2023 QB commit Chris Parson details weekend visit to Florida State for junior day
It was a massive weekend for Florida State as the Seminoles began spring practice and hosted a junior day event last Saturday. There was a lot of talent in Tallahassee as the coaching staff looked to further its positioning with multiple top recruits.
The bell cow of the 2023 class, quarterback commitment Chris Parson, was among the prospects to make the trip. It was important to him to watch head coach Mike Norvell, new quarterbacks coach Tony Tokarz, and new offensive coordinator Alex Atkins in action.
"It was great," Parson said. "I had a great time. I finally got to see coach Norvell, coach Tokarz, coach Atkins, see them in action, coaching, and I enjoyed that the most. Being right there on the field, being attentive, trying to pick up things and learn, I enjoyed it all."
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To no surprise, Parson was locked in on the quarterbacks throughout the practice. He noticed that everyone was attentive and taking their time seriously on Saturday. Parson did his best to pay attention to pick up a few tips.
"I just saw everybody locked in, the quarterbacks were ready to go," Parson said. "Just watching film with coach Tokarz after, learning the ins and outs of the offense. While I was there at practice, just seeing them be attentive, seeing them locked in, taking each rep seriously and learning from coach Norvell. I just try to pay attention to that and focus on things that I can learn and take back home to Ravenwood."
When Parson committed to Florida State in July, he was under the impression that he'd be playing for Kenny Dillingham at the next level. Since then, Dillingham has left for Oregon and Tokarz has been promoted in his place. Despite the change, Parson has built a strong relationship with Tokarz and this visit gave him an opportunity to learn more about his coaching style.
"It was great," Parson said. "I talk to coach Tokarz almost every day, we facetime almost every other day. Seeing him actually coach was something I really wanted to see when I got up here, knowing that I was going to be here for the first practice. Being able to get a chance to see that, I felt like it was really important and I was impressed, for sure."
"I love coach Tokarz," Parson continued. "I talk to him every day, we've built a really strong relationship. Got a lot of love for that guy, man. He's a great coach but an even better person. Real close bond and he cares about me a lot so it's only going to keep getting stronger and I'm excited to play for him one day."
Parson had his eyes on coach Norvell too, who spent a lot of time working with true freshman quarterback AJ Duffy. It was good for him to see that because Parson will be in that position a year from now.
"Coach Norvell was patient with him and teaching him a lot," Parson said. "AJ was learning and I really enjoyed seeing that because I'll be in that situation next year as a freshman coming in."
Over the course of the weekend, the Mississippi native did his fair share of recruiting, as he always does. Parson talked to multiple prospects that are trending with Florida State. It's one thing to get a recruiting message from a coach, it's another to hear it from a player actually committed to the school.
"I did a whole bunch," Parson said. "Keyon Brown, Santana Fleming, so many guys, Tommy Kinsler, Lucas Simmons. It was great to get everyone up here, we still have some guys that didn't come that we're recruiting really hard. We got Hykeem [Williams] up here today, that's a really big one we're trying to get. Yesterday [Saturday] was a great day with all of the recruits. Seeing them be on the field as well, watching practice, and being able to connect with them and their families was awesome. Going to the basketball game with them as well."
Two players that Parson spent a lot of time with were 2023 wide receivers, Keyon Brown and Darren Lawrence. When he returned to campus on Sunday, he spoke with 2023 wide receiver Hykeem Williams as well.
"Keyon Brown, I was with him a lot," Parson said. "Darren Lawrence, I was with him a lot, he was the first recruit that I met that morning. I got here right in time for practice and he was walking up with his coach so I got to spend most of the time with him. I talked to a lot of linemen, a lot of guys that I've talked to on the phone, I didn't get the chance to actually interact with them Saturday but I'll be hitting them up for sure. And then Sunday with Hykeem Williams, a guy we're really big on, I talk to him often. Fresh off a state championship so it was good to get him up here."
The coaching staff has actively involved Parson in their recruiting efforts. Not only does he help them recruit prospects that they're interested in, he also brings them to the attention of recruits that he thinks would be a good fit for the program. Parson is truly trying to build 'his' Tribe.
"That's one thing that I love about the staff here at Florida State," Parson said. "They allow me to be hands-on and in the loop. If they have a guy that they want and a guy that they're liking, they'll connect me with him and I'll do my thing as far as recruiting. If I see a guy on the circuit that I've enjoyed, I'll bring him to them and tell them I like this guy and we'll go from there. That's really what I appreciate about the staff. I talk to coach Johnson, coach Dugans, coach Tokarz, coach Atkins. They promised me whenever I committed that this was going to be my Tribe and that I was going to have a chance to build my class. They're letting me do that, it's been great as far as recruiting."
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On Saturday, Florida State added its fifth commitment to #Tribe23 in defensive tackle Keith Sampson. With how much of an effort that Parson has put into recruiting, he was excited to have Sampson join the class. The two spent some time together after Sampson made his decision public.
"That was big for us," Parson said. "Defensive lineman, really talented player. It means a lot, I've been trying to do a lot of recruiting, getting guys in here to build Tribe23. I don't think he even understands how much his commitment meant to me. I was just happy for him and his family, we ended up going to the basketball game together, riding the bus up there. Last night, whenever we went up for the dinner, I was around him as well."
The Ravenwood High School star was impressed by the number of alumni that returned to campus on Saturday. He enjoyed watching them being honored at the basketball game and listening to them speak to all of the recruits.
"It meant a lot," Parson said. "When we went to the basketball game, they were all honored at the court. It was great to see them come back. That's something I look forward to doing when I'm done playing here at Florida State. There's gonna be a junior day when guys are coming up and I can come down and give my testimony as to why I love Florida State so much. I remember being a kid, watching them play, guys like Asante Samuel Jr. It was great to see those guys back and hear them talk about Florida State."
To cap off the first day of his visit, Parson and his family attended a special NIL presentation in the Champions Club. A panel of former players and advisors spoke to an exclusive group of commitments, recruits, and their families to provide knowledge on the growing NIL front. Parson sat in the very front and was the only recruit to bring a notebook to the meeting.
"I learned a lot," Parson said. "They gave us a lot of words of wisdom. I was just trying to soak up everything and trying to learn. It felt good to learn from guys that played at Florida State. It was an amazing experience."
One of the panel members he met was former Florida State fullback, James Coleman. He told Parson to reach out if he ever needed anything and gave him some words of encouragement.
"He was a great guy and he just let me know that if I ever wanted to talk or needed any advice he would be there to help me," Parson said. "I really appreciate that from him for sure."
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The following morning, Parson returned to campus to have his meeting with coach Norvell. He said that whenever they speak, it reassures him as to why he committed to the Seminoles.
"It went awesome," Parson said. "Talked to coach Norvell, that's my guy, I have a lot of love for him. Basically, we were just talking about practice yesterday, how things went, and the plans that he has for me. It's always great talking to coach Norvell, everytime I talk to him he reassures me as to why I chose to Florida State. This is actually my 11th time visiting Florida State if you go back to when I came up to camps as a kid. Every time outdoes the last one."
The 6-foot-1, 190-pound quarterback will be back in Tallahassee on April 9 for the spring game. He's looking forward to building on the momentum that Florida State established this weekend.
"I feel like we put our best foot forward yesterday as far as recruiting and I'm excited to get back down here for the spring game."
Stick with NoleGameday for more on Parson throughout his upcoming senior season.
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