First Practice: March 19
Spring Game: April 14
The Seminoles started last season with dark-horse national title hopes. Those were quickly dashed following a rash of injuries. After winning the ACC Atlantic in 2010, FSU slid back, ceding the division crown to Clemson.
Hope springs eternal in Tallahassee yet again. FSU is no less talented now than it was a year ago when talk of playing for the crystal ball was bubbling up. The ‘Noles have relied so heavily on youth in Jimbo Fisher’s first two seasons that this spring will be about perfecting what’s already in place and building a little depth.
Stability Factor (1 = chaos; 5 = rock solid): 5
Jimbo Fisher, FSU’s head coach and offensive architect, is firmly entrenched heading into his third year. Following a dalliance with Auburn, defensive coordinator Mark Stoops is returning to lead a loaded defense. FSU suffered no surprising defections or losses to the NFL. A total of 18 Seminole starters are back.
This is about as stable as a program gets right now.
Under the Microscope: Playmakers
The easy answer here is the offensive line, where injuries have forced position coach Rick Trickett to reach deep into his bench at times to fill in for missing veterans.
However, the general lack of dynamic threats on the offensive side of the ball has puzzling, to say the least. The school that produced talents like Peter Warrick and Tamarick Vanover really hasn’t had a home run hitter lately who strikes fear in the hearts of defenses.
With a full season under his belt, sophomore receiver Rashad Greene looks like a strong candidate to be the guy who finally puts it together and emerges as the big play producer that the ‘Noles have lacked.
Locked and Loaded: Defensive Line
To call FSU’s defensive line “stacked” would be like saying Kentucky’s basketball team is “alright.” The Seminoles have legit NFL-caliber players at every starting position, as well as a few more backing them up to boot. It may be the single strongest position group in all of college football.
Bjoern Werner, who will sit out the spring, and Brandon Jenkins stand out as possibly the biggest difference-makers in the bunch, but it’s really a matter of splitting hairs. The biggest issue for this group this spring will be figuring out how they want to allocate snaps in the fall.
Jockeying for Position: Offensive Line
FSU’s offensive line had an up-and-down season in ’11. Unfortunately for E.J. Manuel, the down parts translated into an injury-filled season for the FSU quarterback.
The big uglies spent plenty time of their own in the training room a season ago, contributing to the line’s struggles. The upside: With so many blockers called into action, that experience should help accelerate their growth going forward.
It’s up to Trickett now to mix and match this spring to find the right combination up front heading into the fall. Will that group include gigantic juco transfer Daniel Glauser?
Name to Know: Mario Pender
An early enrollee out of Cape Coral, Fla., the freshman Pender will likely get plenty of action from the jump. The ‘Noles boast plenty of talented runners in their backfield, but many are missing in action for a variety of reasons. Most notably, Fisher announced Monday that Devonta Freeman, who led the team in rushing last season as a freshman, would miss the spring with an injury.
Pender should have a chance to make a splash right away.
Spring will be a success if…: The passing game gets in sync
Any way you so choose to slice it, the Seminoles were pretty pedestrian through the air last year. While the raw stats may look alright, FSU ranked 54th in the nation in Passing S&P+. That will work against Wake Forests of the world — or not — but that dog won’t hunt against the big boys.
Injuries definitely hampered the passing game last season, which is all the more reason for Fisher and his staff to pay particular attention this spring to Manuel’s chemistry with his pass catchers. If FSU can sort out its air attack this spring, it should go a long way to putting this team back in the hunt for a national title in ’12.
