FSU football: Impact of Ja’Khi Douglas missing a few games

FSU football head coach Mike Norvell spoke with the media Monday afternoon as the team counts down to its season opener against LSU on Sunday in prime time.

Coach Norvell spoke about the team’s progress overall and the health of the roster going into the season. Aside from a few bumps and bruises, it sounds like the team is relatively healthy, which is a stroke of good luck, as many teams have lost players for the season.

One guy that can’t catch a break is redshirt junior wide receiver Ja’Khi Douglas. Coach Norvell mentioned Douglas as the one player that will miss some time to begin the season, stating he’d like miss the first few games this season.

It’s unfortunate for the Louisiana native, who didn’t get to play against LSU last year either. Douglas missed the first half of last season with an injury before appearing in the final seven games. He had 10 receptions for 123 yards, with two touchdowns.

Douglas has been a productive player in the slot when healthy, and has some big receptions in his career. He has speed to beat safeties deep in man-to-man coverage, and savvy against zone coverages to sit down in open spots.

FSU has experience playing without him, as that’s a role Mycah Pittman filled coming from the transfer portal. Freshman Destyn Hill looks to have claimed that spot via the depth chart released Monday afternoon.

Hill is bigger and faster, but doesn’t have the experience Douglas presents. There’s also Winston Wright Jr., who’s coming off a devastating injury after missing all of last season. However, he’s looked good in fall camp and seems to have recovered nicely.

It probably says more about what Hill brings to the table, than what Wright hasn’t done in his return to action. Here’s to hoping Douglas can heal quickly and return to action, because one can never have enough savvy veterans available at receiver.