Florida State makes "eye-opening" impression on Four-Star LB Payton Pierce

March has been crucial for Florida State on the recruiting trail as the coaching staff attracts in talent to watch spring practice and further relationships. Earlier this month, a plethora of the top players in the country flocked to campus for the Seminole Legacy event.

While some of the prospects in attendance had seen Tallahassee in the past, others got an opportunity to experience what Florida State has to offer for the first time.

Four-Star Linebacker Payton Pierce had no idea what to expect prior to checking out FSU. Coming out of an "eye-opening" experience, the Seminoles are firmly on his radar.

"It was great. I've never been to Florida State or Tallahassee. We came to Destin for spring break and decided to take a trip. It was worth the trip. I didn't know what to expect, I've never been here, it was real eye-opening," Pierce said to NoleGameday's Dustin Lewis. "I'm really considering this now, meeting coach Norvell, he's a really great coach. I think coach Shannon, and just everyone that they have on staff is pretty unbelievable and super down-to-earth people and really good coaches. It shows with the players that they have and what they did this past season. It's been a great visit, I will definitely be back."

When Pierce says that he didn't what to expect, he's being serious. Pierce wasn't sure if Florida State was on the beach prior to the trip. The lack of knowledge about the school and area made it important for the Seminoles to provide him with a ton of detail throughout the trip. They were able to do just that while impressing him in the process.

"I've never been so I just didn't know what to expect. I've never met coach Norvell. I've been to a bunch of schools around where I live and coming out here, it's a little bit different and it's blown everything out of the water in my thoughts of what I thought it was going to be like," Pierce said. "I didn't know if Florida State was on the beach, I didn't know anything about it, being from Texas. Even from their strength staff, their strength staff is unbelievable, meeting them and talking to all of them. And then just their coaching staff and the players that they have. I've been to a lot of practices, I've never seen a head coach so enthusiastic and involved in everything that they do. It was pretty special."

A unique piece of the experience was seeing program legend Jameis Winston back on campus. Outside of that, aspects such as the coaching staff, Mike Norvell, and the practice he was able to watch really stood out.

"When I show up and Jameis Winston's here, that was pretty cool. I've been to a lot of campuses. I haven't been to many campuses that have palm trees. It's just weird looking at stuff and how much different Florida State is from the schools that are around where I am," Pierce said. "Their coaching staff, almost everyone has been at the NFL level in some way. Coach Norvell, my meeting with him has opened my eyes a lot to what kind of program they are. Being here, watching practice, sitting through meetings, seeing what it's actually like as a player has been real eye-opening, I liked it a lot."

Linebackers coach Randy Shannon has been communicating with Pierce since Florida State joined his recruitment last summer. They were able to sit down during the visit and go over film. Pierce was impressed with how easily Shannon explained different concepts.

"He literally put up the film and he could show me exactly what they were going to do before every play. It was just really simple stuff, looking at the running back. You could see Patrick Mahomes, when he was going to throw it or not based off his stance," Pierce said. "It was just crazy how simple it seems and how easy he made it look. It was pretty crazy. I got to sit in linebacker meetings and how the players interact with coach Shannon and go out to practice. It was a high energy practice. There haven't been many practices like that that I've seen."

After wrapping up his first visit to Florida State, Pierce noted that the trip had a big impact on him. He's planning on making it back again in the coming months.

"It's like every school I go to, it changes everything. I swear my top schools change every day but yeah, I mean this has left a really big impact, I really want to come back here," Pierce said. "It was a really special place. Some places I like and some places I don't like and this is one of the places I really like just me being me and even the campus, it's just a lot different than what I'm used to. It's changed a lot in the recruiting."

At this point, Pierce is working on scheduling his Official Visits. He's already got one locked into Ohio State on June 23-25. Florida State is vying to earn one of his final four trips.

Pierce will continue to take unofficial visits during the spring with the goal to commit prior to his senior season. Though he doesn't want to name a leader at this time, the Seminoles are sitting in a good spot in his recruitment.

"They're right at the top with the other schools. I don't really have one school in particular that's in front of another. It blew things out of the water in what I expected," Pierce said. "I think they're right up there with the rest of the groups that I have a check for. I kind of got my schools that I really want to start looking at, and the ones that I don't. They're starting to really creep up there, they're kind of one of the top schools that I like."

The 6-foot-1, 225-pound linebacker is regarded as the No. 144 overall prospect, the No. 13 LB and the No. 24 recruit in the state of Texas in the 2024 class according to 247Sports.

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