Florida State Player Profile: Jacobbi McDaniel

Sept 15, 2012; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Florida State Seminoles helmet before the game against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Doak Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

Name: Jacobbi McDaniel

Eligibility: Redshirt Senior

Position: Defensive Tackle

Height: 6-0

Weight: 295

Twitter Handle: @Jacobbi55Apollo

2012 Season Stats: N/A (DNP)

Prognostication: Jacobbi McDaniel stepped right on the field immediately during his freshman season in 2009. He saw action in all 13 games that season, including making two starts. His sophomore season in 2010, McDaniel was a fixture along the defensive front and started all 13 games of that season, getting progressively better as the year went on. It seemed he was poised for even bigger things in 2011, however he suffered a severe ankle fracture about mid-way through the year, cutting his junior campaign short. Able to secure a medical redshirt, the Florida native sat out last season while rehabilitating and preparing for a return to action this season. With the departures of some last year’s spectacular, I’m sure that Jimbo Fisher and defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt are more than happy to have an experienced, veteran player like Jacobbi McDaniel back into the mix this season.

Strengths: McDaniel is extremely strong and explosive off the ball. It’s his quickness, though, that made him such an effective player early in his career in Tallahassee. The quickness that Jacobbi has in him is extremely deceiving for a man his size. It’ll be interesting to see if that took a bit of a hit with the gruesome ankle injury that he suffered, although if it does, it shouldn’t be much. He’s shown flashes throughout workouts this offseason of getting back to his normal self, which is extremely good news for this defense.

Weaknesses: The aforementioned ankle injury may be the only weakness for Jacobbi McDaniel. This was an injury that many expected to end his career. Frankly, it’s somewhat of a miracle that he’s back and ready to go this year. Nonetheless, no matter how good the rehab went, there still might be some unwanted side effects, hindering the quick movements he once had.

Personal Note: No matter what this year brings for this young man, every single member of the Nole Nation owes a tip of the cap to Jacobbi McDaniel. I’ve had the chance to personally interact with him on a few occasions, and there honestly can not be a nicer person in the game of college football. Even though a lot of our social media interaction on the above-mentioned twitter account was mainly myself and former Seminole Everett Dawkins expressing our undying love for Derrick Rose to him (Jacobbi is an avid LeBron James supporter, by the way), he still played it all in good fun. But that’s another thing. In a world where we’re constantly shaking our heads at the use of twitter by NCAA athletes, Jacobbi uses it for all the positive reasons. Whether it’s a retweet, a favorite or a mention, he always goes out of his way to make sure that every one of his supporters are acknowledged in some shape, form or fashion. He’s been a member of the Florida State community that we can all be proud of, and I personally wish him all the best of luck in his return campaign this year.

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Jack is the Lead College Football Writer for Chop Chat. Follow Jack on Twitter @JackJ14CFB