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When we look at how a program is faring on the recruiting trail, one of the biggest barometers is how they're doing in their home state.
This is especially true in Florida.
As a pipeline state, Florida is a recruiting hub for every level of football in the country.
Teams have keyed in on the state for decades, and how in-state schools defend homegrown talent has been a large indicator of their success.
But as the college football's landscape has shifted in the NIL era, so too has recruiting.
Today, recruiting is much less regional.
While it is still an important piece of the puzzle, players are more willing than ever to venture far from home in search of the most optimal situation (financial or otherwise) while abandoning the dream of playing for a hometown school like Miami, Florida, or Florida State.
The evidence is in this cycle.
Four of the top five players in the USA TODAY Florida Top 100 are committed to the same out-of-state program, Texas A&M.
An out-of-state school, nor any school for that matter, has closed that effectively at the top of the leaderboard in the Sunshine State.
Zoom out further, and just seven of the top 25 committed players in the state have named an in-state school.
As teams like Texas A&M raid the state, programs like Miami and Florida are closing the gap elsewhere.
Miami builds top class with national talent Miami wanted some of the players now committed to the Aggies, especially the No.
1 overall player in the state St.
Thomas Aquinas offensive tackle Mark Matthews.
It's no secret Miami put together a significantly more competitive NIL package than Texas A&M for Matthews , and losing out on him hurt.
But it's far from the story of this class.
Mario Cristobal and his staff have handled business in Florida, an important checkmark when you see that most of their top producers from the national championship run played high school football in Florida.
Carol City WR Nick Lennear (No.
3) is the most exciting prospect in the state and will impact winning on Day 1 of his arrival, and the rest of their in-state commits are all from the South Florida area.
But the blue-chip 'Canes commits this cycle are largely not from Florida.
Lennear is one of three different 5-star committed, but the only one from Florida.
Much like Texas A&M has raided Florida, Miami has raided other football hotbed states like California and Alabama while keeping a great crop of talent home.
Miami flipped Long Beach Poly cornerback Donte Wright, the No.
1 overall player in California, away from his longtime Georgia commitment this spring.
They also beat USC, Cal and UCLA for 4-star Chaparral wide receiver Eli Woodard, the No.
14 overall player in California.
In Alabama, the No.
1 and No.
4 overall players have named the 'Canes.
Four-star Dothan cornerback Ai'King Hall was originally committed to Oregon before flipping to Miami, and Central offensive lineman Jatori Williams named the 'Canes over Auburn.
For good measure, Miami also flipped 5-star EDGE Jaiden Bryant, the No.
1 overall player in South Carolina, away from his LSU commitment.
Jon Sumrall's inaugural class at Florida already loaded Jon Sumrall knew exactly what the Florida Gators needed as a program, and has brought that to the recruiting trail.
Even players they didn't get a commitment from have had nothing but rave reviews about the new staff's energy and intensity.
The players they did get a commitment from in their home state are elite.
All seven of their in-state commits are ranked in the top 50 of the Florida Top 100, including the No.
1 quarterback (David Davidson, No.
10), No.
4 wide receiver (Eias Pearl, No.
11), No.
1 defensive lineman (Stive Bentley-Yondui, No.
19) and No.
1 ATH (Tramond Collins, No.
21).
The crown jewel in the class, however, is not from Florida.
Five-star Maxwell Hiller from Coatesville (Penn.) is the consensus No.
1 IOL in the nation and as coveted a player as they come this cycle.
The Gators offered Hiller late, just two weeks after Sumrall was hired and well after he already taken visits to schools like Alabama, Penn State, and South Carolina.
And still, the Gators were able to close the gap with the new staff and land a monstrous commitment a massive proverbial cherry on the sundae that is their 2027 class.
Florida also holds commitments from 4-stars defensive lineman Cahron Wheeler, offensive linemen Peyton Miller and Elijah Hutcheson and running back Andrew Beard from Maryland, Texas, Virginia and Georgia, respectively.
Florida State plugging the gaps with out-of-state blue chips Florida State , for a myriad of different reasons , is struggling in their home state.
The class is not as stacked as past Seminole classes, and FSU has maintained a respectable class by landing a few 4-stars from Georgia, Mississippi and Louisiana.
Defensive lineman Sam LeJune out of Poplar is a top-5 player in Mississippi and named the 'Noles over Auburn and Washington, and they beat Georgia for 4-star Camden County (Ga.) WR Sean Green.
Baton Rouge Catholic running back Jayden Miles is ranked as the No.
11 in Louisiana and took an official visit to Ohio State before named FSU.
With their trio of 4-stars and completing the flip for Effingham County (Ga.) safety Jernard Albright away from South Carolina, Mike Norvell & Co.
have been able to help stop the leaking in this class.
But the No.
57 class in the country , one spot above Fresno State and one below Michigan State, is a far cry from the standard in Tallahassee.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida's power football programs looking out of state for blue chip talent.