Sunshine stars: Florida's seven FBS schools led by elite recruiters
Recruitable prospects attract recruiters, so it’s no coincidence that the state of Florida is soon to erupt into the recruiting version of a battle royale. With FAU’s recent hiring of Lane Kiffin to fill its head coaching vacancy, every FBS school in the state is armed with an ace recruiter as a head coach. Below, Rivals.com previews the chaos to come with a look at the recruiting reputations of each of the Sunshine State’s seven FBS coaches.
FLORIDA
Coach: Jim McElwain
Seasons as head coach: 5
Record as head coach: 40-24
Previous head coaching stops: Colorado State
Highest-ranked class: No. 14 in 2016 (Florida)
Top player signed as head coach: Martez Ivey (No. 4 in 2015)
Notes: McElwain arrived at Florida without a famous name. The fact that he landed at the state’s only SEC school has helped him, however. It’s early in McElwain’s tenure, but he’s left some Gator fans wanting more on the recruiting front despite back-to-back appearances in the SEC title game. Year three could be a tipping point – in either direction – for McElwain’s reputation as a recruiter.
FLORIDA ATLANTIC
Coach: Lane Kiffin
Seasons as head coach: 7
Record as head coach: 35-21 in college, 5-15 in NFL
Previous head coaching stops: Oakland Raiders (NFL), Tennessee, USC
Highest-ranked class: No. 1 in 2010 (USC)
Top player signed as head coach: Bryce Brown (No. 1 in 2009)
Notes: You can spin this one either way. The bad news for Owl fans is that Kiffin has literally never been successful as a head coach. The good news is that prospects love him and he can claim some level of credit for Alabama’s run of dominance over the last three years. Believe in him or not, Kiffin’s name means something and that matters for a head coach in a Group of Five conference. Nobody has ever doubted his recruiting prowess and he’ll bring a major uptick of talent to Boca Raton.
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL
Coach: Butch Davis
Seasons as head coach: 10
Record as head coach: 79-43 in college, 24-35 in NFL
Previous head coaching stops: Miami, Cleveland Browns (NFL), North Carolina
Highest-ranked class: N/A
Top player signed as head coach: N/A
Notes: Davis’ run at Miami was before Rivals.com ranked players or classes. Still, he recruited players such as Ed Reed, Andre Johnson, Clinton Portis, Edgerrin James and Jeremy Shockey. Despite never winning a national title, Davis’ name is etched into South Florida lore, where he certainly still carries a bit of recruiting cache. The 65-year-old Davis had a reputation as a big-time recruiter before recruiting coverage was widespread. What kind of recruiter he is now, at age 65, is anyone’s guess.
FLORIDA STATE
Coach: Jimbo Fisher
Seasons as head coach: 7
Record as head coach: 77-17
Previous head coaching stops: None
Highest-ranked recruiting class: No. 2 in 2011 and 2016
Top-ranked player signed as head coach: Mario Edwards (No. 3 in 2012)
Notes: A rare head-coach-in-waiting success story, Fisher’s top class was his first after taking over for the retiring Bobby Bowden a month before Signing Day. Fisher is the only coach at a Florida school that has won a national title and remains the state’s top dog for that reason. The desirability of Florida State, which is clearly the state’s top dog for the time being, is every bit as important as the allure of Fisher.
MIAMI
Mark Richt
Seasons as head coach: 16
Record as head coach: 153-55
Previous head coaching stops: Georgia
Highest-ranked recruiting class: No 4 in 2006 (UGA)
Top player signed as head coach: Matthew Stafford (No. 6 in 2016)
Notes: Richt was a major name in coaching before he arrived at Miami on the heels of his dismissal from Georgia. The fact that he was fired didn’t seem to take much of the shine off recruiting-wise. Players in the state were familiar with his name, which is certainly worth something. Richt’s ties go well beyond the state of Florida, but he seems to be doing decently when it comes to landing Sunshine State talent thus far.
UCF
Coach: Scott Frost
Seasons as head coach: 1
Record as head coach 6-6
Previous head coaching stops: None
Highest-ranked class: No. 42 in 2016
Top player signed as head coach: Dredrick Snelson (No. 222 in 2016)
Notes: Frost has less head coaching experience than any man on this list, but he brings youth and an impressive trajectory. The fact that he turned a winless team into a postseason member in just one season is not lost on players in the state of Florida. Frost can sell tangible, on-field results at his current school, which is something three other coaches on this list are without. UCF’s location in the middle of the state will also help him reach into different areas. Frost arrived in Florida from his post as Oregon’s offensive coordinator without much of a reputation but he’s wasted no time building one.
USF
Coach: Charlie Strong
Seasons as head coach: 7
Record as head coach: 53-37
Previous head coaching stops: Louisville, Texas
Highest-ranked class: No. 7 in 2016 (Texas)
Top player signed as head coach: Erick Fowler (No. 13 in 2016)
Notes: It’s too early to tell if the way Strong crashed at Texas will affect him much with prospects in his new gig. He brings a name to the recruiting trail, though. That much is clear. Add in the fact that he’s one of the more famous coaches in his new conference and he may have a leg up over some of his AAC peers. Strong has wide-ranging national ties but didn’t do much work in Florida during his time at Texas.