recent sports program that has been able to maintain this extremely high level of success for over a decade without a hiccup.
The 1977 and 2010 classes have to also be mentioned because both were incredibly important to the program.
The 2010 class didn't have the star power of some of the higher rated ones, but it set the stage for the Seminoles' dominating run from 2012-14. You have to consider that before this class was signed, FSU had just finished the so-called 'lost decade' and had been dominated by rival Florida for six straight years. Jimbo Fisher's first recruiting class made a major splash in the recruiting world and changed the culture with several standout players such as Cam Erving, Lamarcus Joyner, Telvin Smith and Bjoern Werner.
Much like Fisher did in 2010, Bobby Bowden's first full class in 1977 was a home run and dramatically changed the direction of the Seminole program. Prior to that class, Florida State football never reached 10 wins in a season nor finished ranked in the top 10. However, led by this group of signees, FSU would hit the 10-win mark in three of the next four seasons and finished in the top 10 twice.
Ranking the best recruiting classes in FSU history
My comments on part one of this six part series:
It's amazing to look back at all the great players that have donned the Garnet and Gold the past few decades. Seeing so many All-Americans, NFL greats and Seminole legends in these classes reminds you of the truly incredible run FSU has been on since the late 70's.
If there's one thing missing from our countdown is a way to quantify the importance of each class to the program as a whole. Corey touched on this in his story, but it's worth noting that although the 1985 class finished No. 8 overall it might No. 1 in terms of importance.
Led by 'Prime Time' Deion Sanders, this group of 24 set the foundation for one of the most remarkable runs in sports history -- 14 straight years of top five finishes. That streak not only put FSU football on the national map, it made Seminoles a household name with Bobby Bowden having his team in the national championship hunt every season for a decade and a half. Outside of North Carolina women's soccer and UConn women's basketball I can't think of another recent sports program that has been able to maintain this extremely high level of success for over a decade without a hiccup.
The 1977 and 2010 classes have to also be mentioned because both were incredibly important to the program.
The 2010 class didn't have the star power of some of the higher rated ones, but it set the stage for the Seminoles' dominating run from 2012-14. You have to consider that before this class was signed, FSU had just finished the so-called 'lost decade' and had been dominated by rival Florida for six straight years. Jimbo Fisher's first recruiting class made a major splash in the recruiting world and changed the culture with several standout players such as Cam Erving, Lamarcus Joyner, Telvin Smith and Bjoern Werner.
Much like Fisher did in 2010, Bobby Bowden's first full class in 1977 was a home run and dramatically changed the direction of the Seminole program. Prior to that class, Florida State football never reached 10 wins in a season nor finished ranked in the top 10. However, led by this group of signees, FSU would hit the 10-win mark in three of the next four seasons and finished in the top 10 twice.
