It's not that out of the ordinary for Florida State to be on a roll on the recruiting trail. The Seminoles are used to chasing, and landing, many of the top prospects in Florida and throughout the country.
The most recent roll, however, has been almost unprecedented.
Since it was announced on Dec. 1 that head coach Bobby Bowden would retire following the season and offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher would take over, the Seminoles have made some key additions. They brought in Tennessee running backs coach Eddie Gran, one of the top recruiters in the country with a strong reputation for mining South Florida talent, and landed seven verbal commitments -- four from the Class of 2011 and three from the Class of 2010, most notably No. 5 overall prospect CB Lamarcus Joyner (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Saint Thomas Aquinas) and No. 6 overall prospect ILB Jeff Luc (Port Saint Lucie, Fla./Treasure Coast).
"The biggest thing is clarity now," Fisher said. "[Prospects] see the future of Florida State football is bright. I don't know if I expected any of this because young men are going to make their own decision when they feel comfortable in making it. But we had a good plan in place and we're going to continue to follow that plan and see what we can get done."
Moving forward, this could be just the start. The additions of Luc and Joyner moved the Seminoles to No. 9 in the latest recruiting rankings from Scouts Inc., and Florida State could still move higher this year. Don't be surprised if the Noles are near the top in 2011 either. Prospects like Under Armour All-American linebacker Christian Jones (Winter Park, Fla./Lake Howell), a Florida State legacy whose brother and father both played for the Noles, are definitely in play. Athlete Christian Green (Tampa, Fla./Catholic), the cousin of former Florida State receiver E.G. Green, is the nation's No. 52 overall prospect and has the Seminoles, along with Georgia and Florida, in the mix. Don't forget there are multiple prospects committed elsewhere who could potentially end up switching to the Seminoles between now and national signing day on Feb. 3.
The Seminoles' recent wave started on Dec. 2 with the commitment of ESPNU 150 Watch List offensive lineman Trey Pettis (De Land, Fla./De Land). The next day, the Seminoles landed junior college cornerback Mike Harris (Torrance, Calif./El Camino Community College) and ESPNU 150 Watch List teammates DBs Keelin Smith and Lamarcus Brutus (Port Saint Lucie, Fla./Treasure Coast).
On Dec. 5, Luc committed to the Seminoles, while he was on his official visit to Tallahassee. That Sunday, the news broke that Gran was named to Fisher's staff. ESPNU 150 Watch List running back Eric Beverly (Jacksonville, Fla./First Coast) followed that up with a Monday evening commitment (Dec. 7).
Joyner jumped on board Wednesday night with a commitment, proclaiming that "FSU is back." He will always credit Bowden and defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews with his lifelong interest in the Seminoles program, but he believes in Fisher and the future of the program.
Joyner is perhaps the most explosive prospect in the country. Pair him with Class of 2009 Under Armour All-American Greg Reid, who was stellar at times this year, and Florida State has an outstanding young secondary.
Every one of the prospects who committed is a product of Florida's talent-rich high school programs. While Florida State has recruited nationally at times, Fisher reiterated that there is little doubt he plans to work from the inside out.
"It's a funny thing that everybody wants us to recruit nationally, but everybody in the world comes down to Florida to recruit," Fisher said. "There is no question there is great talent in this state. There are great high school programs, great high school coaching and football is important here. That's not only in the whole state of Florida, but also over into South Georgia as well. I am not saying that we won't ever go any of those other places, but it makes all the sense in the world for us to take care of the kids in our home area."
Tallahassee is only 34 miles from Thomasville, Ga., and 89 miles from Valdosta, Ga., which are two big hotbeds for talent.
First Coast High School in Jacksonville, Fla., defensive coordinator/recruiting coordinator Fred Culver had three of his players sign with Florida State in the Class of 2008 (running back Jermaine Thomas, linebacker Nigel Carr and receiver Avis Commack) and currently has Class of 2010 defensive end Tavaris Barnes (Jacksonville, Fla./First Coast) pledged, along with Beverly. He has taken note of the Noles' December hot streak.
"A lot of credit goes to [Fisher]," Culver said. "Florida State is in a good, central location and they've got that tradition. With [Fisher], I see a lot of [Alabama head coach] Nick Saban in him. He creates discipline in a program and gets the best out of his coaches and players."
Culver has a basis for the comparison. He worked LSU's prospect camp when Saban (and Fisher) were in Baton Rouge for three years during the early part of the decade.
"Recruiting is work, evaluation and relationships," Fisher said. "We always had great recruiting success when we [Saban and Fisher] were at LSU together. We got the talent at home to stay sort of like we are trying to do here. When they all start to stay and they all start to play together, that's when you really got something."
Fisher was the offensive coordinator for Saban when LSU won the 2003 national championship and the foundation of that team was built largely on Louisiana talent.
Culver added that Fisher's recent work on the road reminds him a bit of the aggressive whirlwind approach that Urban Meyer took during his early days at Florida, when he visited dozens of high schools in a short amount of time. Fisher is aided by being technically an assistant coach, which gives him a wider variety of opportunities to have face time with prospects. He won't assume head-coaching duties until after the Gator Bowl (Jan. 1), when the Seminoles face West Virginia.
"I don't think it's not an advantage," Fisher said. "But we are going to go out and see everyone we can talk to right now."
JC Shurburtt covers recruiting for ESPN.com. He can be reached at jcsespn@aol.com.