Florida State’s early traction with 2028 quarterback Chandler Dyson says plenty about where the program is headed under John Garrett.
The Seminoles are still living through a strange kind of offseason, one where the future of the roster matters almost as much as the present. That’s because Florida State brought in Garrett as general manager of player personnel to run a revamped front office, and that setup is supposed to outlast Mike Norvell’s time in Tallahassee.
That makes any movement in the 2028 class worth watching, and the early word on Dyson is encouraging. Chad Simmons of Rivals pegged Florida State as the early favorite for the four-star quarterback from Warner Robins, Georgia, who ranks as the No. 12 QB in the country.
Dyson brings a lot to like on paper. At 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds, he has the kind of frame that jumps off the page, along with the ability to run through contact and turn broken plays into big gains.
He’s a straight-line burner with long strides, and he pairs that with a big arm and a quick over-the-top release. He’s still developing, but even as a high school sophomore last season, he showed a rare mix of tackle-breaking power and feel as a thrower.
The fit question is interesting, too. If Norvell is still around by the time Dyson gets to campus, the quarterback would make sense in that offense. He’s the type of big-bodied dual-threat Norvell has chased before, even if Tommy Castellanos - at 5-foot-11 and a Gus Malzahn guy - doesn’t fit that mold perfectly.
But the bigger issue in Tallahassee is whether a recruit is a Norvell target or a Garrett target. At this stage, that line matters.
Florida State’s current pitch is being driven by the front office, not the head coach, and the money conversation probably isn’t the real separator yet. The real test will come later.
For now, any prospect leaning toward Florida State is probably buying into the long view Garrett is selling. That’s why Dyson’s interest feels meaningful. If he’s looking at the Seminoles this early, it suggests he sees more than just the current coaching situation.
Florida State’s 2027 class is in rough shape, sitting outside the top 50 nationally with just 13 commits. That group may require Florida State to spend heavily just to keep pace. Garrett, it seems, is being selective about which players are worth that kind of investment and which ones are likely to stay through a coaching change.
The 2028 class could be different. It may be the beginning of the rebuild, and Dyson could end up being one of the players around whom that rebuild takes shape. He isn’t the top quarterback in the class, but if Florida State is truly in the mix, that alone is a good sign for a program that hasn’t had many of those lately.
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