James Cook took what his mother Varondria Burnett describes as a “last-minute” official visit to Florida State this weekend.
Did the Seminoles make a big push?
“He’s just taking an official,” Burnett said. “Nothing serious.”
The 4-star UGA commit is the younger brother of Dalvin Cook. Dalvin Cook essentially rewrote the Florida State all-time rushing records during his three years with the program.
Burnett described the visit as a gesture of respect to one of Willie Taggart’s first hires for the Seminoles.
Taggart tapped former Miami Central coach Telly Lockette to coach tight ends on his new staff.
Lockette had spent the previous three seasons coaching running backs at Oregon State. Prior to that, he was the coach at Miami Central. Lockette coached both Dalvin Cook and Devonta Freeman on the way to Florida state titles in 2010 and 2012.
Both Cook and Freeman are now in the NFL. Cook is recovering from a season-ending left knee injury with the Minnesota Vikings. Freeman stars for the Atlanta Falcons.
“Coach Lockette asked and [James] went,” Burnett said. “We’ve been a part of FSU for three years. Coach Lockette has also meant a lot to Dalvin and Miami Central. No big deal.”
James Cook was also committed to play for Florida State. For a time. He de-committed on July 4 after becoming very interested in Georgia.
The nation’s No. 3 RB prospect for 2018 took his official visit to UGA for the Mississippi State game and committed approximately five weeks later.
The Miami Central standout is a big part of Georgia’s effort to effectively replace graduating seniors Nick Chubb and Sony Michel with a pair of All-Americans plucked from the 2018 class.
That’s Cook and 5-star UGA commit Zamir White. White will sign on Dec. 20 and enroll early in January after he takes a trip to the U.S. Army All-American Game.
What about Cook? Is there anything to worry about after the “no big deal” and “nothing serious” summations of that trip?
DawgNation found it interesting that Burnett did not accompany her son on that visit. She was in Minnesota this weekend with her other son Dalvin.
Burnett has raised her sons as a single mother. The thinking here is that no coach in this world — even an impressive recruiter like Taggart — could flip James without her around.
UGA running backs coach Dell McGee has established a strong bond with this family that goes back over a year. That’s a lot of catch-up for FSU here.
Cook still plans to sign on Dec. 20. He also recently tweeted out his support to White as he recovers from a recent knee injury.