This week's Scout.com Player in the Spotlight is Devonta Freeman. Linked is his player profile page on Scout.

Recruiting background:

Considered one of the most versatile runners in the country, effectively running between the tackles and capable of using his 4.5 40-yard dash speed to turn the corner...a four-star prospect by both Rivals.com and Scout.com...ranked the No. 10 running back and the No. 108 overall player in the nation by Rivals.com and the No. 9 running back by Scout.com...no. 15 running back by ESPN...rated as the No. 5 running back and the No. 52 overall player in the nation by 247Sports...helped lead Miami Central to the 2010 Class 6A state title and was named the MVP after gaining 308 yards on 36 carries - falling just 20 yards shy of a state championship game record...as a senior ran for Miami-Dade County-leading 2,208 yards and 26 touchdowns...recorded 663 rushing yards and six touchdowns in the final two games of the state playoffs...rushed for 545 yards and two touchdowns as a junior back-up to Kentucky signee Brandon Gainer...first Team All-Dade by The Miami Herald...member of the Times-Union's Florida Super 75 where he was rated as the No. 4 running back...No. 24 on the SuperPrep Elite Top 50 and No. 4 on the SuperPrep Florida 110.

A lot of sharp people will tell you that Freeman, and not James Wilder Jr., is the best back FSU brought in last cycle. That's not a slight of Wilder, but rather a compliment to Freeman.

Feeman is built like a rock, at only 5'8" tall, but every bit of 200 pounds. He runs hard, though he could run lower. So far this year, he's showed the ability to hit the correct hole at times, though he did struggle some early in the year.

Last week he had his breakout performance at Duke, rushing for 109 yards on 19 carries. But did he do anything special? Not really. As our film review showed, on most plays Freeman just ran through the fairly massive holes opened by the offensive line.

Still, Freeman shows promise. He is Florida State's leading rusher, and if he can learn the pass protections, he could be the starter for the rest of the season. Many fans are clamoring for that now, but with EJ Manuel's shoulder theoretically one hit away from shelving the starting QB for the year, pass protection is really important.

If he's put in the work and has them down, he'll be rewarded by playing what has been a porous Maryland run defense.

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