Houston cornerback transfer Jeremiah Wilson got the introductory press conferences for Florida State football's summer enrollees underway on Tuesday afternoon. As he walked away after finishing his interview, he excitedly exclaimed to the next interviewee, "Set the tone."
That's exactly what Wilson did in his interview, showcasing a contagious love for the game of football and for getting the opportunity to spend his final year of collegiate eligibility at his dream school, FSU.
"I just love ball. I just love talking about ball with you. What other ball questions do you have?" Wilson said at the end of one of his responses on Tuesday, drawing laughs from media members in attendance.
Wilson arrived at FSU in May after committing during the post-spring transfer portal window fresh off a breakout season at Houston. In his lone season with the Cougars, Wilson started the final eight games of the season and led all Big 12 cornerbacks and ranked 12th nationally among eligible cornerbacks with an 86.9 coverage grade according to Pro Football Focus. He had four interceptions (one off the team lead) five pass breakups and allowed just two touchdowns and a 44.7% completion percentage in coverage.
When he entered the portal, the opportunity for Wilson, a Kissimmee native, to return to his home state and play for the defensive coordinator he signed with out of high school in Tony White, then at Syracuse, was too much for him to pass up. Especially considering he was always an FSU fan growing up, even in a part of the state that largely supported a different team.
"As a kid, I always loved Florida State. Before high school games, I would play the Warchant," Wilson said. "Don't tell anybody from my city because they're all Florida fans. I used to love Florida State, and I get to live out the dream now just being here. I'm gonna give everything I got to the program."
If you needed him to prove how deep the FSU love goes, he shared a few names of his favorite FSU defensive backs that definitely validated it. Asante Samuel Jr. and Derwin James make sense given his age. Carlos Becker came from his same high school, Osceola High, and also makes sense. But Wilson also shouted out LaMarcus Joyner, who played at FSU about a decade before his own college career began, and Antonio Cromartie, who played at FSU around when Wilson was born, show that he's a Seminole through and through.
So far in his time at FSU, Wilson says it has been exactly what he hoped it would be.
"It's been great. I've loved every single minute of it. This is a dream come true," Wilson said. "I've loved how the team has welcomed me in, it's second to none. We've already started watching film together. We already started hanging out. The coaches, I love them, every single one of them. They've been showing me love. It's been amazing."
Another great thing for Wilson's transfer to FSU has been the chance to reunite with White, whose 3-3-5 defense was a great fit for his skill-set during Wilson's freshman season at Nebraska before the coach left to become defensive coordinator at Nebraska.
"Our relationship is really good. One of my best friends, that's his uncle. I've been knowing coach White, and (playing for him at FSU) was an amazing opportunity. When he showed up in that portal and he told me he wanted me to come and play for him again, I couldn't wait..." Wilson said. "I love that (his defense) is eyes on the quarterback. It's fun and games up front so you always going to have pressure. It's a little more zone than man, but when you play man, you can do your thing. I'm a smaller guy, but big heart and I love using my feet. I love reading the quarterback. You get to blitz a little bit too. It's a little bit of everything. That's why I like the 3-3-5. I'm versatile so you can put me anywhere in it, too. You can put all the guys anywhere in it honestly, the way that we stack up."
Wilson doesn't exactly look like a prototypical cornerback size-wise. He's listed on FSU's roster at 5-foot-10 and it's possible he's not even quite that tall. But despite that, Wilson has played in 34 games and started 13 games the last three seasons at Syracuse and Houston and became quite a standout during his lone season with the Cougars.
To make up for the size difference he's often giving up to receivers he's going up against in coverage, Wilson studies film of similarly small DBs who have overcome that to become NFL standouts to see how they do it. He mentioned guys like Brent Grimes (also listed at 5-foot-10), Asante Samuel Sr. (5-foot-11), and Mike Sainristil (5-foot-10).
But Wilson also cited his remarkable work ethic as something that has helped him overcome his size and that he expects will lead him to a successful season with the Seminoles this fall.
"I guess it all comes from the work. When you put in all the work I do, you put all your time in the ball and staying focused, you've got no choice but to be confident in what you can do," Wilson said. "That's why I feel so good about this season, because this has definitely been my best offseason, and team-wise, this is the best team I've been during an offseason. The leadership, the work ethic, you can't help but be confident in yourself and the other people around you, too."
That's exactly what Wilson did in his interview, showcasing a contagious love for the game of football and for getting the opportunity to spend his final year of collegiate eligibility at his dream school, FSU.
"I just love ball. I just love talking about ball with you. What other ball questions do you have?" Wilson said at the end of one of his responses on Tuesday, drawing laughs from media members in attendance.
Wilson arrived at FSU in May after committing during the post-spring transfer portal window fresh off a breakout season at Houston. In his lone season with the Cougars, Wilson started the final eight games of the season and led all Big 12 cornerbacks and ranked 12th nationally among eligible cornerbacks with an 86.9 coverage grade according to Pro Football Focus. He had four interceptions (one off the team lead) five pass breakups and allowed just two touchdowns and a 44.7% completion percentage in coverage.
When he entered the portal, the opportunity for Wilson, a Kissimmee native, to return to his home state and play for the defensive coordinator he signed with out of high school in Tony White, then at Syracuse, was too much for him to pass up. Especially considering he was always an FSU fan growing up, even in a part of the state that largely supported a different team.
"As a kid, I always loved Florida State. Before high school games, I would play the Warchant," Wilson said. "Don't tell anybody from my city because they're all Florida fans. I used to love Florida State, and I get to live out the dream now just being here. I'm gonna give everything I got to the program."
If you needed him to prove how deep the FSU love goes, he shared a few names of his favorite FSU defensive backs that definitely validated it. Asante Samuel Jr. and Derwin James make sense given his age. Carlos Becker came from his same high school, Osceola High, and also makes sense. But Wilson also shouted out LaMarcus Joyner, who played at FSU about a decade before his own college career began, and Antonio Cromartie, who played at FSU around when Wilson was born, show that he's a Seminole through and through.
So far in his time at FSU, Wilson says it has been exactly what he hoped it would be.
"It's been great. I've loved every single minute of it. This is a dream come true," Wilson said. "I've loved how the team has welcomed me in, it's second to none. We've already started watching film together. We already started hanging out. The coaches, I love them, every single one of them. They've been showing me love. It's been amazing."
Another great thing for Wilson's transfer to FSU has been the chance to reunite with White, whose 3-3-5 defense was a great fit for his skill-set during Wilson's freshman season at Nebraska before the coach left to become defensive coordinator at Nebraska.
"Our relationship is really good. One of my best friends, that's his uncle. I've been knowing coach White, and (playing for him at FSU) was an amazing opportunity. When he showed up in that portal and he told me he wanted me to come and play for him again, I couldn't wait..." Wilson said. "I love that (his defense) is eyes on the quarterback. It's fun and games up front so you always going to have pressure. It's a little more zone than man, but when you play man, you can do your thing. I'm a smaller guy, but big heart and I love using my feet. I love reading the quarterback. You get to blitz a little bit too. It's a little bit of everything. That's why I like the 3-3-5. I'm versatile so you can put me anywhere in it, too. You can put all the guys anywhere in it honestly, the way that we stack up."
Wilson doesn't exactly look like a prototypical cornerback size-wise. He's listed on FSU's roster at 5-foot-10 and it's possible he's not even quite that tall. But despite that, Wilson has played in 34 games and started 13 games the last three seasons at Syracuse and Houston and became quite a standout during his lone season with the Cougars.
To make up for the size difference he's often giving up to receivers he's going up against in coverage, Wilson studies film of similarly small DBs who have overcome that to become NFL standouts to see how they do it. He mentioned guys like Brent Grimes (also listed at 5-foot-10), Asante Samuel Sr. (5-foot-11), and Mike Sainristil (5-foot-10).
But Wilson also cited his remarkable work ethic as something that has helped him overcome his size and that he expects will lead him to a successful season with the Seminoles this fall.
"I guess it all comes from the work. When you put in all the work I do, you put all your time in the ball and staying focused, you've got no choice but to be confident in what you can do," Wilson said. "That's why I feel so good about this season, because this has definitely been my best offseason, and team-wise, this is the best team I've been during an offseason. The leadership, the work ethic, you can't help but be confident in yourself and the other people around you, too."
