JUST-IN: FSU Football Lands Former Alabama Football Cornerback Out Of Transfer Portal
The Seminoles are bringing in a prospect with a ton of potential to their defensive backfield.
Florida State’s defensive backfield took a massive step forward in 2023 under the tutelage of Patrick Surtain Sr. from the Miami Dolphins. The Seminoles were the only team in the country to force more incompletions than completions as the defense consistently shut down opponents through the air.
With the team losing a pair of starting cornerbacks as Renardo Green and Jarrian Jones move onto the NFL, there’s a need for more talent and experience ahead of the spring. The Seminoles have been evaluating a handful of defensive backs in the NCAA Transfer Portal to fill the gap.
On Saturday evening, Alabama cornerback transfer Earl Little Jr. announced on social media that he was continuing his college career at Florida State. Little Jr. is coming off a visit to Tallahassee that began on Thursday and spanned into Saturday morning. It’s believed to be the only trip he took after entering the portal a couple of days ago.
The Florida native was one of FSU’s top targets in the 2022 class before ultimately signing with the Crimson Tide. Starring at American Heritage High School, he totaled 34 tackles during his season senior while playing alongside Marvin Jones Jr. and being coached by Surtain Sr. At the time, Surtain Sr. was the head coach for the Patriots.
Little Jr. played sparingly during his two years at Alabama while dealing with injuries and an experienced room in front of him. He appeared in eight games this past season, recording two tackles with the majority of his playing time coming on special teams. Little Jr. was limited to just three appearances during his first year with the program after suffering a hamstring injury.
The hope is that he’ll be able to regain the form that made him a top prep prospect as he rejoins Surtain Sr. Little Jr. will have an opportunity to make an immediate impact on the secondary.
The 6-foot-0, 175-pound cornerback was regarded as the No. 84 overall prospect, the No. 12 CB, and the No. 10 recruit in the state of Florida in the 2022 class according to 247Sports. He’s the No. 123 overall prospect and No. 12 CB in the transfer portal.
Florida State adds Little Jr. to a room that includes redshirt senior Fentrell Cypress II, redshirt senior Greedy Vance, junior Azareye’h Thomas, sophomore Quindarrius Jones, redshirt freshman Ja’Bril Rawls, redshirt freshman Edwin Joseph, true freshman Charles Lester III, true freshman Cai Bates, true freshman Jamari Howard, and true freshman Ricky Knight III.
Little Jr. is the fourth transfer to join the Seminoles since December. The program has also added former Georgia defensive end Marvin Jones Jr, former Oregon State/Clemson quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, and former LSU wide receiver Jalen Brown over the last few weeks.
