Jalen Ramsey flips commitment from USC to FSU, Noles get much-needed good news

floridastategamedayr | February 5, 2013 at 12:07 pm | 1 Comment

Florida State Seminoles head coach Jimbo Fisher reacts in the second quarter of the ACC Championship at Bank of America Stadium. (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

According to Noles247, on Monday night, Jalen Ramsey’s family informed Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher that Ramsey would be officially switching his commitment from USC to the Seminoles. The four-star, shut-down cornerback’s decision will be announced publicly during a ceremony to be held at his high school at 11 a.m. Eastern on Wednesday — National Signing Day.

Jalen Ramsey is rated as the No. 14-overall player in the nation by ESPN and the No. 39-overall by Rivals. Both recruiting services have him rated as the very best player in the entire state of Tennessee.

The 6-foot, 190-pound Brentwood native was one of the very first young men targeted by Jeremy Pruitt when he was hired by Fisher to run the Noles’ defense. Pruitt was brought aboard to replace Mark Stoops, who accepted the head coaching job with the Kentucky Wildcats.

Ramsey’s decision comes as a bit of a surprise. He had been committed to the Trojans for quite some time, and had been personally recruited by Tee Martin. Martin won a national championship as a quarterback while at Tennessee, and he has become known for his skills on the recruiting trail for USC.

After considering USC, FSU, and Florida, however, Ramsey heads to Tallahassee. Star cornerback Xavier Rhodes is headed to the NFL, meaning there will be a chance for him to compete for playing time right away. It was Ramsey’s large frame that got Pruitt so excited about him, and obviously he feels Pruitt’s scheme is going to allow him to succeed.

After losing both Stoops and offensive coordinator James Coley, Fisher has to be thrilled with the work of the man he himself chose to replace Stoops. It is not every day a top five player, at any position, decides to cut ties with the mighty Trojans.

After winning the ACC Championship and a BCS bowl game for the first time since 2005, the addition of Ramsey will help the Noles’ football program continue to build towards elite status.