FSU football: 5 players who benefited most from 2021 spring camp
By Kelvin Hunt
Amari Gainer
The linebacker unit has been a weakness for the Noles for at least the last five or six years. A freshman, Stephen Dix Jr., stepped in and finished third on the team with 44 tackles.
Senior Emmett Rice finished second with 62 tackles, and Amari Gainer led the team with 65 tackles.
The latter is most impressive because there were certain formations where he wasn’t in the game at all as the coaching staff looked to find a suitable role.
That role for Gainer has been defined at Will linebacker. He’ll be a force as a blitzer and able to cover players in space.
The latter has been a weakness for the defense as teams running the RPO game feasted on FSU’s poor linebacker play.
Gainer brings an impressive blend of size and speed and always seems to be around the football.
The number of reps received this spring should go a long way in improving his comfort level in identifying his keys and processing what the offense is trying to do in different formations.
Gainer has been among the team’s leading tacklers for the past two years. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him become the first FSU linebacker with 100 tackles since Reggie Northrup in 2014.