Three observations from FSU’s second practice

FLORIDA STATE — The Seminoles were back at the practice facility Thursday afternoon for their second day of fall camp. Members on the offensive line, as well as the special teams, stood out yesterday with improvement in their awareness and physicality. Today, the wide receivers got into a rhythm and quarterback Jordan Travis showcased improvements and elevated command of the offense.

Florida State will begin to ease into the season as practice starts to get more technical and more intense, but for now, they’ll evaluate the roster and work on fundamentals.

Passing game getting its groove

On the Seminoles' first day of practice, we saw a bit of rust from the receiving core. Things did not look fluid and some players were really struggling with the heat and humidity. Today they responded well with Jordan Travis looking sharp delivering some nice fades and bullets.

In particular, players like Jackson West, Malik McClain, Ontaria Wilson, and Deuce Spann all looked very good and made multiple plays over the course of practice. You can see by the growth from Spann in each and every practice that he is a very talented player.

West made a very nice play on the ball at the top of his route and after the catch, he violently shoved the defender in front of him out of the way. West has always had some grit to his personality and it is starting to show as he works his way more into the rotation.

*RB Lawrence Toafili had a nice showing in the passing game as well catching nearly every ball thrown his way. His hands are getting softer it seems as he progresses.

Depth and versatility in the trenches

What has really stood out in both practices is the versatility and depth along both lines.

Along the offensive line, the transfers are really showing out. The Seminoles have put themselves in a good position to deal with any injuries or inconsistencies that have plagued them in the past. So far, we have seen a lot of Kayden Lyles, Bless Harris, D’Mitri Emmanuel, and Jazston Turnetine who could all be impact players — especially as most of those guys can play multiple positions.

On the defensive side of the ball, the interior of the line is where the strength has been and it might be the best room on the entire team with Cooper and Lovett leading the way. But even on the edge, Jared Verse, Dennis Briggs, and Derrick McLendon have all shown a lot of promise through spring with that continuing into fall. While the Noles do not have Jermaine Johnson or Keir Thomas, this group collectively is deeper than 2021.

Defensive backs bounce back after offense wins early

Since spring practice, it has been clear that this defensive back room is one of the best groups for the Noles headlined by Akeem Dent and Jammie Robinson who are both poised for great things in 2022. They look extremely comfortable and are leading this defense on the back end. After getting a spring camp under their belts, both freshman McCall and Azareye’h Thomas have started to acclimate well to the next level at CB.

In practice today we saw an interception from Jarques McClellion after AJ Duffy tried to fit one into two defenders high pointing with Malik McClain. There was some confusion on whether or not it was a catch but when the pile was cleared, McClellion had the ball.

Sidney Williams had a TFL after the defense got pressure on the QB and they checked down to Ontaria Wilson. Travis Jay also had an interception in practice and Renardo Green had a nice PBU.