FSU football: Top 5 takeaways from ‘Noles 2021 season

The 2021 FSU football season is one I had high anticipation for, and I can’t believe how fast it came and passed.

I was excited about several reasons: new season, full stadiums, but none more than seeing what this staff could do with a full offseason under their belt.

I hated having to grade the 2020 season on somewhat of a curve due to COVID-19 impacting things. It wasn’t fair to the staff or the players to be overly critical, considering the time missed and what the players endured to play games.

I think the 2021 season provided near what I expected leading up to the season, with all things considered. There were still several unknowns heading into the Notre Dame game. How much had Jordan Travis progressed as a QB?

Would the players from the transfer portal prove to make an impact? Would the team respond in the face of adversity after laying down so often in years past?

What would the team’s identity be? It’s crazy because we got almost all of those questions answered in the first game.

However, no season is complete without twists and turns involving injuries, players developing, and opponents under and overachieving. We learned a lot about this program and the players and coaches. Here are my top five takeaways from the 2021 season.

The Staff Can Recruit

One of the biggest criticisms of Mike Norvell and the staff he hired was the unknown regarding their ability to recruit.

Most of the staff didn’t have ties to Florida and Georgia, and Norvell and the staff used existing relationships to build their 2021 class during a COVID year. However, what they have accomplished in the 2022 class thus far has been nothing short of amazing.

The attention to detail, ability to create momentum, and understanding of how relationships work have put the Noles in a position to finish with a potential top 10 recruiting class coming off three wins in 2020 and five wins in 2021.

Not only that, they showed the ability to land impact players from the transfer portal like Jermaine Johnson, Keir Thomas, Jammie Robinson, and Dillan Gibbons. Those additions showed they evaluate their roster needs to find the right players to get the program going in the right direction.

I’ve said it several times this year. Where would this team have been if they didn’t bring in those players from the transfer portal? The staff will need to tap into the portal again and have already done so with offensive lineman Bless Harris. They’ll add more from there and should close strong with several blue-chip players to finalize the 2022 class. There’s a reason Mike Norvell hit the road recruiting at 6 a.m. Sunday morning.

Adam Fuller Told Critics To Shut Up

One coach that caught a raw deal in 2020 was defensive coordinator Adam Fuller. Most fans wanted him fired, despite dealing with COVID and several defensive players failing to play at a high level.

I wanted to give him an offseason to implement his scheme and build player trust before declaring someone firable.

The calls to fire him continued through the 2021 season for whatever reason. However, the defense was never the main issue with the team. I’ve said it several times, but the defense played well enough for FSU to win 7-8 games.

The lack of offense or the offense turning the ball over 13 times in the first five games was the issue. People have to stop looking at just the number of points allowed and see the big picture. It’s tough for a defense to stop a team from scoring on a short field.

More context is the FSU defense faced some of the better quarterbacks in college football this season.

Despite all of that, the defense improved drastically in nearly every statistical category when compared to 2020. Is Adam Fuller elite? I wouldn’t know because he doesn’t have a crop of elite talent, but the man understands defense and puts players in a position to make plays.

If he gets better players and puts those players in positions to make plays? Good things will happen.

Staff Can Develop Players

How many players went into the 2021 season with huge question marks, or were players fans had already written off? How many of those players ultimately became important players for this coaching staff? I’m glad you asked:

• Jordan Travis
• Kalen DeLoach
• Baveon Johnson
• DJ Lundy
• Akeem Dent
• Malcolm Ray
• Jarrett Jackson
• Ja’Khi Douglas
• Tre’shaun Ward
• Jordan Wilson

All of these guys had a big impact as a starter or played important snaps in a reserve role. FSU likely only wins one game without Jordan Travis. DeLoach and Lundy combined for 138 tackles and 11.5 tackles for a loss. Akeem Dent had 44 tackles and four passes defended with a game-winning interception.

Ray and Jackson helped spell Fabien Lovett and Robert Cooper. Ray had nearly as many tackles as Lovett! Douglas emerged as a receiver that could make a play late in the season(although we saw it in game one and he disappeared for a bit).

Tre’shaun Ward went from a walk-on to a guy that had 700 total yards and five touchdowns. What about the true freshman who emerged and became contributors? Kevin Knowles and Omarion Cooper became impact players in the FSU secondary.

Malik McClain showed flashes at wide receiver. Jordan Wilson overcame an injury to emerge into a top blocker and threat in the passing game. These are all good signs the coaching staff can find roles and develop players.

Jordan Travis Is the MVP

FSU football likely wins one game if they don’t have Jordan Travis as their QB in 2021. I’m still of the opinion Mike Norvell should get a QB from the transfer portal, but I can’t deny Jordan Travis improved as a quarterback.

He did, but his propensity for injuries is too much of a risk. Jordan Travis grew as a passer while maintaining the threat to run. He did a much better job of taking care of the ball after the Notre Dame debacle that saw him throw three interceptions.

The other three he threw on the year were either not his fault or of no consequence. One was a hail mary against Wake Forest, another was Camren McDonald missing a block against Syracuse, and the last was arguably an incomplete pass against Florida Saturday.

He finished the year with 1,539 passing yards and 15 touchdowns, and those six interceptions. He added in another 533 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.

He proved he can win games against average to good teams, but probably needs to develop more as a passer if FSU is to beat elite defenses.

I’m excited to see him progress in 2022. He needs to work on anticipatory things in the passing game and throwing guys open while becoming decisive when he needs to use his legs or stay in the pocket to find a receiver downfield.

The Program Is Heading In The Right Direction

I know people want to focus on wins and losses, and that’s fair. However, we have to include context for the macro point of view. FSU improved in almost every conceivable metric over last year.

FSU ranked No. 40 overall in FEI advanced metrics before the Florida game and ranked No. 103 overall by the same metric after an eight-game schedule in 2020. That’s an incredible improvement considering they played without their starting quarterback in three games. It’s the highest they have finished since ranking No. 30 at the end of the 2017 season.

This team is less talented than the 2018 and 2019 teams, and that improvement points to better coaching. The other thing that points to the program heading in the right direction is recruiting. FSU could finish the 2022 cycle with nine players in the top 200 and 5-6 in the top 100.

They’ve also addressed the quarterback position and offensive line, along with other players that could develop into quality pieces.

They should also have an easier time landing quality players from the transfer portal since they have proof of concept with Jermaine Johnson, Keir Thomas, Jammie Robinson, and Dillan Gibbons. The coaches can point to all of the close losses to these recruits as the missing pieces to get the Noles back to national prominence.

I believe once this coaching staff gets the needed talent at key positions, they’ll begin to run through average teams and reach that next tier to recruit elite talent across the board.