FSU football endured a number of injuries that influenced how the team performed in 2016.
FSU football recruits at an elite level which can hide deficiencies, but injuries can ravage the depth of a team and expose weaknesses like youth and inexperience.
That’s what happened in 2016 when FSU lost a number of players to injury. All-American Derwin James was lost for the season in the second game.
Nate Andrews was lost for the season in the sixth game of the season due to an injury. Both injuries forced players with little to no experience into action.
FSU football had some tough, physical games in the early part of 2016 while playing against teams with elite offenses.
Florida State Seminoles Football
The reverse will take place in 2017 with the ‘Noles taking on three defenses in the first four games who are extremely physical and among the nations best last season:
- Alabama-No. 1 defense (1st game)
- Miami-No. 13 defense (3rd game)
- NC State-No. 11 defense(4th game)
Thoughts
The ‘Noles will play four games in 22 days. Luckily, FSU football has Louisiana Monroe in-between the Alabama/Miami game. That will be an opportunity to give the starters a bit more time to recoup before the Miami game.
However, those games can’t be taken for granted as Derwin James was injured in a similar game last season against Charleston Southern.
These three games are going to test the physicality of the FSU players, and a prime reason why Jimbo Fisher challenged the team so much in spring practice.
These are the type of games that cause injuries and bruises that nag players all season.
Now, FSU is in a better position to deal with injuries at certain positions compared to last year, but they’ll still need good injury luck if this year is to be as special as some think it can.
Depth at quarterback and wide receiver are concerns. FSU will need Josh Sweat to stay healthy (he was limping around last week) since he’s the most experienced defensive end on the roster. The same for Matthew Thomas at linebacker and of course the offensive line.
FSU football needs to come out of the Alabama game healthy as winning or losing that game isn’t as important as the Miami or NC State game. Of course, beating Miami is a must to keep the winning streak going while keeping them at little brother status.
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A win there would be huge for recruiting too. The NC State game is a ACC Atlantic Division game and all of those are must-win games. A healthy FSU has a good shot of running the table if they can emerge undefeated or 3-1 after the first four games.
FSU is due for some good injury luck after last season, so let’s hope the injury bugs stay away!