Florida State shares more bad injury news before SMU kickoff, with Darryll Desir set to miss Week 1

Florida State didn’t show much of a pass rush in its 34-17 Week 0 win over New Mexico State. Getting after the quarterback was only going to get harder for that group with the step up in competition, hosting No. 19 SMU at Doak Campbell Stadium in Week 1 on Monday night, but now matters are even worse with Darryll Desir ruled out hours before kickoff. 

Desir joined a crowded Gameday availability report for the Seminoles, with key members of the secondary, KJ Kirkland, Jordan Crutchfield, and Chuck Kennon, also set to be sidelined. At the second level, veteran linebacker Blake Nichelson will be out as well. 

It seems that Florida State exited its Week 0 win more banged up than expected, and now second-year defensive coordinator Tony White will have a major test against Rhett Lashlee’s high-powered Mustangs offense. 

Tony White may not have any answers for the SMU passing game

The last time Florida State played SMU was before White arrived in Tallahassee. In their first year in the ACC, the Mustangs steamrolled the Seminoles 42-16 behind 254 yards and three touchdowns from Jennings, who is now in his third year leading Lashlee’s offense. 

In 2025, FSU ranked No. 57 in the country by passing success rate and allowed 6.5 yards per dropback, which was No. 49. In Week 0, New Mexico State threw for 272 passing yards and two touchdowns against a secondary that had glaring communication lapses. The absence of Kirkland, Crutchfield, and Kennon will likely exacerbate those issues, and without a full deck on the back end, it would seem White may consider turning up the heat and blitzing more to speed Jennings up. 

No Desir puts a spotlight on FSU's EDGEs

That’s where the Desir injury becomes problematic. He, not his twin brother Mandrell, who had 6.5 sacks as a true freshman, led the team in QB pressures in 2025. Neither Desir played especially well against the Aggies last week, but Darryll posted a 30% pass rush win rate on 20 pass-rushing reps. He’s vital to the defensive line, and losing him will be a significant blow. 

The Desirs entered the transfer portal this offseason, seemingly exercising their newfound leverage after arriving as three-star recruits before drastically outplaying that status in Year 1 on campus. The move worked, netting them a healthy payday to return, and with FSU’s tight offseason budget, head coach Mike Norvell and White were clearly counting on both to be big-time contributors. 

Now, it seems there is as much pressure on Norvell as ever in Week 1, after an underwhelming display a week ago, and he’s without one of his most important and impactful players. Will SMU take advantage, or will White prove his worth with a creative solution? 

I’d expect the latter, but optimistic Seminoles fans can at least hope for the former and see what happens.

Aside from the Desirs, FSU is also clearly hoping to get something out of its two JACK linebacker additions this offseason: Texas A&M castoff Rylan Kennedy and JuCo transfer Jalen Anderson. Anderson was the more effective of the two in Week 0, but neither looked to have much juice off the edge.

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