Ok, training camp is in a few short weeks and I need to get myself in gear as we prepare for the start of another exciting season.

The running game is going to be the key to success for the Seminoles this year. The offensive line is still a work in progress but they will be better and tougher this year so the running backs have to produce.

Overview: The running game at FSU has been, at best, disappointing since around 2003. Most of that can be blamed on the troubles up front but to be fair the running backs, Lorenzo Booker and now senior Antone Smith, haven’t helped much. Smith’s production in 2007 can be broken down into two different seasons – the first half where he didn’t get much outside of two 40+ runs against Clemson and Colorado respectively and the second half of the season when Smith gained over a 100 yards in three of his final six games, most notably a 17 carry, 156-yard performance in the Music City Bowl against Kentucky.

The only other returning rusher with any sort of statistics is Preston Parker and we’ll get to him in the receivers portion.

2008 Signees: Tavares Pressley, a JuCo All-American from El Camino Community College by way of Desoto County, Florida, was the big signing for Jimbo Fisher’s offense. Late in the year Fisher was able to add 6-foot, 218-pounder Carlton Jones from Tampa Middleton and highly-versatile Jacksonville prep star Jermaine Thomas. All three players bring something completely different to the table.

(Note: FSU also signed Georgia prospect Debrale Smiley but he did not qualify for the fall season).

Starting Experience: Smith has over a dozen starts and Parker started two games at the position last season.

Playing Experience: Seddrick Holloway is the fullback and is utilized for blocking mostly, occasionally he’s good at it. Smith’s touchdown against Alabama was thanks to a terrific lead block from Holloway. Marcus Sims has also received occasional touches but been hampered by injuries.

Spring: With Smith taking it easy during the spring it gave redshirt freshman Brandon Paul the opportunity to play in the backfield a bit. Results for Paul were mixed as his speed and burst are a nice change of pace but there are questions about his ability to take the pounding that a running back takes and his ability to run in between the tackles. So Paul remains a player without a position (psst…play him at cornerback).

What to Look For: I believe Smith is primed for a 1,000-yard season if he’s healthy, if he isn’t watch for Pressley (if he makes it on campus, which he should by the end of the month) to be the next guy in line with Sims being used primarily for short yardage and either Jones or Thomas taking a redshirt although Thomas could be moved to receiver or find his way on the field as a third-down back. Many people believe that Pressley will assume the reins from Smith at some point during the season, but if Smith holds to the form he showed in the second half of the season I don’t see it happening. Nonetheless the running back competition will be among the most interested and heated during training camp.

...Good story from the Tallahassee Democrat on Walter Dix after he qualified for the 100 and 200-meter events at the Olympics.

His patience has paid off. He could have left for the money after his junior year, he came back instead, won another title for the school and got his degree.

He had the major shoe/apparel companies pining at him before the trials and he shunned them to wear his Garnet & Gold singlet one last time. The result -- a win in the 200 meter and more money!

I know I'll be up early in the AM to watch him go for the gold next month.

....I hope this is not a trend..

ESPN.com's Heather Dinich reports that offensive lineman Evan Bellamy will miss the 2008 season with a blood clot in his leg.

Bellamy was hospitalized for the clot late last week. This will open up the spot for an incoming freshman, most likely Andrew Datko or Zebrie Sanders, to walk in and take a spot with the starting five.

We've hit the two month mark before the start of the football season. Training camp starts in a few weeks and all but a chosen few players have enrolled and already reported for offseason player workouts.

The incoming freshmen already have a slogan ("It Starts Here!") and Warchant is even selling the shirts.

So today's multi-part preview starts with the most important position on the field -- quarterback and FSU finally has a couple of good options.

Overview: Drew Weatherford and his 31 starts lasted a couple of days in spring before going down with a knee injury and opening the door for another pre-season competition. Christian Ponder, however, might be the toughest competition Weatherford has faced during his four-plus years in the program. Ponder's work ethic and academic accomplishments are the stuff of legends. He has already received his bachelor's degree and will start graduate school this fall. He took advantage of his spring to show how far he has progressed and the potential he has should he enter the season as starter. He also has one big fan -- Jimbo Fisher. So is this the end of the Weatherford era at FSU? Many fans feel like Weatherford will get the starting nod because of Bobby Bowden's conservative ways and the fact that he's always been enamored by the quarterback despite his lack of consistency on the field. Others, who believe that Fisher is calling the shots, feel there is little doubt that Ponder will start the opening game. D'Vontrey Richardson, who was the first quarterback to go "live" during spring in ten years, should see the field in situational downs as long as his eligibility issues are cleared up.

2008 Signee: E.J. Manuel was a top five quarterback prospect. The recruit from Virginia Beach says he doesn't want to declare a redshirt right away, he's just trying to compete and see what happens. Most expect, however, he will be redshirting if possible.

Starting Experience: Weatherford is the only one of the four quarterbacks that has started. He has 31 starts to his credit but he's also, quite possibly, the most undecorated quarterback FSU has had in the modern era with no appearances on an ACC team with the exception of being named to the All-ACC Freshman team in 2005. His 0-6 record against Florida and Clemson hasn't helped his legacy either.

Playing Experience: Ponder's debut came in a hostile environment against Virginia Tech. However, the redshirt freshman, showed an incredible amount of poise, leading the Seminoles back from a 20-6 deficit into a 21-20 advantage before the momentum shifted again. Despite the loss, many were impressed with Ponder's showing given the situation. Richardson made his debut against Alabama running in a "Wildcat" formation and later appeared in the Virginia Tech game and in the Music City Bowl at several positions.

What to Look For: Another open competition. As much as Bowden is supposedly enamored with Drew, his influence isn't enough to get a green light from Jimbo Fisher. Fisher, the head coach-in-waiting, has to make a splash this season and win ball games. I think he believes Weatherford is very servicable, but moreso as a mature backup to Ponder. Keep an eye on the first two weeks of camp and if Fisher hasn't named a starter yet, expect to see Ponder trotting out with the offense on opening week.

My vacation is over and it's time to start discussion for the football season..tomorrow.

As for today....WHITNEY!

...Whether it's FSU and Miami, we'll see at 2 p.m. on ESPN.

Elih Villaneuva , a Miami native, will get the start today and it's one he really covets.

Meanwhile this is the seventh elimination game FSU has played during this CWS and of course they are 6-0 so far, scoring 99 runs in the process.

You can go on the FSU official athletic site  to listen to the live audio if you are at work.

All the Tallahassee Democrat  is offering inning-by-inning score updates via text.

Enjoy. Go NOLES!

...for the first time since 2000 as the Seminoles rallied from a 1-0 deficit to smoke da Shockers over two straight.

Here's some FSU Omaha Wallpaper  courtesy of Warchant.

Buster Posey continues cleaning up the season awards after being named Rivals.com Player of the Year.

FSU is in a Bracket with Miami, Georgia and Stanford. You can visit Hall of Canes  and my good friend Walter Villa for an update on the Canes.

The Seminoles will take on Stanford in the first game of the CWS on Saturday at 2 p.m.  Matt Fairel (12-2) vs. Jeremy Bleich (3-2) is your pitching matchup -- a battle of lefties.

...Remember Lorenzo Booker? Well he hasn't forgotten Florida State and is still complaining about his time in Tallahassee...It's the usual song and dance....yadda he loved being a Seminole....yadda he wasn't used right....yadda there was no accountability....We've heard it all before and I believe it's mostly true but it's in the past and I wish players would leave it there.

“Jeff Bowden would consistently come into meetings and tell us it was all our fault, all our fault,” said Booker, who turns 24 later this month and, with 2,389 yards, is the seventh-leading rusher in FSU history. “He told one coach, ‘I just call plays off the top of my head.’ Who does that? This isn’t ‘Madden.’ You’ve got to actually put a game plan together. There was just no accountability, and a person who doesn’t have accountability can’t teach another person to have it. "

Full article is here .

My take on this is simple: I don't want to hear about it. Jeff Bowden never deserved the job, he was a disaster and a failure while he was at FSU. Many of the fans, myself included, were outraged or at least very skeptical of the hiring from the beginning.

Booker, while never the All-American we thought he would be at FSU, was a classy kid. He was robbed by teammates (literally) and dealt with a terrible offensive staff of coaches but he kept quiet about that stuff until now. I wish him the best in the NFL and I'm sure he wants FSU to succeed until the new regime.

So I forgive him for this one outburst and I hope it's the only one we hear from him.  

Pitching Matchup:

Florida State - RHP, Elih Villanueva (7-2) vs. Wichita State - LHP, Rob Musgrave (11-1)

Buster Posey was drafted fifth  overall by the San Francisco Giants.

Wichita State had four players chosen on the first day of the MLB Draft. If you need to know anything about the Shockers is that their pitching is ALWAYS top notch. So if you are expecting another 74-run output, this might not be the weekend. But if the Noles can notch 6-7 runs, I expect to see them in Omaha.

Get out to Dick Howser Stadium if you can stand the heat and support the Garnet & Gold!

It's a winner-take-all battle tonight at Dick Howser Stadium as FSU will face Tulane for the second time in 24 hours.

To say the Noles are hot like fire on offense would be an insult to the baseball team because fire doesn't describe 58 runs on 64 hits over three games. That's just borderline ridiculous.

The game is tonight at 7 p.m. on SUN Sports for the right to advance to the Super Regional to face Wichita State. If the Seminoles win they will host the Shockers in the Super Regionals.

GO NOLES!