TALLAHASSEE – Five-star cornerback prospect Charles Lester unofficially visited on Saturday for their Junior Day event.
“It’s always great to be back on campus around all the coaches and these great people,” Lester said regarding his visit. “I always love coming back to Tallahassee, and it’s just a special time here.”
The Sarasota (Fla.) Riverview product said he has visited FSU so many times that it feels like he has “seen everything twice,” and explained that he did not come in expecting to experience anything much different than he already has on past trips to FSU.
“I know the standard and how the environment is here, so I just expect it to be the same, expected coach Norvell to be the same excited, hype-man. And expected all the coaches to be the same caring, loving people that they are,” Lester said.
Something different that Lester did is see was an FSU coaching staff without former defensive back Marcus Woodson, who took the co-defensive coordinator position at Arkansas. He discussed the impact that this will have on his recruitment.
I just told coach (Mike) Norvell the same thing,” Lester said. “Once I heard Coach Woodson was leaving, it just separated me from him in our relationship individually. I’m not saying that I don’t want to talk to coach Woodson anymore, but just saying I will probably talk to him less, because he left, but with Florida State as a brand, it did nothing. I’m locked in with Florida State for itself and the rest of the coaches. When I started getting recruited, I wasn’t only talking to him, there’s about 50 other coaches. So, when he left, you’re down one, but next person up.”
Regarding new FSU defensive back coach Pat Surtain, Lester said that he has yet to speak with him, but he did offer his thoughts on the hire.
“I don’t know much about him, himself, but just knowing about his son, and where he’s at right now, and knowing about the background that the coaches gave me on him. To me, it sounds like the almost perfect fit to the perfect team,” Lester expressed. “He sounds like a great dude to help these kids, kids like me, to improve as men and improve as football players. He seems like the one that can come and get it done, and bring this school back to DBU.”
The 6-foot-1, 171-pounder spoke on his ongoing relationship with head coach Mike Norvell and offered insight into the man that Norvell is and his coaching philosophy.
“I talk to coach Norvell a lot, really. He’s a great dude,” Lester explained. “Out of all the head coaches I’ve met, he’s the most excited, amped up, energetic. He’s more about the kids than anything else. He just wants the kids to be the best (version of) them. That guy just wants to be in a position to help anybody he can to get them where they want to be. That’s what pumps him up, excites him more. He’s excited to come to work with kids that have the same mindset as him. He always talks about how if he’s going to recruit anyone, he’s going to recruit a kid that has heart. That says a lot about him. He’s not just recruiting for the kid with the most talent, he’s recruiting for the kids that love the game and will be here every day like it’s their last, and that’s the type of team and type of people that I want to be around.”
FSU has struggled to get top prospects on campus due to poor play in recent years. Lester commented on the FSU’s on-field success and where he thinks they are headed as a program.
“I’ve been a Seminole my whole life, just the past three years, I’ve been watching and just hearing the things they were saying about FSU,” Lester said. “Capping the season off (with a win), it was a great way to approach the situation. A lot of people two years ago said FSU was going down the drain. Now after this year, it’s like how it’s supposed to be, and it’s only going to get better. So just leaving off this year and going to next year, I feel like there’s a lot more still to be done. The 10-3 season they already had, going into next year I feel like is going to be one of the special years in the turnaround for the Seminoles.”
He continued to express his feelings toward FSU when he was asked about their standing with him within his recruitment.
“I’ve been a Seminole my whole life,” Lester said. “When I was in youth league, my youth team was called the Seminoles. Before I even started getting recruited by the Seminoles, I was still a Seminole before anything. Like I had offers before the Seminoles, but at heart, I was still a Seminole. No matter if I end up here or somewhere else, the Seminoles will always be that team in my heart. I’m just attached to them.”
On Jan 1, Lester posted his list of top five schools that includes FSU, Florida, Alabama, Ohio State, and Georgia. He discussed whether he has a leader in his recruitment and offered some wisdom in his mindset regarding announcing a clear leader.
“I wouldn’t say there’s a leading team, but I just released my top 5 schools,” Lester said. “If anybody is a leader, it’s Florida State, but everybody kind of sits in the same spot right now. I have different feelings for different teams, obviously, but just taking the best chances and opportunities before narrowing anything else down. I’m trying to keep every team, university in the same spot, and not downplay one of them… It wouldn’t matter if I was to commit to somewhere else, like, Florida State would always be the winner in my heart. Just personally, Florida State is where my heart is.”
He announced that he is about nine months from making a commitment, and he wanted to take all five of his official visits before making that decision.
Lester said that each official visit will be used at his top five schools, but said he will be back at FSU “as much as possible.” He said he will likely visit FSU more than any other program in his top five during the remainder of season. Lester has also visited FSU more than any other school up to this point in his recruitment.
“I come back here a lot because I’ve always been a Seminole, so it’s a dream come true coming to this school just to hang out,” Lester explained. “So, like, if there was anywhere to go, and we just wanted to go to a school to hang out for the day, the first choice would be Florida State. We’d just hop in the car and drive down here. They have open arms all the time. Even if they’re off, they’ll come in just to have me here. So before anywhere else, I’ll come to Tallahassee. And we’ll roll past Gainesville to get here.”
Lester slots as the No. 3 cornerback prospect and No. 22 overall prospect in the class of 2024 by the 247sports Composite rankings.
