Amari

Gainer

According to Gainer’s (6'3/215) father, Herb, another car ran a red light in Tallahassee and totaled the Dodge Dart that Amari was driving. It’s the type of accident scenario that keeps people up at night, but fortunately the offending vehicle didn’t hit the driver’s side door directly. On the field, Gainer was a key contributor to the Seminoles defense posting 63 tackles, 29 solo, 3.0 sacks and two forced fumbles on the year. Gainer is still expected to play in FSU’s December 31st Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl tilt against Arizona State.

Gainer -- whose father attended FSU -- opted to pledge his services to the Seminoles over Texas, Alabama and Miami. Explaining his decision, the 6-foot-2, 204-pounder said, “Just the relationship with the coaches and how comfortable I felt on campus. It was kind of just the way they treated me, interacted with me, and how they had a lot of interest.” There are some significant rankings disparities when it comes to Gainer’s place with the major recruiting outlets. While Scout.com does not place him in their 2018 master list (ditto for ESPN), Rivals sees him home at a lofty No. 32. He plays with a non-stop motor, but will need to pack on bulk over the next year-plus.

Gainer is a four-star freshman LB who will be playing the rover role for the Seminoles. The 6-foot-3, 208-pounder has been “looking good” in practice and is a linebacker to monitor for the future.

“If your head coach can leave before you get there and you have to go in blind and not knowing anything,” Gainer said. “It’s pretty unsettling not knowing what’s going on.” The 6-foot-2, 204-pounder said that other FSU recruits have the same feeling and also passed along that as of yet, Florida State’s coaching staff has not been in contact with him during this tumultuous stretch of rumors. Fisher has been heavily linked to the open position at Texas A&M. Should he jump ship, Oregon HC Willie Taggart is a name that the program is reportedly vetting to fill his shoes.