Florida State beat Alabama, now it wants to flip a 4-star Crimson Tide commit

Florida State put Kalen DeBoer, at least in the Crimson Tide fanbase's eyes, on the hot seat with a Week 1 upset in Tallahassee. Now, Mike Norvell is looking to take a bite out of DeBoer’s 2027 recruiting class by flipping four-star edge rusher Jabarrius Garror. 

Garror is the 78th-ranked player in the country according to 247Sports Composite and a top 10 edge rusher. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound junior from Mobile, Alabama, committed to the Crimson Tide in July 2024, the first 2027 commit, and has stayed locked in with the Crimson Tide since. 

However, Florida State has been building momentum in his recruitment lately, having him on campus for unofficial visits and camps over the summer. The head-to-head win over the Crimson Tide in Week 1 likely didn’t hurt their efforts either. 

Still, according to On3’s Steve Wiltfong, it's the FSU coaching staff that has impressed Garror the most. 

Defensive coaching uncertainty could shake up Jabarrius Garror’s recruitment

Florida State made multiple major changes on its coaching staff after winning just two games in 2024. Norvell hired Gus Malzahn to run his offense, which sparked the Noles’ Week 1 win, and plucked Tony White away from Nebraska to run his defense. White has been a major upgrade over Adam Fuller, who was fired after the 2024 debacle, but if he’s the main selling point for Garror, the Noles may not ultimately be the biggest threat to flip him. 

White is a fast-rising through the coaching ranks, and though FSU’s defense hasn’t been perfect this season – it was particularly exposed in Week 5 by Virginia – he will be a head coaching candidate in this cycle or the next. If FSU continues on its upward trajectory, and White continues to have success, it’s unlikely he sees the end of his three-year contract in Tallahassee. If not, and the program sputters, he, Malzahn, and Norvell will all be out of a job by the time Garror enrolls in 2027. 

As for the Alabama coaching staff, maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise that Garror is impressed by the FSU coaches compared to Kane Wommack, who is in his second season leading DeBoer’s defense. Wommack’s unit has been stout against most offenses, but anytime it has run up against a play-action and option-heavy attack with a mobile quarterback, like Castellanos, or Diego Pavia, who is on deck for the Tide in Week 6, it has been thoroughly outmatched. 

It’s possible that Wommack isn’t around in Tuscaloosa by 2027 either, so while he’s been a longtime Alabama commit, Garror’s recruitment is far from over.