TALLAHASSEE, Fla. _ Jimbo Fisher and Nick Saban have had their fair share of recruiting battles, trying to lure top high school football players to the Florida State and Alabama football teams, respectively.
One battle Florida State came out on top on was for former five-star running back Jacques Patrick, a former Orlando Oak Ridge High standout.
Patrick remembers sitting down with his high school coach Jim Buckridge, Saban and former offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin, now the head coach at Florida Atlantic, in early December 2014 while the Alabama coaches were town for a college football awards ceremony.
"Kiffin tried to get me to take an official visit, but I was already committed to Florida State," Patrick recalled after Thursday's practice. "Saban came down there, and Saban made his pitch. At the end of the day, I just knew I wanted to be here at Florida State.
"Nothing against them; I know they have a great program. But I felt like my future could have been better here, and I still have no regrets for it."
Patrick told Saban and Kiffin he'd entertain the idea of taking an official visit to Alabama, but ultimately passed after enrolling early into FSU in January 2015.
While Patrick considered Alabama's recruiting efforts, he knew playing for Fisher, who first offered Patrick a scholarship when 14 years old, was the right move.
"I can't say exactly what Saban told me. It was funny," Patrick said of Alabama's pitch. "It was a good pitch, but at the end of the day I had my belief. I believed in Jimbo, and I still believe in him still to this day. I'm glad I made the decision I made."
Patrick is expected to start at running back for FSU in the season opener against Alabama on Sept. 2.
