With our final nine states, we have reached the point where we can comprise a full starting unit: 11 players on offense, 11 on defense, plus special teams. Florida is No. 8.

Players Who Have Seen Action At Notre Dame: 82 by our count, with current junior linebacker Michael Deeb (Plantaion) getting his first playing time last season in the final two games.

Most Recent To Sign Scholarship: Linebacker Te'Von Coney (Palm Beach Gardens) and running back Dexter Williams (Winter Garden) this February, with Coney an early enrollee.

Top Player From Florida:

All-time leading rusher and first-year Notre Dame running backs coach Autry Denson's (Lauderhill) 4,318 yards rushing from 1995-98 will be difficult to eclipse in today's spread principles while rotating multiple backs. His 47 career TDs (43 rushing) trail only Allen Pinkett's 53 on the all-time Irish chart. Denson made second-team AP All-American as a senior.

It's hard to believe Florida has never produced a consensus All-America player at Notre Dame. The first to receive any notice was senior center Mike Heldt (Tampa) in 1990: third team from the AP, second team from UPI and first team from Football News .

After biding his time behind Rick Mirer his first three seasons, McDougal watched freshman phenom Ron Powlus step into the top role during the 1993 preseason. But when Powlus suffered a season-ending injury the week before the opener, McDougal stepped in and remains the all-time pass efficiency rating king at Notre Dame with a 156.7 rating, 11 points higher than anyone else. He led the '93 Irish to an 11-1 campaign and debatable, if not controversial, No. 2 finish.

His college career began at corner until an opening game 17-15 loss at home to Northwestern. Later, it looked like he would move to flanker. Instead, he remained a mainstay at running back, eclipsing 1,000 yards rushing each of his last three years.

in the slot and Bobby Brown (Laudehill, 1996-99)

split wide.

The speedster Allen's 119 career receptions are the most ever by a Notre Dame running back. Brown paced the Irish in receiving in 1997 and 1999 and finished his career with 96 catches that averaged 15.8 yards and included 12 TDs.

The 6-7 Brown was Parade magazine's Player of the Year as a high school senior and a program-changer. Virtually no one thought he would leave the state and go to a program way up north that had been floundering. His enrollment prompted the move of incumbent tight end Andy Heck to left tackle (where he became an All-American and first-round pick) while Brown became a starter as a freshman for the 1988 national champs. Brown became a first-round selection.

With a lack of wideouts from the Sunshine State, we'll go to a double tight end set with the 6-5 McBride, who was primarily a blocker but was good enough to play in the NFL a couple of years.

Heldt is our center after never missing a start there in his three seasons, highlighted by the school record 23-game winning streak in 1988-89. Faine also was a three-year starter at center, receiving second-team All-America notice in 2002 en route to becoming a first-round NFL pick, but we can move him to guard. McGuire began his career at center behind Heldt, started at left tackle in 1990 and moved back to center after Heldt graduation - so we like his versatility at the other guard spot.

The 6-8 Curtin and 6-8 Young provide range at tackle. Young, who was awarded Florida's Gatorade Player of the Year honor over Tim Tebow as a high school senior, stepped in as the starter in game 1 and never missed answering the bell. His 50 starts were the school record until fellow offensive tackle Zack Martin broke it last season, finishing with 52. Curtin started at left tackle in 2001 and right tackle the following year.

Nix was the rock upon whom Notre Dame's upgrade along the defensive line under Brian Kelly began. The third-round pick was as the prototype anchor in the middle. Williams stepped into the starting lineup by the end of his freshman year at nose guard.

McGill came into his own as a senior on a 10-1-1 team with his 54 tackles and a team high eight QB pressures off the edge. Kunz was a four-year regular who could play inside or on the flank. It was tempting to include 2011 Freshman All-American Aaron Lynch (Cape Coral), but we opted for four-year regulars over the one-year wonder who transferred to South Florida.

Watson was a centerpiece of Notre Dame's surprising 8-0 start in 2002. The second-round pick had 294 career stops, 39 for lost yardage, and picked off seven passes, returning two for scores. Crum, currerntly a graduate assistant for the Irish, was a four-year starter who made 306 stops (23 for lost yardage) and forced seven fumbles. Whittington had 197 tackles and later played four seasons with the New York Giants.

Carter is the lone true corner, but free safety Terrell's speed probably could enable him to more than hold his own there. Carter picked off five passes each of his last two seasons before becoming a first-round pick after his junior year. Terrell provided a monumental boost at free safety for the 1988 national champs after playing receiver a year earlier. His interception return for a TD and deflection of a two-point pass in the 31-30 victory versus Miami are immortalized.

Motta was such a stalwart during the 12-0 regular season his senior year, he was awarded Defensive MVP while linebacker Manti Te'o was Team MVP. Covington, who started at outside linebacker as a sophomore, produced 185 tackles, 14 passes broken up and five interceptions during his career.

Safeties Greg Davis (Hollywood, 1988-91) and Brian Magee (Largo, 1992-95) also had strong careers.

One of the greatest kickers in NFL history, former walk-on Carney held the Notre Dame record for career field goals made with 51 until Kyle Brindza broke it last year. Turk started four seasons at punter. Speedster Johnson scored on a kickoff return in the 48-42 win at Hawaii in 1991 and averaged 40.9 yards on his 10 returns in '93, highlighted by a TD at Stanford. Cowart started four years as the long snapper.

Prior to the 1970s, Notre Dame players from Florida were almost non-existent, although the Zloch brothers - 1965 starting quarterback Bill and 1968 starting cornerback Chuck - were exceptions on Top 10 teams. It was a reflection of the times, as the NFL didn't even have football franchises in the South until Atlanta and Miami in 1966.

It wasn't until the late 1980s under head coach Lou Holtz and recruiting coordinator Vinny Cerrato that Notre Dame began to make inroads and become more of a player in the Sunshine State. Today, coming up empty-handed in Florida equates with disappointment.

Former assistant Tony Alford was renowned for his work in Florida as a recruiter, including Nix and current running backs Tarean Folston, Greg Bryant and Williams. or linebacker Coney, yet Florida native Denson could help take it to an even high level. Four of the 12 verbal commits this year so far hail from the state, most recently guard Parker Boudreaux (Orlando). The Irish also have received pledges from two IMG Academy teammates in Bradenton, running back Tony Jones and safety Spencer Perry. Joining Perry as a commitment from the Irish Invasion camp last month was receiver Kevin Stepherson (Jacksonville). About a dozen other Floridians are being pursued, from quarterback Xavier Gaines to athlete Devin Studstill (Palm Beach Gardens).

This state has cultivated outstanding talent for Notre Dame the past quarter-century, and the expectation is that can be at least matched, if not surpassed, over the next 25 years.