FSU linebacker reacts to news of assistant coach Randy Shannon not returning

Florida State football had a horrible 2024 season where they finished with a 2-10 record. This is not the standard of the Seminoles. Head football coach Mike Norvell talked about how the turnaround will be fast.

This struggle came quickly and unexpectedly. This was a squad that many (other than ESPN's McElroy and Finebaum) thought that the Seminoles could have been in contention for a conference championship and a College Football Playoff.

One of the changes for the turnaround was firing assistant coaches and starting over (it is better than having to pay $60 million to fire Norvell). Unfortunately, that comes with risks, as we have seen with firing offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Alex Atkins with a variety of recruits.

On Thursday afternoon, there were multiple reports that co-defensive coordinator/linebacker coach Randy Shannon is expected to not be part of the Seminoles' coaching staff in 2025.

I understand why Shannon was let go. Some individuals were frustrated with his recruiting ability as he was not acquiring talented prospects on the recruits on the trail. I like the skill set of four-star linebacker Ethan Pritchard, but it was the only one at the position that was signed in the recruiting class.

The Seminoles were involved with four-star Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, four-star Gavin Nix, four-star Ty Jackson, and four-star Tavion Wallace, but Florida State struck out on all of them. With that being said, Shannon did have some success with the current linebackers on the squad in 2024.

The fan base thought the linebackers would take a massive step back after losing Kalen DeLoach and Tatum Bethune to the NFL, but young players such as Omar Graham Jr., Blake Nichelson, and Justin Cryer showed flashes of solid play.

After the news of Shannon's firing, Cryer went to social media to voice his displeasure.

Shannon gave a chance to Cryer to be a productive player. It has to be difficult to see a coach that believes in you go away from the program. However, I know that the young linebacker will be a pivotal piece in 2025 for the Seminoles, and I cannot wait to see him develop with whoever ends up being the position coach.