It had been well over a year since the last time four-star LB Rodney Colton Jr. was on Florida State's campus.
The Newnan (Ga.) High School prospect last visited Florida State for the game against Duke in 2023. Saturday marked the first time that Colton Jr. was on campus since then and a lot has changed as the Seminoles seemed to have made a major leap to the top contenders in his recruitment.
"It's (gotten) a lot better, I won't even lie," Colton Jr. said on how different the visit felt. The coaches, coach JP (John Papuchis), he has everything I want. I can't say nothing bad about him."
"He's a great coach, a great man," he later added on Papuchis. "He calls me, checking in on me and my mom. Some coaches don't even do that. If you tell him that you can't make it (for a visit), he won't get mad. It's just, 'I'll see you next time then.' He's a great guy, great family guy."
The new Florida State coaching staff as a whole impressed Colton Jr. during his visit on Saturday. Coach Mike Norvell was excited to see him and gave him a hug prior to the scrimmage.
Colton Jr. also got to speak with current linebacker Elijah Herring, whose family grew up in the same area as Colton.
"(He said) When you get here, Coach Norvell is going to be on you. You've got to be on your stuff. You got to be a dog to come here. He just said, 'Stay humble. If you really want to be here, you got to work to get your starting spot,' " Colton said on his conversations with Herring.
Schematically, Florida State produced a lot of edge pressure during the scrimmage on Saturday, something that also intrigued Colton Jr.
"They come off the edge just like I do in high school, so I know I can fit inside their scheme. They want me to play inside the box but they said I can play JACK, too."
Ole Miss, UCLA, Missouri, Georgia and Tennessee are all players in Colton Jr.'s recruitment. But the Seminoles have made a gigantic leap following Saturday's visit.
Colton's official visit to Florida State that was previously scheduled for the fall has now been pushed all the way up to the first week of June (6th), taking the spot of Missouri on his visit schedule. The Tigers will now be getting an official in the fall.
"I wanted to get down here as soon as possible, just so my mom can see it. I know she is going to love it down here," Colton Jr. said on the OV swap. "My feelings most definitely changed (about FSU). Florida State is going to be up there (in my top schools), I promise you that," he said.
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