Observations from Florida State football's first spring practice
By: Curt Weller - The OsceolaOFFENSE
Probably the newcomer everyone was most excited to see Tuesday was transfer quarterback DJ Uiagalelei. The former Clemson and Oregon State QB brings the experience that FSU's quarterback room badly needed.
But how was his first practice? I'd say a mixed bag but trending positive. He looked like a quarterback that has played a lot of college football at moments, but also had glimpses of looking like a quarterback going through his first practice in a new offensive scheme and with an entirely new set of teammates around him.
He made some exceptional throws. During 1-on-1s, he made what would probably be assessed as a perfect throw to the sideline, placing the ball right over the hands of a well-positioned defensive back and into his receiver's hands. The pass was dropped but that's not an indictment of what was of the better throws of the day.
Uiagalelei threw a beautiful deep ball perfectly in stride to Destyn Hill in 1-on-1s as well and made a few nice throws in 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 as well. He also had some throws that I'm sure he would want back. In the end, it's fair to think that more practical experience with these players and in this offense -- something that can't be faked -- will make Uiagalelei consistently look the part of what FSU expected to get from him.
The Osceloa
As for the other new quarterback of note, true freshman Luke Kromenhoek, I pretty quickly saw what FSU saw in him. He throws an incredibly catchable ball. It's often well-positioned and has the right amount of zip on it. I thought the game definitely sped up considerably for Kromenhoek in the 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 periods. After a strong start, he looked like a freshman late. That's not especially surprising or especially noteworthy. It'll be interesting to see how he adapts to the speed of the game at this level over the course of spring camp.
I thought Brock Glenn really grew into the practice. It wasn't the best start but once he had defenders going up against the receivers he was throwing to, he stepped his game up. Right before Uiagalelei's bomb, Glenn threw an equally impressive deep ball to Malik Benson, who used his impressive speed to run it down.
At running back, it's hard to read too much into a practice without pads but some things made an impression despite that.
Jaylin Lucas' quickness really stands out. Each time he touched the ball, his acceleration really stood out. On one particular screen pass, he hit the sideline and hit top speed almost immediately, turning what looked like a modest gain into a big one.
Caziah Holmes also caught a screen pass from Uiagalelei which he turned into a big gain.
Freshman running back Kam Davis does not look like a first-year college football player. He could physically pass for an upperclassman who has a few seasons of production under his belt and he is always faster than you think he's going to be as well.
Looking at the wide receivers, Benson is as advertised. He's incredibly fast and a polished route-runner as well. He had one of the better catches of the day, running a quick slant before diving down to the ground to catch a low pass that was inches away from hitting the turf.
There are areas where he can refine his game. Mike Norvell got onto him a bit for not carrying the ball close enough to his body and also walked through the intricacies of route-running that he didn't do well enough during 11-on-11. It's fair to wonder if Norvell was pouring that time into him out of a belief that Benson is a critical member of the FSU offense for the upcoming season.
LSU transfer Jalen Brown's speed is very real as well. On one 7-on-7 rep, he blew by Azareye'h Thomas off the line, something that doesn't happen very often. He also had a catch over the middle from Glenn late in the practice. His body looks like a track runner (no surprise, he was one in high school) but that athleticism also translates to the football field.
Perhaps the receiver with the most "wow" catches Tuesday was sophomore Destyn Hill. He caught the deep ball from Uiagalelei in 1-on-1s then caught a beautiful small-window throw from Uiagalelei in 7-on-7 with a leaping catch. The playmaking we saw last preseason from Hill was immediately evident once again on the first day of spring.
Among the freshmen wideouts, Lawayne McCoy is a remarkably fluid route-runner -- shades of what we saw from Vandrevius Jacobs last spring -- and Camdon Frier is a bit bigger than expected. He's put on a few pounds since arriving but still moves well.
At tight end, Landen Thomas has lost a bit of weight since enrolling and it seems to have helped his athleticism. He's got good hands, moves well for his size and caught balls Tuesday at a high rate, often from Kromenhoek.
On the offensive line, it's very hard to take away too much from the first spring practice. The main takeaway is how guys have transformed their bodies this offseason.
Jaylen Early looks lighter and leaner than a year ago and looks quicker in pass pro.
Chris Otto is one guy who trained at multiple positions on the OL on Tuesday and he is another guy that has changed his physical makeup, looking leaner and stronger.
As FSU offensive coordinator Alex Atkins said would be the case Monday, Julian Armella was working some at guard during Tuesday's practice. With less depth there, this could present a quicker path onto the field for the redshirt sophomore.
DEFENSE
It's fair to say that the FSU defense probably "won" the first day of spring if a winner had to be picked. That's normal for early in camp and was more about what the defense, especially the secondary, did rather than what the offense didn't do.
If we had to pick a single best player of the day for FSU, Azareye'h Thomas is where we would land. With the team losing a pair of lockdown cornerbacks in Renardo Green and Jarrian Jones, Thomas looked up to the task of replacing Green in the starting lineup and did it while wearing his new No. 8 which Green used to wear.
Thomas won each of his 1-on-1 reps and also had multiple PBUs in 7-on-7 and 11-on-11. He was the epitome of locking down his side of the field and allowed few if any catches Tuesday despite a number of balls thrown his way. He was also taking on a leadership role, coaching up a few younger players like freshman Jamari Howard.
The playmaking in the secondary extended far beyond Thomas, though. Early in 1-on-1s, FSU DBs had interceptions on three consecutive reps. Greedy Vance had an interception where he all but ran the route for Ja'Khi Douglas and was perfectly positioned for the pick. Fentrell Cypress had great step-for-step downfield coverage on a deep ball to Darion Williamson which set up an interception when the ball bounced off the receiver's helmet and into the air. And then Quindarrius Jones picked off the next pass, giving the secondary quite a streak of plays.
It bears mentioning here that the FSU defensive backs appeared to be talking quite a bit of trash during these 1-on-1s. It was surely all in good fun, but that speaks a bit to the mentality of the group entering spring.
During positional drills early in practice, the secondary worked on passing off receivers based on coverage vs. routes concepts.
Sophomore safety Conrad Hussey has gotten a little bigger but it doesn't seem to have affected his mobility whatsoever. He still moves exceptionally well and made a few plays Tuesday afternoon.
Alabama DB transfer Earl Little Jr. was very active in drills. He seems very comfortable in the nickel cornerback role and looks to be a guy who could be an early contributor there. You can tell he’s been around a lot of football.
I didn't think it was the best day for the freshman defensive backs. Each of them got thrown into the deep end a bit going up against some talented wideouts in 1-on-1s and didn't always acquit themselves especially well either by letting the receivers beat them or doing what would likely be deemed pass interference to win reps.
However, even through some expected struggles adapting to this level, Charles Lester III's twitchyness stood out. He can run as expected.
On the defensive line, there was a moment during stretching where the four transfer additions there (Tomiwa Durojaiye, Marvin Jones Jr., Sione Lolohea and Grady Kelly) all were standing next to each other. That made it clear how this quartet certainly looks the part physically even before the pads come on.
Jones looked bigger from when he arrived when we saw him last week at Tour of Duty and that was again the case Tuesday. His listed weight is up seven pounds to 257, but he still moves remarkably well for his position. There was one 11-on-11 play late in the practice where he pursued Glenn to the sideline, keeping up with the fleet-footed quarterback all the way out of bounds. He converged with Daniel Lyons for a sack on the very next play.
Patrick Payton added 15 pounds from his 2023 weight (239) to the 254 he's listed at entering this spring. That is showing up as he looked much bigger Tuesday.
Fellow defensive end Byron Turner Jr. looks like he has added some very good weight as well. He looks as big as he has been since he got to FSU.
Entering year two with the program, Darrell Jackson looks to be in the best shape of his FSU tenure. He's big and powerful and you can tell guys like him and Payton are some of the veterans of the team because of the high level of technical execution that Odell Haggins expected from them during drills.
With the defensive line as a whole, they're a big and long group but some of the younger players are still in learning mode. Haggins was adamant about them going through drills slower today to get the little details right first rather than speed through it without proper technique. It will be interesting to see their newcomers growth over the course of a spring under him and John Papuchis.
At linebacker, Alabama transfer Shawn Murphy's athleticism stands out. He can move well and has impressive closing speed. Sophomore Blake Nichelson has a similar skill-set and is very quick but could maybe stand to add a bit more weight.
The veteran of the room, DJ Lundy, looks to be in the best shape of his career. He might be a step faster, which would be a big deal as he likely steps into a starting role.
Sophomore Justin Cryer appears more confident in reading his keys in his second year in the program. That's also important as he pushes for a potential starting spot or key rotational role.
