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Written by Staff
The PGA TOUR heads to the final stop of the Florida Swing at the Valspar Championship. The Copperhead Course at the Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor, Florida, will host the 156-man field.
The PGA TOUR uses a standardized system for determining event fields based on the current season’s Priority Ranking while also including additional exemption and qualifying categories.
Field sizes can vary by event, as can the number of event-specific exemptions. Fully exempt PGA TOUR members are guaranteed entry into all full-field events, with various conditional categories subject to periodic reshuffles based upon FedExCup Points accrued throughout the season. Categories with "reshuffle" notation indicate that a reshuffle period has occurred.

Note: An additional year of eligibility was granted to some categories because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Scroll below to see the field list and updates.
Thursday, March 21
Aaron Wise (out, WD)
J.B. Holmes (out, WD)
Wednesday, March 20
Garrick Higgo (out, WD)
Tuesday, March 19
David Bradshaw (Open Qualifier)
Monday, March 18
Kevin Tway (Open Qualifier)
Kevin Aylwin (Open Qualifier)
Richy Werenski (Open Qualifier)
Sunday, March 17
Bronson Burgoon (in, Q-Sponsor-Qualifying Tournament)
Patrick Cantlay (out, WD)
Raul Pereda (in, Q-Sponsor-Qualifying Tournament)
Braden Shattuck (out, WD)
Saturday, March 16
Tom Kim (out, WD)
Winner of PGA Championship/U.S. Open Championship (five-year exemption)
Justin Thomas
Gary Woodland
Winner of The Open Championship (five-year exemption)
Brian Harman
Francesco Molinari
Winner of World Golf Championships event (three-year exemption)
Sam Burns
Billy Horschel
FedExCup champion (five-year exemption)
Patrick Cantlay
PGA TOUR tournament winner (two-year exemption)
Daniel Berger
Akshay Bhatia
Keegan Bradley
Ryan Brehm
Cameron Champ
Stewart Cink
Nico Echavarria
Tony Finau
Brice Garnett
Lucas Glover
Nick Hardy
Lee Hodges
Sungjae Im
Tom Kim
Kevin Kisner
K.H. Lee
Taylor Moore
Seamus Power
Chad Ramey
Chez Reavie
Davis Riley
Xander Schauffele
J.J. Spaun
Jordan Spieth
Sepp Straka
Adam Svensson
Nick Taylor
Brendon Todd
Camilo Villegas
Matt Wallace
Career money exemption
Charley Hoffman
Zach Johnson
Sponsor exemption (members not otherwise exempt)
Luke Donald
Ryan Palmer
Sponsor exemption (unrestricted)
Fred Biondi
Ricky Castillo
Nick Gabrielcik
Kevin Roy
PGA Club Professional champion
Braden Shattuck
PGA Section Champion\Player of the Year
Greg Koch
Top 30 in FedExCup Points List
Adam Schenk
Cameron Young
Scott Stallings
Top 70 in prior year's FedExCup Points List through the FedExCup Playoffs
Adam Hadwin
Andrew Putnam
Eric Cole
Taylor Montgomery
Alex Smalley
Thomas Detry
Beau Hossler
Hayden Buckley
Sam Ryder
Ben Griffin
Keith Mitchell
Samuel Stevens
Matt Kuchar
Aaron Rai
Matthew NeSmith
Top 125 in prior season's FedExCup Points List through the FedExCup Fall
S.H. Kim
Justin Suh
Davis Thompson
Joel Dahmen
Tyler Duncan
Michael Kim
Ben Taylor
Garrick Higgo
Robby Shelton
Taylor Pendrith
Callum Tarren
Dylan Wu
Harry Hall
Greyson Sigg
David Lipsky
Justin Lower
Carson Young
Tyson Alexander
Kevin Streelman
Chesson Hadley
Christiaan Bezuidenhout
Zac Blair
Aaron Baddeley
Joseph Bramlett
Kevin Yu
Ben Martin
Ryan Moore
Peter Malnati
Matti Schmid
Andrew Novak
Doug Ghim
Troy Merritt
Carl Yuan
Top 125 on prior season's FedExCup (non-member)
Min Woo Lee
# Major Medical Extension
Maverick McNealy
Brandt Snedeker
Jhonattan Vegas
Bud Cauley
J.B. Holmes
Vince Whaley
Leading points winner from Korn Ferry Tour
Ben Kohles
Top 10 and ties from the previous event
Austin Cook
Erik Barnes
Victor Perez
Hayden Springer
Jimmy Stanger
Adrien Dumont de Chassart
Joe Highsmith
Norman Xiong
Evan Harmeling
Players 2-10 from DP World Tour rankings
Ryan Fox
Thorbjørn Olesen
Alexander Björk
Sami Valimaki
Robert MacIntyre
Jorge Campillo
Ryo Hisatsune
Players 2-30 from prior year's Korn Ferry Tour Points List
Chan Kim
Alejandro Tosti
Richard Hoey
Ben Silverman
Pierceson Coody
Paul Barjon
Max Greyserman
Chandler Phillips
Adrien Dumont de Chassart
David Skinns
Jacob Bridgeman
Nicholas Lindheim
Patrick Fishburn
McClure Meissner
Tom Whitney
Kevin Dougherty
Chris Gotterup
William Furr
Parker Coody
Josh Teater
Ryan McCormick
Scott Gutschewski
Roger Sloan
Rafael Campos
Top-five finishers and ties from PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry
Harrison Endycott
# Latest medical extension information can be found here.


Congratulations again to last week's winners @DFSNOLE and @FSUdawg

With a big scoring week, we have a new leader!!
@seminoleed takes the overall lead after another strong scoring week

FSU agreed to a settlement of its ACC lawsuit today that sets up an new media-rights distribution deal which should be much more financially beneficial for FSU and paves a path to a potential ACC exit around the end of the decade.

"We're way better off than where we were 14 months ago, when we were being told we had no options. Now we have options."

FSU sports information:

The Florida State swimming and diving team will have ten student-athletes in competition at the NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championship from March 26-29 at the Weyerhauser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Wash.

“After an amazing ACC Championships, the men are coming into NCAAs riding high and looking to do something special” FSU head coach Neal Studd said.

Freshman Michel Arkhangelskiy is seeded in the top eight in three individual events, and he is joined by individual qualifiers senior Mason Herbet, juniors Tommaso Baravelli and Max Wilson and freshmen Logan Robinson and Carlos Varga. Also competing are graduate student Yordan Yanchev, juniors Sam Bork and Utku Kurtdere and sophomore Gustav Olsson in the team’s five qualified relays.

Prelims begin each day at 1 p.m. ET. The top 16 finishers in every event advance to finals, earn All-America honors and score team points. Relays are timed finals and will take place during each day’s finals sessions. Diving prelims begin at 3:15 p.m. ET every day, with the top eight finishers advancing to finals. The divers who finish ninth-16th will compete in a consolation final at 8:15 p.m. ET preceding the finals sessions, which start at 9 p.m. ET.

All sessions will be streamed live on ESPN+. Live results can be found at Meet Mobile and online here, and additional championships info is available here. Direct links and live updates can be found by following and connecting with the Seminoles on Twitter/X, Instagram and Facebook.

The Noles will open the week with the 200 medley relay and 800 freestyle relay on Wednesday night.

Wednesday, March 26
9 p.m. ET – Finals 200 medley relay (Max Wilson, Tommaso Baravelli, Michel Arkhangelskiy, Sam Bork)
10 p.m. ET – Finals 800 free relay (Yordan Yanchev, Utku Kurtdere, Gustav Olsson, Logan Robinson)

Thursday, March 27
1 p.m. ET – Prelims: 500 free, 200 IM (Tommaso Baravelli, Mason Herbet, Logan Robinson), 50 free (Max Wilson)
3:15 p.m. ET – Prelims: 1-meter
8:15 p.m. ET – 1-meter consolation finals
9 p.m. ET – Finals: 500 free, 200 IM, 50 free, 1-meter, 200 free relay (Michel Arkhangelskiy, Max Wilson, Mason Herbet, Sam Bork)

Friday, March 28
1 p.m. ET – Prelims: 100 fly (Michel Arkhangelskiy, Logan Robinson), 400 IM, 200 free, 100 breast (Tommaso Baravelli), 100 back (Michel Arkhangelskiy, Max Wilson, Mason Herbet)
3:15 p.m. ET – Prelims: 3-meter trials
8:15 p.m. ET – 3-meter consolation finals
9 p.m. ET – Finals: 400 IM, 100 fly, 200 free, 100 breast, 100 back, 400 medley relay (Max Wilson, Tommaso Baravelli, Michel Arkhangelskiy, Sam Bork), 3-meter finals

Saturday, March 29
1 p.m. ET – Prelims: 200 back (Michel Arkhangelskiy), 100 free (Max Wilson, Mason Herbet), 200 breast (Tommaso Baravelli), 200 fly (Logan Robinson)
3 p.m. ET – Prelims: Platform diving trials (Carlos Vargas)
6:45 p.m. ET – Prelims: 1650 free
8:15 p.m. ET – Platform consolation finals
9 p.m. ET – Finals: 1650 free, 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, 200 fly, platform diving, 400 free relay (Michel Arkhangelskiy, Gustav Olsson, Mason Herbet, Max Wilson)

Michel Arkhangelskiy | 100 backstroke – 44.49, 5th | 200 backstroke – 1:38.50, 8th | 100 butterfly – 44.36, 8th

Arkhangelskiy punched tickets to his first NCAA Championships with personal best times in all three of his individual entries last month at the ACC Championships. With a conference title in the 100 backstroke (44.49), runner-up performance in the 100 butterfly (44.36), ninth-place finish in the 200 backstroke (1:38.50) and a 400 freestyle relay leadoff (41.68), Arkhangelskiy broke four individual school records during the meet. He also swam the butterfly leg of both the 200 and 400 medley relays, leading his teams to second- and fourth-place finishes. The freshman was involved in the 200 and 400 freestyle relays which both placed fifth overall. In addition to his three individual events, Arkhangelskiy will represent the Noles in relay events.

Tommaso Baravelli | 200 breaststroke – 1:52.37, 23rd | 100 breaststroke – 51.80, 32nd

Baravelli will represent the Noles at his second NCAA Championships in the 200 breaststroke after shattering his own program record (1:52.37) at the Florida Invitational. He was 11th overall in the event at the ACC Championships and also contributed to a runner-up finish in the 200 medley relay and a school-record-setting fourth-place finish in the 400 medley relay. Baravelli also will swim in the 100 breaststroke and relays at the national meet.

Mason Herbet | 100 backstroke – 45.26, 28th | 200 individual medley – 1:43.41, 40th | 100 freestyle – 42.77, 66th

Herbet qualified for his fourth NCAA Championships thanks to a personal-best swim in the 100 backstroke (45.26) as he placed sixth at the ACC Championships in February. The performance gave him the third-fastest 100 backstroke in FSU history, only trailing teammates Arkhangelskiy and Wilson. He also had a hand in FSU’s school record-breaking and fifth-place-finishing 400 freestyle relay at the conference meet. Herbet holds top-ten times in FSU history in the 200 backstroke, 100 butterfly and 200 individual medley. Along with his 100 backstroke, 100 freestyle and 200 individual medley, the fifth-year will race in relays.

Logan Robinson | 200 butterfly – 1:40.34, 11th | 100 butterfly – 45.94, 42nd | 200 individual medley – 1:44.51, 55th

Logan Robinson will go to his first NCAAs with a school-record and top-eight conference finish in the 200 butterfly (1:40.34). After taking ownership of the record for the first time in November, Robinson bested it at the ACC Championships, placing fifth in the event. The freshman also played a role in the school-record-shattering 800 freestyle relay, anchoring the team on the opening night of the conference meet as the relay was fifth. Robinson will swim in the 100 butterfly, 200 individual medley and relays this week.

Carlos Vargas | Platform – 743.85

In his first season as a Seminole, Carlos Vargas qualified for his first NCAA event in platform (743.85) thanks to a sixth place finish at the Zone B Diving Championships at Auburn. The freshman also scored points by finishing 14th for the Noles in platform at the ACC Championships in February.

Max Wilson | 100 backstroke – 44.82, 8th | 50 freestyle – 19.35, 46th | 100 freestyle – 42.43, 53rd

Wilson will compete at his second NCAA Championships in the 100 backstroke (44.82) after swimming a personal-best and second-fastest time in FSU history at the Georgia Tech Invite in November. Wilson was 11th in the event at the ACC Championships. Also at the conference meet, he had a hand in the school-record-breaking and fourth-place 400 medley relay and fifth-place 200 freestyle relay. He will race in the 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle and relay events at the national championships.

The Seminoles earned bids in all five relay events for the second year in a row and will have four additional swimmers in those lineups.

Relay Swimmers | 200 Freestyle Relay (1:15.86, 14th), 400 Freestyle Relay (2:47.91, 12th), 800 Freestyle Relay (6:12.68, 16th), 200 Medley Relay (1:21.98, 7th), 400 Medley Relay (3:02.33, 10th)

Sam Bork

Appearing at his first NCAAs, junior Sam Bork raced in the 200 and 400 medley relays and the 200 freestyle relay at ACCs, helping all three place in the top five, and breaking records in both medley relays. Bork also placed sixth in the 50 freestyle (19.06) at the conference championships to earn the second-fastest time in FSU history.

Utku Kurtdere

Another first-time NCAA competitor, junior Utku Kurtdere was part of the record-breaking 800 freestyle relay at the ACC conference meet. With four personal best times at the ACC Championships, Kurtdere upped his top-ten performances in school history to two, checking in at sixth in the 400 individual medley and seventh in the 200 butterfly.

Gustav Olsson

Also making his NCAA debut, sophomore Gustav Olsson played a part in the 400 and 800 freestyle relay races at the ACC Championships, helping FSU place fifth with program records set in each. Olsson also earned a second swim and personal-best time in the 100 freestyle (42.72), the tenth fastest time in school history.

Yordan Yanchev

Making his fifth NCAA appearance in five years with Florida State, fifth-year Yordan Yanchev broke the school record and earned a fifth-place finish in the 800 freestyle relay at ACCs. He also earned second swims in the 200 and 500 freestyle events at the conference championships, as well as a personal-best time in the 100 freestyle (43.08). Yanchev currently holds the program’s 500 freestyle record in addition to three more individual top ten-times in school history.

The fourth weekend of Florida State baseball season gets underway Friday night. Unfortunately for the Seminoles, it'll begin without their ace on the mound.

Junior left-handed pitcher and preseason national pitcher of the year Jamie Arnold was a late scratch for No. 6 FSU's (13-0) Friday series opener vs. Lipscomb (5 p.m. on ACC Network Extra) due to an illness, according to ESPN's Kiley McDaniel.

Arnold has a 1.13 ERA over 16 innings across his first three starts of the season with 24 strikeouts to two walks. In his absence, Saturday starter Joey Volini (3-0, 1.10 ERA) will move up a day and start Friday's series opener against Lipscomb at Dick Howser Stadium.

Lipscomb will start redshirt junior right-handed pitcher Jake Poindexter (1-1, 4.70 ERA) on the mound for the series opener.

Starting lineups will be posted here once they are shared publicly.

Miami, Syracuse, Louisville, FSU, Cal, UNC, Wake, Duke, Stanford and Virginia will all be starting new quarterbacks heading into spring football. Carsen Beck will be Miami's starting QB when fall ball starts but right now Emory Williams and Judd Anderson are taking all the snaps. Clemson, Georgia Tech, SMU and NC State all return their starting quarterbacks from a year ago. Here are my rankings heading into spring football.


1) Cade Klubnik - Clemson -6'2-210 (3,639 yards passing - 36 touchdowns-6 interceptions) this will be his third season in Garrett Riley offense. Cade really came on this past season. He is a good athlete and has a pretty decent arm. The big concern is that he has never completed above 65% of his passes at Clemson. He needs to be closer to 70 percent this year for Clemson offense to take the next step.

2) Haynes King - Georgia Tech - 6'3-215 - King is probably the best athlete at quarterback in the ACC. He is a big, athletic quarterback. His biggest issue is that King does not give Tech much in the passing game. He is very inconsistent as a passer. He just is a very good leader and his team seems to play well around him. His limitations at throwing the football is why King will not be a pro quarterback. I could see King slipping this year but his play on the field in 2024 is why I have him ranked as the second ranked qb heading into spring football.

3) Kevin Jennings - SMU-6'0-190 - This will be his fourth year at SMU, that is huge. He knows the system and is only getting better. He played great in 2024. He did not play well in the playoffs. In his final two games against Clemson and Penn State there was a big step up in competition and at times Jennings struggled. I expect that experience and another year in Lashlee offense, Jennings will take another step up and possibly be the top QB in the conference.

4) Carsen Beck - Miami- 6'4-220- In 2023 Beck completed 72.4 percent of his passes. That is after completing 74 percent in limited action in 2022. He had 3,941 yards 24 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. Most felt heading into last season Beck would be one of the top quarterbacks in the country. HIs stats were not terrible 3,485 yards -28 touchdowns but his 12 interceptions were unacceptable. His completion rate also dipped to 64.7 percent. If Beck is healthy and he can revert back to his 2023 season, he will be one of if not the best QB in the ACC. That is key - will Beck be healthy? Miami does have one of if not the best offensive lines in the country.

5) CJ Bailey - NC State - Bailey was only a freshman last season. He completed over 65 percent of his passes in 8 games last year. He competed 90 percent of his passes in the Stanford game. He finished the season in their bowl game vs. ECU 19-26 (230 yards) 73.1 comp rate - 3 TD and 1 interception. He also ran for over 270 yards and five touchdowns. Bailey was very impressive for a freshman. He has another good season and you may be looking at a 2-3 million dollar QB and that may be on the low end.

6) Darian Mensah - Duke- 6'3-200- Mensah was my favorite QB in the portal last year. Duke just improved the QB position for 2025. He threw for over 65 percent. Mensah also had 22 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. He anticipates as well as any quarterback I watched last season. If Duke has another good defense they could be a major surprise team in the ACC next year. Yes, Duke....

7) Miller Moss - Louisville- 6'1-205- Head coach Jeff Brohm basically signed himself out of the portal. At times Moss was very good at USC. I have no idea what happened to him later in the season. He has good pocket awareness. He will sit in the pocket and take a big hit. He is accurate throwing the ball. I feel Moss is the ideal quarterback for Brohm offense. I expect Moss to have a very productive year in this offense. He could move up this list.

8) Eli Holstein -Pitt-6'4-225 - Will be interesting to see how Eli does in 2025. He flashed last year at certain points of the season. At other times he struggled. That is to be expected by a freshman. If he makes the jump his spot on the list should hold. If not you could see some of the other quarterbacks below him pass Eli by. He has talent. Can he put it all together?

9) Chandler Morris- Virginia- 6'0-190 - Morris threw for 31 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 2024. He is a six year quarterback. That experience should help him out at UVA. They need stability at QB and it looks like that will happen with Morris. He is another QB who could help UVA finally get over the hump.

10) Grayson James - Boston College - 6'3-220-James replaced Thomas Castellanos in the lineup half way through the 2024 season. He displayed a good arm and is a good enough athlete to beat you with his legs. He has NFL talent. Not sure if he will realize it at BC but Bill Obrien has a QB who could end up being a real sleeper in 2025.

11) Kyron Drones - Virginia Tech- Drones is one of the better dual threat quarterbacks in the ACC. He can play at a high level like he did against Miami. He also had very good performances against Stanford and BC. He had terrible performances against teams like Clemson. He is the ultimate Jeckyl and Hyde type qi.

12) Thomas Castellanos-FSU-5'10-195- First things first, I was a fan of his film coming out of HS. TC is a very good athlete. He performed very well against FSU last year. This comes down to FSU ol getting better and TC staying healthy. If he stays healthy he could easily have a better season then most of the other QB'S. He is one of the wildcards in this group.

13) Rickie Collins- Syracuse - 6'2-200 - Collins was a highly rated QB coming out of HS. Can Syracuse strike the portal magic two years in a row? Collins has the physical attributes. Now it is putting it all together.

14) Ryan Browne- North Carolina - 6'4-210 -Browne played his high school ball at Venice, FL in 2023. He is from Michigan. He flashed at times and I have heard some good reports about him from sources out of North Carolina. He has the size and a good arm. He is going to be a pocket passer. If UNC can protect him next year Browne could have a solid season.

15) Devin Brown - Cal - 6'3-215 - I am not saying quarterbacks can't get better but Brown has a long ways to go. He played for Ohio State two years ago and did not look like D1 QB. He can run. It will be interesting as Cal has a highly rated QB in Jaron Sagapolutele on the roster. Losing Fernando Mendoza is going to hurt.

16) Elijah Brown - Stanford- I like Stanford coach Troy Taylor. He turned San Jose State around. The same type of rebuild is taking place at Stanford. There is a good chance that Brown could get beaten out. This is not a good situation heading into 2025.

17) Robby Ashford-Wake- 6'2-230 - Could be a rough season for Wake. They lost their coach. Ashford was benched at every stop before this one. He is an arm. Not sure what else can be said.

Rivals analyst Sam Spiegelman has updates on DT Deuce Geralds and QB Bowe Bentley, among others, off FSU's Legacy Weekend:

I'd like this to be an archive of Luke Loucks stories from the last few days. We'll also aim to update this thread with any news on assistant coaches, player retention, portal moves when that opens.

FSU announces Luke Loucks' hire (from Sunday, includes an anecdote from a 2021 Loucks interview)

Column: There's a lot to like about Luke Loucks' hire (from Curt)

Five takeaways from Luke Loucks: 'I'm hopeful that this is my last job' (from the press conference)

Three reasons why Michael Alford thinks Luke Loucks will be successful (From Jerry, looking at some of the financials of FSU hoops)

Details of Luke Loucks' five year contract (includes assistant coach pool)

For the first time in a home game this season, Florida State baseball is facing a weather delay Saturday afternoon.

The second game of the No. 6 Seminoles' (14-0) weekend series vs. Lipscomb (4-9) was moved up to noon to try and get ahead of a weather forecast, but it has been delayed an hour to 1 p.m. (ACC Network Extra). The tarp is still on the field an hour out from scheduled first pitch because it is still raining at the moment.

If the game is able to be played, sophomore lefty Wes Mendes will make his fourth start of the season on the mound. He's got a 0.60 ERA so far this season with only one earned run allowed on eight hits through 15 innings with 24 strikeouts to three walks.

Lipscomb is projected to start LHP Rigo Ramos (4.80 ERA over 15 innings) on the mound.

FSU starting lineup


Lipscomb starting lineup


I'll share any further updates about the weather and if the start time changes again as well as game updates when (if) this game gets underway.

After a one-day delay to weather, the second midweek game of Florida State baseball's 2025 season will be held Wednesday evening in Jacksonville.

No. 7 FSU (7-0) traveled east Wednesday afternoon for a rescheduled game vs. Jacksonville (3-4) at JU's John Sessions Stadium which was supposed to be held Tuesday night but postponed due to weather concerns. The game is set for a 6 p.m. start and will be broadcast on ESPN+.

FSU will start JU transfer Evan Chrest in his second consecutive midweek start. The junior RHP allowed one run on five hits over 4.2 innings in last Tuesday's 6-2 win at USF. In 2023, Chrest was the Atlantic Sun Freshman of the Year when he had a 2.68 ERA over 90.2 innings for the Dolphins.

Jacksonville has not yet announced who its starting pitcher will be. Junior LHP Alex Walsh got the start in last Tuesday's 10-4 loss to Florida, allowing three runs on five hits over 3.2 innings.

FSU is 135-42 all-time vs. Jacksonville.

Starting lineups will be posted here once available and I'll have remote updates from the home office of tonight's game off the broadcast.

Right now we are in the heat of basketball season. Duke just crushed UNC and their best player Cooper Flagg scored 15 points. I watched Duke early this season and their team reminded of the Anthony Davis team at Kentucky. I am not a basketball expert but do love the sport. I was a huge UNLV fan back in the day and watched Larry Johnson and the Rebels win a title. Flagg is a special talent and back then he would have stayed 2-3 more years and Duke would have dominated the sport. Christian Laettner had that impact at Duke.


Some bring up Auburn as a team to beat. Coach Pearl is a good coach but for some reason when Tourney time comes his guys falter. I am not betting on his team to win. What is shocking is how damn good St Johns is until you realize Rick Pitino is their head coach. Ole Rick is one of the top coaches of all time. His teams always get better. St Johns has not been good in what seems a lifetime.

Final Four - Duke, St John, Houston, Florida

Luke Loucks as FSU new basketball coach - As I have stated before I was never a fan of Leonard Hamilton. He coached a very long time and was a program builder. I hated his style of play. The lack of movement of the ball, zero ability to create shots, the lack of a true point guard in the system. I see fans bring up big names in basketball for hires but the reality is picking a college basketball coach is not the same as picking a football coach. If Loucks can develop players, bring an offensive scheme that guys want to play for and they work hard the results will be positive. They need to not be boring...No more of that style of ball. Do that and Loucks will be pretty good. His biggest issue is the resources that FSU will put into basketball. It looks like he is going to have to do bargain shopping in recruiting. That makes it harder but there are still plenty of kids who will want to play FSU. You see coaches all the time have success at programs and they are not loaded with money.

Jimmy Johnson - He retired from Fox Sports this week. Johnson to me is the greatest coach of all time. Both pro and college. He took over a UM program that Howard built but Johnson not only sustained that success but made it even better. Miami was dominant when he was the head coach. Being a Dallas Cowboy fan, I wanted Jimmy to become the HC. Jerry Jones took over and that dream became a reality. He traded Herschel Walker to the Minnesota Vikings. In return the Cowboys got multiple first round picks as well as many other round picks which Jimmy took and turned them into a dynasty. Dallas drafted guys like Leon Lett out of Emporia State. He drafted Erick Williams a pro bowl tackle out of some D2 Oklahoma school. He traded for Charles Haley a Hall of Fame DE from the Niners. Each of his moves turned out to be better then the next. After all his success Jerry Jones ego got in the way and Dallas has not won a super bowl since. The Curse of the Bambino...No the Curse of Jimmy Johnson. He was a great head coach and even better talent evaluator. His way of scouting and drafting has now been copied by the rest of the NFL.

As for FSU football....spring football is rolling around. This spring is huge. One thing you want to hear this spring is the run game is back on track. FSU needs to run the ball. If FSU was able to run the ball last year they win more games and the season would not have been such a mess. Gus was brought in to run the ball and that is what they are going to do. Run the ball and FSU offense will create more big plays in the passing game.

Micahi Danzy - He was moved to receiver - Love it. He is going to blow up this spring and be one of the true play makers in FSU offense. I was a big fan of his coming out of high school. There are track kids and sometimes that does not translate on the football field. I watched him in high school and the speed is there. He just needs to get his hands on the ball. He is my break out player this spring.

Brock Glenn - I know many are down on him. I am fan of his. I truly don't think he has been given a fair shake at FSU. His first time really playing was as a freshman against Florida and Louisville. He has to go out and play against Georgia in a bowl game with the entire team seeming to opt out. This past season he was beaten out by DJ and then asked to come in and save the day. He has had every chance to leave the program. I would not be surprised if he gives TC a run for his money and is the better QB leaving spring. I would also not be shocked if he plays next year and is a big reason for FSU turnaround. I love the fact that this kid did not quit. I am a fan of Glenn and have always believed hard work pays off. He has been doubted and that is a big motivating factor to get better. I also believe he is a good fit for Gus offense.

TEAM LOOK - I am very interested to see what the team looks like physically this spring. FSU lost one of their strength coaches to another team. I have not been a big fan of the strength program. I look at FSU and from a physical standpoint the only guys who look big are the ones who transfer in. I am hoping that in year 6 and an improvement in talent acquisition that the players look bigger. I look at the pictures of Miami coming out of spring and their kids look different. I have yet to see UF or any of the SEC teams.

Recruiting - FSU has seven commitments at this time. I know Efrem White is a (4*) and their highest rated commit at this time. He needs to have a good spring or it would not surprise me to see him end up out of the class. He does not have a position and when he does step on the field has not been real impressive. The rest of the class is pretty good. I am a big fan of Karon Maycock. I have him listed as a safety but many feel he will make the move to linebacker.


Who could be next? Julius Miles - Freeport Tight End - He has great size (6'6). Miles only weighs 210 pounds so he will need to add weight. He runs like a receiver. He is a miss-match against opposing defenses. I have said that I wanted FSU to recruit west of Tally harder and it seems like coach MN has done that. It would not surprise me to see him pull the trigger for FSU this spring.

With 7 commitments you would like to see FSU get to 14-15 commitments by the time high school spring football starts. How can FSU reach that number? We mentioned Julius MilesTE,

8-Kaiden Hall -S
9-Chauncey Davis-CB
10-Adam Balogoun Ali-LB
11-Landon Duckworth-QB

I put Duckworth in the equation as FSU needs a QB committed for the class of 2026 and he gives them the best shot at getting there. He also has a prior relationship with Gus. FSU Needssssssssssssssssssss a QB. This let’s take a middle of the road transfer QB is not going to hold up much longer.

Final Thoughts - What do I want to hear....

1) Offensive Line - This is the single most important area of the football team. As everyone knows the OL was terrible last year. I want to know how they have progressed. I want to see some fight out of these guys. If you are hearing that they are getting into some scuffles that is a good thing. They have been beat up and embarrassed long enough. We need to hear that guys like Lucas Simmons have made a move. The OL is so important.

2) Who has sets themselves apart as a pass rusher. FSU lost a lot in the pass rush department. We have no idea who THAT GUY will be. If you don't hear someone has stepped up this will be a concern. You have to be able to put pressure on the QB.

3) Wide Receiver - Want to hear there is a lack of drops....FSU dropped a ton of passes last year. This position needs to improve in that area. FSU has a talented receiver room. There is no reason to not hear good reports from this group in spring football.

4) Want to hear that that coaches are engaged with the players and coaching them up. I heard some horror stories last year and the coaches failed the players. These guys are paid a ton of money and the players need to buy into what they are selling....

Just remember most of the info is hype....You just don't want to hear bad news...No news is good news. Get through spring healthy and get ready for 2025.

The ACC lost some very good running backs from a year ago. Damian Martinez (Miami) , Omarion Hampton (North Carolina), Brashard Smith (SMU), LeQuint Allen Jr (Syracuse) and Byayshul Tuten (Virginia Tech). FSU's own Lawrance Toafili exhausted his eligibility. There are still some very good backs coming back in to 2025. Here is our breakdown of the running back room.


1) Miami Hurricanes - They return Mark Fletcher who averaged 5.4 yards per carry, 607 yards and 9 touchdowns. They also have Jordan Lyle the gifted freshman running back that contributed another 400 yards, averaged over 7.0 yards per carry and had four touchdowns. Miami loss of Damian Martinez is big but they return one of the best backfields in the nation. Look out for Elijah Lofton who is a big, bruising running back/h-back.

2) Louisville Cardinals- Freshman running back ran for 1,174 yards and an 11 touchdowns last year. Most teams would be happy with Brown. Louisville also returns Duke Watson who rushed for close to 600 yards and 7 touchdowns. The third freshman for Louisville to get touches was Keyjuan Brown. He had close to 250 yards and 3 touchdowns. One of the three may enter the portal after the spring and get a big pay day.

3) Georgia Tech - with Jamal Haynes (944 yards rushing/9 touchdowns) and quarterback Haynes King (587 yards rushing and a 11 touchdowns), the Ramblin Wreck should once again have one of the best rushing attacks in the ACC. This duo was tough to stop. Another year in the same system and Tech should be very good running the football.

4) Cal Bears- With Javian Thomas (626 yards - 6.3 Average - 7 Touchdowns) coming back along with Jaydn Ott, the Bears should have a very good rushing attack. Ott ran for 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns as a sophomore. He is an elite back that just needs to be healthy. These two should have very good seasons in the ACC.

5) Pitt Panthers - Desmond Reid was one of the big reasons why Pitt ran the ball successfully in 2024. He rushed for over 960 yards, averaged over 5.0 yards per carry and had five touchdowns. He also recorded 579 yards receiving and 4 touchdowns. With him coming back Pitt should once again be very good at running the football. Look for Freshman Julian Dugger (6'3-210) pounds to be the hammer to Reid. He is a bigger, more powerful back.

6) NC State - Hollywood Smothers ran 15 times for 139 yards in NC State's bowl game against ECU. He had over 80 yards and 2 touchdowns against Rival UNC. He is a powerful back that also gives you some speed out of the backfield. I expect him to have a big season for the Wolfpack. Kendrick Raphael (Naples, FL) was only a sophomore a year ago. He rushed 78 times for 425 yards and 3 touchdowns.

7) Clemson Tigers - The Tigers lose a big piece of their offense from last year (Phil Mafah). Clemson will rely on sophomore Jay Haynes who had 295 yards, 6.9 average and 3 touchdowns last year. Keith Adams Jr will also be part of the backfield. You add in quarterback Kade Klubnik and this backfield could move up this list quickly in 2025.

8) FSU Seminoles - FSU needs to be in the top 3-4 of this list in 2025 if there is going to be a turnaround this upcoming season. QB Thomas Castellanos needs to rush for over 500 yards and have 5-6 touchdowns. We expect freshman Ousmane Kromah is one of the most talented backs FSU has had since Cam Akers and Dalvin Cook. Add in sophomore Kam Davis, Jaylin Lucas, Sam Singleton and Roydell Williams and this backfield should be one of the best in the ACC. Right now it is all potential and not production. From a talent standpoint FSU has a top 2-3 backfield. From a production standpoint there are some questions that need to be answered.

9) Wake Forest - They lost their head coach from a year ago but junior Demond Claiborne returns. He rushed for over a 1,000 yards a year ago and 11 touchdowns. He also had over 250 yards receiving a 2 touchdowns. Tate Carney gives Wake a nice 1-2 punch. While they may struggle passing the ball, Wake should still be very productive on the ground.

10) SMU Mustangs- Last year SMU had one of the premier rushing attacks in the entire country. Head Coach Rhett Lashlee is a run first play caller. They lost Brashard Smith which is huge. We expect them to rely on Texas A&M transfer LJ Johnson and QB Kevin Jennings. I expect SMU to be much higher on this list but right now not many on the roster have proven themselves.

11) Boston College: Head coach Tom Obrien likes to run the football. He loses his top two rushers from a year ago. Senior Jordan McDonald (53 rushes -361 yards and 3 touchdowns) will be counted on to carry the load this year. He also averaged over 6.5 yards per carry. Freshman Turbo Richard also returns. These two will be counted on to give BC some balance on offense.

12) North Carolina: Not many teams lost a better RB in college football. You can name the teams on one hand (Ohio State, Boise State). Davion Cause from Hollywood Chaminade will be counted on to be the man in 2025. He is not real big or explosive. He does run with some power and will pick up the tough yards. He will do well in coach Bill B offense. Senior Caleb Hood will also be relied upon. UNC is going to be a run first team.

13) Syracuse Orangemen-The loss of Allen is huge for Syracuse as he recorded about 95 percent of the workload for his offense. He rushed the ball 228 times last year for 1,021 yards. Yasin Willis should be one of their top backs returning this season. He only had a 130 yards rushing a year ago. Will Nixon is a transfer from Nebraska. He should provide some depth for the Cuse in 25.

14)Virginia Tech-With quarterback Kyron Drones coming back VT will be able to run the ball. They need to keep him healthy because if Drones goes down, so does their entire season. They are relying on three transfer backs (Terion Stewart, Marcellous Hawkins and Brayton Bennett). This is a big season for the VT coach. If they don't win this year the Hokies could be looking for a new coach.

15) Virginia- If there is a program that just does not seem to be heading in the right direction it is UVA. They do return Xavier Brown but he only had a little over 400 yards last year. They just are not very good running the ball. Look for UVA to be one of the worst rushing teams in the ACC this season.

16) Duke- The Blue Devils were another team hit hard by graduation at running back. They return senior Jaquez Moore. Junior back Peyton Jones will also be good. This team just won't be as good with the loss of their QB who ran the ball very well and Star Thomas.

17) Stanford- I do believe in their head coach. That being said Stanford does not have a Christian McCaffrey in their backfield. This team is devoid of talent and especially in the backfield. Their leading rusher a year ago was their QB and he left. Stanford is in for some growing pains the next year or two.

New FSU men's basketball coach Luke Loucks arrived in Tallahassee with his wife, Stevi, and the kids on Sunday afternoon. Luke will meet with the media and answer questions on Monday at 11 a.m.

We'll have updates below in the thread.

Curt has a great column on why there's a lot to like about Loucks' hire. It also includes some photos from the family's arrival as well as a short video.

My news story gives some background from a 2021 interview with Loucks and has the official announcement from FSU.

Most NFL scouts will be at FSU on Friday morning for Pro Day to observe AZ Thomas and Josh Farmer as well as Ryan Fitzgerald and Alex Mastromanno. They'll work out inside the IPF, although I'm sure the specialists will use the outdoor field.

A large number of potential late picks and free agents will also work out on Friday. Typically there are some CFL scouts, too. The list of Seminoles who are scheduled to work out:

Davonte Brown
Jeremiah Byers
Fentrell Cypress
Ja'Khi Douglas
Kevin Knowles II
Sione Lolohea
DJ Lundy
Kyle Morlock
Kentron Poitier
Cam Riley
Maurice Smith
Lawrance Toafili
DJ Uiagalelei
Darius Washington