Florida State's QB situation even murkier after signing day misses

Jameis Winston is not walking through that door, Deondre Francois is already out the door, and Florida State has just one quarterback behind the door after another rough National Signing Day in Tallahassee.

For a second consecutive season, head coach Willie Taggart wrapped up the recruiting cycle without signing a quarterback, leaving James Blackman as the only returning scholarship pivot.

The Seminoles tried to lure John Rhys Plumlee, but the four-star signal-caller committed to Ole Miss instead. Florida State then turned its attention to another four-star pivot in Lance LeGendre, but he wound up at Maryland.

"We invested in someone and we missed on them," Taggart said of LeGendre as the signing day festivities died down Wednesday, according to Wayne McGahee III of the Tallahassee Democrat. "So that's on us and just gotta make sure that don't happen again."

Blackman, a returning junior, has been fine - but not much more than that - when pressed into action over the last two years. He and Francois shared the quarterback room last year, but Francois was kicked off the team Sunday.

The Seminoles previously expected Sam Howell to join them in 2019, but the coveted pocket passer ditched Florida State for North Carolina during the early signing period. Then came the two whiffs on National Signing Day.

Louisville transfer Jordan Travis is joining Florida State, but the unheralded prospect hasn't yet secured immediate eligibility.

"We have a plan - I think a pretty good plan," Taggart said, according to McGahee. "I don't necessarily want to discuss it right now but I think we've got a pretty good plan of where we want to go."

Overall, Florida State ended the afternoon with ESPN's 19th-rated class, down eight spots from where it landed last year and a far cry from where it typically finished under Jimbo Fisher.

The offensive line remains a mess, making the program less attractive in the eyes of graduate transfers and even some of its alumni.

Florida State went 5-7 last season in Taggart's debut at the helm, missing a bowl game for the first time since 1981. It may take an audible to avoid a repeat of the disastrous campaign.