Florida State has had some great running backs throughout its history, such as Dalvin Cook, Warrick Dunn, Cam Akers, Devonta Freeman, Greg Jones, Sammie Smith, Larry Key, Travis Minor, Greg Allen, and many more.
The fan base expects a ton from the position, and for good reason. The Seminoles had a good year with running the football under the guidance of offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn. However, the issue surrounding the fact that the coaching staff kept using too many running backs.
One week, it was Gavin Sawchuk, then it was Ousmane Kromah, and finally Sam Singleton Jr. (with a rare half-back toss to Caziah Holmes for good measure). With that said, Coach Malzahn has officially retired and is off into the sunset. Mike Norvell will be taking off playcalling duties after his short-lived stint as a "CEO".
Coach Norvell's offense still has similar qualities to Malzahn, where he still wants to establish the running game and stay ahead of the chains. The Seminoles hired a new running backs coach in Kam Martin, who has produced a couple of 1,000+ yard rushers. The hope is that Martin can bring consistency to the running game.
Florida State has to land this talented running back prospect in four-star Ty Keys
Florida State is expecting to have a workhorse back in Texas transfer Tre Wisner, and then have talented pieces surrounding him, such as Ousmane Kromah, Sam Singleton Jr., Gemari Sands, and Amari Thomas.
This should be a situation that attracts high school talent at the running back position. The Seminoles are hosting four-star running back Ty Keys from Poplarville, Mississippi, for an official visit on the weekend of June 5th.
Florida State fans can remember when they went into the state of Mississippi and grabbed former five-star prospect Cam Akers in the Jimbo Fisher days. While I am not saying that Keys is a spitting image of Akers (nor do I want to apply that pressure on him), he did record 3,285 yards and 45 touchdowns during his junior season (according to MaxPreps).
Keys will be officially visiting Mississippi State on the weekend of June 19th. Even though the Bulldogs do not have a great on-the-field product, those prospects in the state of Mississippi usually choose to stay home. It would be great for Kam Martin to lock this recruitment down before he even takes the visit to Mississippi State later in the month.