FSU sports information:

Redshirt junior defensive back Shyheim Brown was named to the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award Watch List Wednesday. The award is presented annually to the nation’s best defensive back by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame and Jim Thorpe Association.

Brown, from Lake City, has started 16 games with 92 tackles over three seasons at Florida State. He started all 14 games for the Seminoles in 2023, recording 53 tackles, 2.0 sacks, one interception, one fumble recovery and four pass breakups to earn third-team All-ACC recognition. Brown had a career-high eight tackles in wins at Florida and Clemson, he grabbed his first career interception in a home victory against No. 16 Duke and he recovered a fumble in FSU’s 24-7 win at Pitt.

As a redshirt freshman in 2022, Brown’s blocked extra point against LSU with no time remaining secured FSU’s 24-23 victory over the Tigers. In the 2023 season opener vs. No. 5 LSU in Orlando, Brown had four tackles with 0.5 sack. Brown’s sack came on 4th-and-1 in the second quarter with LSU inside FSU’s red zone.

Florida State has won the award twice previously, in 1988 (Deion Sanders) and 1991 (Terrell Buckley).

ACC players on Jim Thorpe Award Watch List:

Shyheim Brown, Florida State, Redshirt Junior, DB
Quincy Riley, Louisville, Redshirt Senior, DB
Aydan White, NC State, Senior, CB
Donovan McMillon, Pitt, Senior, DB
Jonas Sanker, Virginia, Senior, S

Disappointed that Madison, Hamilton, and Jay didn't address this issue in the Federalist papers....
Your thoughts?

About 20 photos from Tuesday morning of FSU's defensive players:

Don't know how many of you are car folks, but I just walked across the green from my house and saw an acquaintice who was test driving a 1941 Convertible Lincoln Zephyr. Only 16 known to still exist. 12 cylinder. Hand Made. This was in pristine condition. Pretty Cool............

Rising Florida State senior Gloria Muzito made her Olympic debut on Tuesday by swimming a personal best time of 55.95 in the women’s 100 free.

Muzito lowered the national record for Uganda, finishing 22nd overall. She established the previous mark at 56.01 at the 2024 African Games.

Julio Horrego swam in his second Olympic Games, placing 24th in the men’s 200 breast at 2:18.91.

Emma Terebo competed in the finals of the women’s 100 back, finishing seventh with a time of 59.40. Terebo will also compete individually in the 200 back on Thursday, and she could also swim the 4x100 medley relays.

(Thanks to Osceola intern Patrick Nelson, who writes his first story on Sara Tisdale. Nelson is an FSU senior and played lacrosse at Chiles High.)

Sara Tisdale, a well-known program builder and championship winner, will lead the newest FSU athletic program, which begins their first season in the spring of 2026.

ACC Representatives on the Outland Trophy Watch List:

Ozzy Trapilo, Boston College, Redshirt Senior, OT
Blake Miller, Clemson, Junior, OT
Joshua Farmer, Florida State, Redshirt Junior, DT
Darius Washington, Florida State, Redshirt Senior, OT
Weston Franklin, Georgia Tech, Senior, C
Michael Gonzalez, Louisville, Senior, OG
Jalen Rivers, Miami, Redshirt Junior, OT
Zeke Correll, NC State, Graduate Student, C
Justin Osborne, SMU, Graduate Student, C

The preseason for soccer is very short. FSU opens practice Wednesday, plays an exhibition against TCU on Aug. 9 at 7 p.m. in Tallahassee. There will not be any TV or a streaming broadcast for the FSU-TCU match.

FSU's season begins Aug. 15 at South Florida with a home opener Aug. 18 against North Florida.

"I don’t know whether it is or not, but I’d be shocked if there’s a shorter preseason for a college sport – 16 days of practice," FSU coach Brian Pensky said. "The days of two a days are over. It’s about protecting them. Protecting them physically, protecting them mentally so they can go be great when they need to be great."

He's talked with the freshmen about having a sense of urgency as this team won't have as many seniors as in 2023.

"I think the biggest difference is just the collection of older players. We started 10 seniors and fifth years last year. You can’t put a price on maturity, experience, all of that. That’s what that team had. And it had talent and it had determination. ... I think we have a pretty mature team. They’re just younger than last year’s team."

As a result of Seminoles playing games overseas for their national teams, FSU could be pretty thin for a stretch of 3-6 weeks that would likely start in the middle of August.

More from Pensky in the video below:

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The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) released its 2024 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List on Tuesday, July 30, selecting 75 defensive standouts from 56 schools in nine Division I FBS conferences plus Independents as contenders for the national defensive player of the year. Seven ACC student-athletes from seven different schools were named to the preseason watch list.

ACC Representatives on the Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List:

Peter Woods, Clemson, Sophomore, DE
Joshua Farmer, Florida State, Redshirt Junior, DT
Ashton Gillotte, Louisville, Senior, DE
Francisco Mauigoa, Miami, Senior, LB
Kaimon Rucker, North Carolina, Graduate Student, DE
Jonas Sanker, Virginia, Senior, S
Aeneas Peebles, Virginia Tech, Graduate Student, DT

(We'll have more from Tisdale when we meet her on Tuesday afternoon)

FSU sports information:

Sara Tisdale, an experienced developer of programs and proven winner, has been hired as Florida State’s inaugural women’s lacrosse head coach, Vice President and Director of Athletics Michael Alford announced Monday.

“This is an exciting time for Florida State athletics as we welcome Sara Tisdale to lead the launch of our intercollegiate women’s lacrosse team,” Alford said. “She brings a wealth of experience in establishing programs and has experienced early and sustained success everywhere she’s been. Coach Tisdale’s focus on developing an incredible culture within her programs was evident to me during our time together at Central Michigan and reinforced through the hiring process. Her teams win on the field and prioritize academics. She will fit right in with the standard of comprehensive excellence here, and I’m very excited to welcome Sara, Becca and Emma to the Florida State family.”

Tisdale, who coached the first lacrosse games at Eastern Michigan, Central Michigan and Augustana, comes to Tallahassee to establish FSU’s lacrosse program after two seasons at Eastern Michigan.

Tisdale is 114-86 in her 12-year career and has won four regular-season conference championships and three conference tournament titles. She has coached 34 all-conference selections, three Offensive Players of the Year, one Defensive Player of the Year and three Freshman of the Year honorees. In addition to their success on the field, Tisdale’s teams have been honored nine consecutive times with the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Association Honor Squad recognition for their work in the classroom and produced 118 individual academic all-conference selections.

“I am humbled and honored to join the Florida State family as the first head women’s lacrosse coach,” Tisdale said. “I would like to thank Michael Alford and Dr. McCullough for this incredible opportunity. Building a women’s lacrosse program at one of the most revered athletic and academic institutions in the country will attract elite lacrosse student-athletes to Tallahassee. The minute I stepped foot on campus it was obvious that everyone is invested in the success of Seminole student-athletes and the programs they are part of. Building Florida State lacrosse into a championship-caliber program with a culture that upholds a high standard in the classroom, on the field and in the community will be the immediate goal, and I cannot wait to get to work!”

The 2024 Eagles led the MAC in scoring offense, averaging 11.0 goals per game, and also led the conference in points per game, shots on goal per game, ground balls per game, draw control percentage and draws per game. EMU had the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year while placing three on the all-conference team and two on the All-Freshman Team. Tisdale’s 2024 squad posted a five-win improvement from the program’s inaugural 2023 season, ending the season tied for the highest winning percentage among MAC teams, and played in the semifinal round of the conference tournament.

Tisdale joined Eastern Michigan after starting the women’s lacrosse program at Central Michigan, where she coached for seven seasons and directed the Chippewas to 54 wins, two conference championships and the 2022 MAC Tournament title that earned CMU’s first NCAA Tournament berth in program history.

The 2022 team won a program-record 12 games and shared the regular-season conference championship before its conference tournament run. In 2021, CMU’s first season in the MAC, the Chippewas’ nine wins included a victory over Oregon. Tisdale oversaw the development of the MAC Offensive Player of the Year in both 2021 and 2022 as Natalie Karlen earned the honor in 2021 and Audrey Whiteside followed in 2022.

In 2019, Central Michigan set program records for goals, points, shots, shots on goal, draw controls and saves. Jocelyn Lamay was named the Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year, the program’s first such honoree. In 2018, the Chippewas brought home the program’s first conference championship by posting a 4-1 SoCon mark during a season that included a program-record six-game winning streak.

Tisdale became the head coach at Central Michigan in the summer of 2014 and began preparations for the first season of competition in 2016. Prior to CMU, she was hired in 2010 to develop the program at Augustana College in Illinois.

In three seasons at Augustana, Tisdale boasted a 51-8 record, including a dominant showing in 2014. That year, the Vikings won their first 19 games and led all Division III schools in scoring margin and total points. Augustana won the Midwest Women’s Lacrosse Conference regular-season and tournament championships for the second straight season and advanced to the third round of the Division III NCAA Tournament. Tisdale was named the MWLC and Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year. The 2013 team swept the MWLC regular-season and tournament titles in its second year as a program and first as an MWLC member. Tisdale’s first team in 2012 put together a 15-3 campaign while playing as an Independent.

Tisdale earned her bachelor’s degree in education from Central Michigan in 2006. She and her wife, Becca, have one daughter, Emma.

The Florida State women’s lacrosse program will play its first season of NCAA competition in the spring of 2026.

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Florida State earned a victory, and perhaps a significant one, in its case against the ACC.

FSU officials will receive an un-redacted copy of six ACC multimedia agreements — including those dating back to 2010 — as Judge John Cooper ordered them unsealed earlier this month as part of a joint motion petitioned by both legal teams. But under an “interim protective order,” the documents will only be provided to FSU administrators and lawyers for 60 days and not media or the public.

The defense probably won the day, but there were standouts on both sides of the ball from Malik Benson and Darius Washington to Patrick Payton and Fentrell Cypress.

Here are the Osceola staff observations from Day 5 of FSU preseason camp.

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FSU sports information:

Florida State alumna Emma Terebo advanced to the final of the women’s 100 back at the Olympics Games after placing eighth in semifinals on Monday.

In her Olympic debut representing France, Terebo turned in the fifth-fastest time at 59.10 out of the heats, advancing to the semifinal.

At night, Terebo finished fourth in the second semifinal at 59.50, securing the eighth spot in Tuesday’s final that will take place at 2:57 p.m. (ET).

Gloria Muzito, who was the flag bearer for Uganda will make her Olympic debut on Tuesday in the 100 free heats at 6:47 a.m., while Julio Horrego will swim in the 200 breast in his second Olympics.

2024 Olympics Schedule

July 27| Peter Varjasi – Germany, Men’s 4x100 free relay – 7th

July 28 | Ida Hulkko – Finland, women’s 100 breast; Max Wilson – U.S. Virgin Islands, men’s 100 back – 27th, 54.49

July 29 | Emma Terebo – France, women’s 100 back – 8th, 59.50

July 30 | Gloria Muzito – Uganda, women’s 100 free; Julio Horrego – Honduras, men’s 200 breast; Emma Terebo – women’s 100 back final

Aug. 1 | Emma Terebo – France, women’s 200 back

Aug. 2 | Emma Terebo – France, mixed 4x100 medley relay

Aug. 3 | Max McCusker – Ireland, men’s 4x100 medley ; Emma Terebo – France, women’s 4x100 medley

Additionally, Molly Carlson (2016-20) will join NBC as a content creator for the Olympics. Carlson represents Team Canada in high diving, which is not featured In the Olympic program. A two-time World Aquatics silver medalist, Carlson is currently second in the rankings on the 2024 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series with 59 points.

Omarion Cooper had his most productive college season at Colorado, recording 37 tackles while forcing a fumble and picking up a sack. But he opted to come back to Florida State, where his college career began, for his final season in 2024.

“I always knew where home was,” Cooper said Sunday after FSU’s fourth practice. “I knew where the right program was for me, the best fit. It’s been all open arms. Just hard work. What it’s always been.”

Cooper might have been away for a year and missed FSU’s undefeated run to the ACC championship. But he said the look and feel of the program hasn’t changed.

“Everything has been consistent,” Cooper said. “It’s a hard-working team. Critical on details. It’s progress. It’s Florida State.”

I'll take D. Jackson! Pure Beast!

Darius Gray has been trying to make it to Florida State's campus since he got offered back in February and the Seminoles got the final visit of the summer for Gray before he headed back to Richmond, VA. Gray is the No. 2 offensive guard prospect in the 2026 class and looks to be a big target moving forward for the Seminoles.
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First impressions of the Seminoles’ fifth day of preseason camp from the Osceola’s Nick Carlisle and Bob Ferrante reflect on the receivers and running backs in what was a mixed bag day for the offense in Day 5 on Monday.

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