UPDATED: Florida State football, recruiting news: What does FSU need to return to the Playoff in 2017?

Football

Florida State held its first spring scrimmage on Monday and Jimbo Fisher was noticeably upset afterwards.

ESPN’s Heather Dinich addressed what each College Football Playoff contender needs to do to take the next step forward in 2017.

Florida State

Final 2016 CFP rank: No. 11

2017 playoff position: Even without Dalvin Cook, the Noles should enter the fall as a top-five team.

FSU will have the nation's attention from the start, as its season-opener against Alabama will highlight Week 1, but it's not a make-or-break game for either program. Instead, it will be the first glimpse into how FSU stacks up against a program that has played in the national title game each of the past two seasons -- and it will earn the Noles some scheduling credit in the eyes of the committee. FSU returns QB Deondre Francois, but the return of defensive back Derwin James from a knee injury can't be understated.

Playoff path: Beat Clemson. The winner of that game has gone on to win the ACC every year since 2011 -- and has been in the playoff each of the past three seasons.

Early enrollee Cam Akers has been making an early impression at Florida State this spring.

Recruiting

Bud Elliott did a write-up on Florida State quarterback target Joe Milton, who impressed while also showing room for improvement at a 7on7 tournament over the weekend.

The 6’4.5, 222-pound QB fires rockets all over the field. He can make throws others cannot. That arm, with his size and athleticism, is why some schools are high on him. He has picked up 13 new offers in 2017, including Florida, Michigan, Georgia, Pitt, Tennessee, Miami, and Louisville. Milton is on track to enroll in college for the spring semester, and wants to get his decision out of the way in spring or early summer.

Alumni

Dan Kadar’s latest NFL mock draft has one former Florida State player going in each of the first two rounds.

One of these two, DeMarcus Walker, had a scouting report compiled by Mile High Report addressing whether Walker could be a selection by the Broncos in the upcoming draft.

On the hardcourt, C.J. Moore of Bleacher Report evaluates Jonathan Isaac’s post-NCAA Tournament draft stock for the upcoming NBA Draft.

Stock: Level

What he did: Jonathan Isaac would look like an All-American one night and barely show up in the box score the next during the season. That held true in the NCAA tournament.

Isaac opened the tourney with 17 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two steals in a win over Florida Gulf Coast. During Florida State's blowout loss to Xavier in the round of 32, however, Isaac scored just eight points and fouled out in 33 minutes.

SB Nation, meanwhile, seems high on Isaac, putting him in one of the higher spots I have seen in its latest mock.

3) Phoenix Suns - Jonathan Isaac, SF, Florida State

Surprise! There’s a pick that shocks everyone in just about every NBA draft. Why not try to predict it?

The Suns already have Eric Bledsoe, Devin Booker, and Tyler Ulis, so they don’t really need Ball here. What Phoenix could use is a hybrid forward with shooting ability and a high defensive ceiling. Isaac is raw, but so were Marquese Chriss and Dragan Bender. It’s worth taking a gamble on his upside in this spot.

Other Sports

Florida State’s women got down big early (once again) in the Elite Eight to No. 1 seed South Carolina, but they were unable to come all the way back and pull off the upset.

Florida State baseball has something special planned for one of the all-time great college baseball players:

Don’t forget that the baseball team has a huge mid-week game vs. UF in Jacksonville tonight:

We all know how dominant FSU’s women’s softball team has been, but this is just insane: