Five-star safety Matt Elam decides to attend Florida State instead of Florida

Matt Elam, a five-star safety from West Palm Beach Dwyer, who had been committed to Florida since 2008, switched his commitment to Florida State today.

Elam said that he believes he has a better opportunity to play early at Florida State.

"I just see better opportunity to come in and play and to have an impact as a freshman," Elam told Warchant.com. "They have two of the best cornerbacks in the country and I just feel like I can go in there and help make that secondary even better. They've got three of the best players in the country and I see a lot of things changing."

Elam, who is considered the state's top player, re-opened his recruiting process after UF coach Urban Meyer announced he was taking an indefinite leave of absence from the program.

"It was on my mind, but today I really made the decision," Elam told Warchant.com. "I was sitting down thinking like I can make a difference. If I go to Florida I really can't make a difference at Florida I can just jump on the bandwagon. I want to make a difference and I see a lot of good things there."

Elam may not be the only player to drop Florida. With the uncertainty surrounding whether Meyer will return, keeping recruits will be an issue. But the remaining UF coaches insist it won't be a major problem.

"We're selling the University of Florida and that's still a very good product,'' running backs coach Kenny Carter said.

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