Five days removed from last Saturday's loss to Georgia Tech in Dublin, Florida State held its first of two practice availabilities this week Thursday morning four days out from the Seminoles' home opener vs. Boston College Monday night (7:30 p.m. on ESPN).
Here are some abbreviated observations from the day's work:
Here are some abbreviated observations from the day's work:
- By now, I knew not to expect much of a change in terms of how this week's practices were run in spite of last weekend's result. We have definitely learned by now that Mike Norvell values consistency above all else so there wasn't any change to the schedule itinerary or much of how the practice was run. However, I did feel the team brought a certain intensity to the day's work. You could say it felt like there was a fire lit under the team's butts and they responded to that in a good way on the practice field.
- After the FSU defensive line was largely shut down vs. GT, the top players you expect to see make an impact made their presence felt throughout Thursday's practice. Darrell Jackson was dominant in 1-on-1 pass-rush reps. Josh Farmer had a few reps where he showed off an intensity and physicality that was lacking Saturday. Pat Payton had a few great reps, including one in a team period where he surged into the backfield for an instant tackle for loss.
- The FSU defense as a whole looked much better against the scout-team offense as BC gameplan work ramped up during Thursday's practice. Yes, it's the scout team and yes, I want to see it or myself against another offense before fully buying into it. But it was undeniable that the defense as a whole was doing a much better job of swarming to the ball, filling correct gaps and wrapping up the ballcarrier during these portions of practice. Blake Nichelson made a great play on the goal line where he stood up the ballcarrier to keep him out of the end zone.
- On offense, Jaylin Lucas had an impactful day of work less than 24 hours after Mike Norvell admitted in his weekly press conference that he needs to get him on the field more than the seven snaps he played vs. GT. Lucas broke a run up the middle during the first team period, caught a pass from Brock Glenn during the next 11-on-11 period and then got matched up on a linebacker in 1-on-1s, blowing past him for an easy grab for a big gain. Micahi Danzy also made a great catch in 7-on-7 pass skelly where he elevated to make a catch on the sideline and got both feet down for a catch and BJ Gibson made an immaculate catch in 1-on-1s, securing a one-handed grab on a deep ball that was slightly behind him.
