I attended the event last night at the TQC for dinner and to listen to Coach Fisher speak. It was my first time at a TQC event and I walked away impressed. $40 for a pretty good dinner and the opportunity to listen to Jimbo speak for almost an hour was well worth it in my mind.
Because the season is nearly here, a lot of what he said were things we've heard throughout the summer, but I'll still summarize as much of the talk as I can below:
He started out by talking about the team as a whole. He said he's very impressed with the mental make-up of this group. They want to be coached. They want to work hard. He said when he says 'go,' they go without hesitation. He also said they play with something to prove; they have a chip on their shoulder and he believes those facts bode extremely well for the team this year. He said the '13 team "had characteristics" like that too. He made sure to follow-up by saying even though he coaches them every day and knows the team well, he's just as nervous and anxious for the season as we are. He said you just don't know what you have until the big lights come on and the team is center stage and under enormous pressure.
- He then basically rattled through every position group on the team. I'll start with the offense:
- @Shade Tree 55 already covered the exciting comments about Francois. Coach also really went on about Sean. He almost seemed to get emotional when he talked about how much Sean loves FSU. He said he will literally do anything for this program and for him it's been setback after setback over his career, but he remains unphased. He said he truly is a Seminole through and through and if we ever get to meet him in person we should hug him or shake his hand because he loves this school as much as anyone he's ever met.
- At running back, he talked glowingly about Dalvin's work-ethic and how he's matured as a true (and very vocal) leader this year. Someone asked Coach about Dalvin's health, and he said he's 100%. His shoulder is great after surgery several months ago and his hamstring hasn't bothered him a bit this summer. He really perked up when he mentioned Vickers. He said Vickers had a nagging back injury last year which hampered him a bit, but he's finally healthy and running very well. Then he lit-up when he talked about Rasul. Said he hates to compare guys and he wasn't going to mention any names, but when we see Rasul run he's going to remind us of a great back that ran here some years ago.
- At wide receiver he talked about Rudolph and his maturation as a very vocal leader this year. Said his hamstring is healing well and he went through about 3/4 of the practice Tuesday and should be full go today or tomorrow. He said the initial diagnosis for Philips was 6-weeks and he came back in just a week. He said he thinks the team doctor is lying to him with the initial diagnosis so he can stick around (joking obviously). Said Campbell should be back very soon and was flashing some of his potential before the groin issue. Tate has impressed him some too.
- At OL he said what we've all heard before. Incredible size, talent, and depth. He had glowing reviews about the freshmen crop. Said if they can all stay healthy and develop like he believes they will, they are going to be something to behold. Specifically singled out Landon Dickerson. He wanted to compare him to a FSU great but stopped himself before doing so, saying "Just believe me, he's going to be a very very very good player for us." He also said Baveon has a chance to be special. He said they've been throwing him in with the ones a bit and he holds his own just fine.
Okay, now for the defense:
- He said he's excited about how multiple the defense can be this year. He said there are so many different packages and options they can run because of the versatility of many of the players, especially in the secondary.
- He gave glowing reviews about Sweat, Nnadi, and Walker, of course. He really lit-up when he talked about both Pugh and Burns though. With Pugh, he said these last six days or so the light has come on and he's really really getting it. He said we should be excited about how well he's been playing in practice. With Burns, he couldn't contain himself. He said he's been so impressive throughout camp and that we'll be seeing a lot of him this year on the defense.
- Shade mentioned Jimbo's comments about MT6 already, but you can tell he's very excited to finally have him available. Said he's rangy, long, fast, and powerful. He can do it all for a LB.
- Then he basically ran through everyone in the secondary. Nothing we haven't heard about Lewis, McFadden, or White before. He said Taylor has really impressed and that we will see him in nickel and dime packages. Said he loves the length of Becker and that he can play corner and safety. Said Nate is really showing great leadership and should be back shortly from his injury. Likes what Kyle Myers has done since he's been on campus too. Glowing reviews about Derwin, obviously.
- At ST, he said Ricky has been very accurate and has some range, but, and I quote, "Tyler has a left leg like another left-footed kicker we used to have around here a while ago..."
- Finally, coach ended the night with this line: "Thank you for letting me be your coach. I hope to be here for a very long time." You can tell he's truly happy here and it's great to see. After the talk he was going to the team auditorium to welcome Darryl Strawberry who was talking to the team last night. He said they've had an incredible round of 10 or so speakers this camp.
- Coach also mentioned everyone on the team, including coaches, must wear what looks like a fit-bit so they can track the sleep of the players and coaches. He said he’s only slept 31 hours in seven days, but it’s not because he’s worried about the team or anything, just that he doesn’t really sleep.
- Finally, on an unrelated note, the TQC President was floating around at the end of the night outside as we were all looking at the stadium and he mentioned there will not be a second scoreboard added this year (sorry if this is common knowledge and I’m just out of the loop). It's going to go in after the season. Putting it in now was determined to be a safety hazard for the construction crews working below on the Champions Club. He said FSU is disappointed, but there's nothing they can do. Finally, he said Jimbo was very involved with the placement of the video ribbons around the stadium. He wanted them in certain locations so his QBs could see the clock etc. Coach really covers every detail!
Alright, that's all I have. My apologies for the long post. Go Noles!
Because the season is nearly here, a lot of what he said were things we've heard throughout the summer, but I'll still summarize as much of the talk as I can below:
He started out by talking about the team as a whole. He said he's very impressed with the mental make-up of this group. They want to be coached. They want to work hard. He said when he says 'go,' they go without hesitation. He also said they play with something to prove; they have a chip on their shoulder and he believes those facts bode extremely well for the team this year. He said the '13 team "had characteristics" like that too. He made sure to follow-up by saying even though he coaches them every day and knows the team well, he's just as nervous and anxious for the season as we are. He said you just don't know what you have until the big lights come on and the team is center stage and under enormous pressure.
- He then basically rattled through every position group on the team. I'll start with the offense:
- @Shade Tree 55 already covered the exciting comments about Francois. Coach also really went on about Sean. He almost seemed to get emotional when he talked about how much Sean loves FSU. He said he will literally do anything for this program and for him it's been setback after setback over his career, but he remains unphased. He said he truly is a Seminole through and through and if we ever get to meet him in person we should hug him or shake his hand because he loves this school as much as anyone he's ever met.
- At running back, he talked glowingly about Dalvin's work-ethic and how he's matured as a true (and very vocal) leader this year. Someone asked Coach about Dalvin's health, and he said he's 100%. His shoulder is great after surgery several months ago and his hamstring hasn't bothered him a bit this summer. He really perked up when he mentioned Vickers. He said Vickers had a nagging back injury last year which hampered him a bit, but he's finally healthy and running very well. Then he lit-up when he talked about Rasul. Said he hates to compare guys and he wasn't going to mention any names, but when we see Rasul run he's going to remind us of a great back that ran here some years ago.
- At wide receiver he talked about Rudolph and his maturation as a very vocal leader this year. Said his hamstring is healing well and he went through about 3/4 of the practice Tuesday and should be full go today or tomorrow. He said the initial diagnosis for Philips was 6-weeks and he came back in just a week. He said he thinks the team doctor is lying to him with the initial diagnosis so he can stick around (joking obviously). Said Campbell should be back very soon and was flashing some of his potential before the groin issue. Tate has impressed him some too.
- At OL he said what we've all heard before. Incredible size, talent, and depth. He had glowing reviews about the freshmen crop. Said if they can all stay healthy and develop like he believes they will, they are going to be something to behold. Specifically singled out Landon Dickerson. He wanted to compare him to a FSU great but stopped himself before doing so, saying "Just believe me, he's going to be a very very very good player for us." He also said Baveon has a chance to be special. He said they've been throwing him in with the ones a bit and he holds his own just fine.
Okay, now for the defense:
- He said he's excited about how multiple the defense can be this year. He said there are so many different packages and options they can run because of the versatility of many of the players, especially in the secondary.
- He gave glowing reviews about Sweat, Nnadi, and Walker, of course. He really lit-up when he talked about both Pugh and Burns though. With Pugh, he said these last six days or so the light has come on and he's really really getting it. He said we should be excited about how well he's been playing in practice. With Burns, he couldn't contain himself. He said he's been so impressive throughout camp and that we'll be seeing a lot of him this year on the defense.
- Shade mentioned Jimbo's comments about MT6 already, but you can tell he's very excited to finally have him available. Said he's rangy, long, fast, and powerful. He can do it all for a LB.
- Then he basically ran through everyone in the secondary. Nothing we haven't heard about Lewis, McFadden, or White before. He said Taylor has really impressed and that we will see him in nickel and dime packages. Said he loves the length of Becker and that he can play corner and safety. Said Nate is really showing great leadership and should be back shortly from his injury. Likes what Kyle Myers has done since he's been on campus too. Glowing reviews about Derwin, obviously.
- At ST, he said Ricky has been very accurate and has some range, but, and I quote, "Tyler has a left leg like another left-footed kicker we used to have around here a while ago..."
- Finally, coach ended the night with this line: "Thank you for letting me be your coach. I hope to be here for a very long time." You can tell he's truly happy here and it's great to see. After the talk he was going to the team auditorium to welcome Darryl Strawberry who was talking to the team last night. He said they've had an incredible round of 10 or so speakers this camp.
- Coach also mentioned everyone on the team, including coaches, must wear what looks like a fit-bit so they can track the sleep of the players and coaches. He said he’s only slept 31 hours in seven days, but it’s not because he’s worried about the team or anything, just that he doesn’t really sleep.
- Finally, on an unrelated note, the TQC President was floating around at the end of the night outside as we were all looking at the stadium and he mentioned there will not be a second scoreboard added this year (sorry if this is common knowledge and I’m just out of the loop). It's going to go in after the season. Putting it in now was determined to be a safety hazard for the construction crews working below on the Champions Club. He said FSU is disappointed, but there's nothing they can do. Finally, he said Jimbo was very involved with the placement of the video ribbons around the stadium. He wanted them in certain locations so his QBs could see the clock etc. Coach really covers every detail!
Alright, that's all I have. My apologies for the long post. Go Noles!
Last edited:
