FSU adds four-star Locksley to crowded QB class

In an interesting turn of events, four-star quarterback Kai Locksley from Baltimore (Md.) Gilman school committed to Florida State over Texas. He got his commitment in just before Rivals250 quarterback Deondre Francois committed to the Seminoles also.

"I've been thinking about it for the past couple of days," said the 6-foot-4, 185-pound Locksley. "I was thinking about pulling the trigger a couple of days ago but I kept wanting to think about it. I finally came to a decision yesterday but my dad said I should sleep on it just to make sure that it was still Florida State when I woke up. When I woke up this morning I was thinking Florida State."

Locksley was originally supposed to announce his commitment on August 31 during Gilman's first game at Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward but this surprise early commitment had nothing to do with Francois' commitment, he says.

"This is my process and I was only thinking about myself," he said. "None of the outside things were a factor."

The Seminoles have been one of Locksley top schools since day one.

"The relationships I have with those coaches are great," said Locksley. "I've been down there three times and they were one of my first offers during my sophomore year so they've been recruiting me the hardest. I felt the most natural, most comfortable and at home with them. Not only that but it's a great opportunity they have with the facilities, the coaching experience, development, getting guys to the NFL, which is my ultimate dream. I felt like they provided the best opportunity for those dreams to come true."

The son of a coach, it was important for Locksley to develop a strong relationship with the Florida State coaches.

"From day one coach Sal was kind of my lead recruiter," he said. "As the season progressed coach Sanders started to get in the mix and then coach Fisher of course. The reason those relationships are so strong is because they made me feel comfortable. Every time we talked we were joking and laughing. Same with each time I went down there. It was really all the coaches on the staff. They would all come in and we'd have a conversation just like we were family."

Locksley's father, Maryland offensive coordinator Mike Locksley, made sure he let his son go through the recruiting process without any interference.

"At the end of the day he just stayed out of it unless I had had a question about how I would go about something," Locksley said. "He would help me control that. In terms of picking a school he really laid back and wanted me to make the decision because he told me that, as a man, I needed to make tough decisions. It's part of life and I had to make the right one.

"He basically helped me break it down," he said. "At Florida State I could get developed and nobody can develop me that way. At Texas there is a great coach that can develop me but I may not have the pieces around me in my early years to help me survive. That made things a lot clearer for me and it did help me choose Florida State."

Locksley hard already been working as a recruiter for the Seminoles and shared a few of his main targets.

"I've already discussed with a few guys what we want to do and that we need to link up in college," said Locksley. "Some of my targets right now are Ryan Davis and I'm also going to try to work on Ray Ray McCloud. I know he just committed to Clemson but I'm going to try to work on him. I'll be talking to George Campbell. Those are definitely a few guys I'm trying to get in the Nole Nation gear."

While Locksley is focused on making sure he helps bring talented players to Tallahassee, he has also already started to build relationships with current Seminoles.

"I feel kind of close with some guys on the team right now," he said. "I spoke with Travis Rudolph and Ermon Lane when I was down there. I even talked to Jameis while I was there."

It is getting a little crowded at the quarterback position in Florida State's recruiting class now that Locksley and Francois have joined De'Andre Johnson but Locksley seems up for the challenge.

"You're going to have competition wherever you go in the country," Locksley said. "Competition is what the sport is about and that's what is going to happen. It'll be fun."

Locksley remained noncommittal when asked if he is going to completely shut down his recruitment.

"I'm definitely going to go over all this with my dad and see what happens," he said.

Locksley is commitment No. 17 for Florida State's 2015 recruiting class.