New FSU football coaching hire hits on what's been missing with bold statement

The FSU football defense has a few weaknesses in its first year under new defensive coordinator Tony White. The Noles transitioned from a predominantly 4-2-5 defense man-to-man scheme to a 3-3-5 base with multiple fronts and a heavy zone scheme in the secondary.

One of the biggest weaknesses of this defense was the lack of pass rush from the defensive line. That was something I pointed out before the season, that a lot of White’s pass rush came from a multitude of positions, including the linebackers. However, FSU used quite a bit of 4-man fronts in 2025, and may do more of that in 2026.

They added several high school defensive edge players in the 2026 high school recruiting class and will likely add 1-2 from the transfer portal. They also hired a defensive coach to work primarily with defensive ends, Nick Williams, who came to FSU from Syracuse.

Williams has a reputation as a good recruiter and has worked at some programs that understand how to recruit at an elite level. However, his statement to FSU’s Jeff Culhane in a recent interview caught my ear:

This type of accountability from coaches is part of what has been missing at FSU for the past couple of years. It’s not a talent issue, but the players' willingness to fully buy into playing for one another and to achieve their goals of reaching the next level of football.

It’s the put the work in and do their job mentality, and willingness for players to hold one another accountable in that department.

I've been saying it a lot on social media, but it's the coaches job to find the players with this mentality. If Williams can recruit to FSU like some think, and hold guys to the standard? We should see an improved pass rush and overall defense at FSU.