Florida State is one of those teams in college football that some individuals cannot get a read on. The Seminoles had a disappointing season in 2024, and are trying to flush out what went wrong in a campaign where the offense was only able to muster 15 points per game.
The Seminoles did add offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, offensive line coach Herb Hand, and wide receivers coach Tim Harris Jr., but are coaches from a 4-8 UCF Knights team in 2024 good enough to get Florida State where it wants to be?
The program also added transfer playmaking pieces this offseason such as USC's Duce Robinson, Tennessee's Squirrel White, UCF's Randy Pittman, and Arizona State's Markeston Douglas (back again!?).
The group had more production than Alabama's Malik Benson and LSU's Jalen Brown (still on the roster), who was acquired via the transfer portal last year. I am not throwing direct shots at either of these individuals because I really liked both pickups last year.
However, the transfers that were brought in this year have more proven production. The problem is that with media access limited, fans have not heard much of anything about how the pass catchers were doing other than a highlight of Thomas Castellanos throwing a pass to Duce Robinson and Brock Glenn throwing one to Chase Loftin.
Norvell has expressed excitement about youngsters such as Chase Loftin, Jayvan Boggs, and recently Tae'Shaun Gelsey. This makes me think that they will have more meaningful contributions than most think.
Injury concerns are always something to worry about during this time of year. I like the pickups, but I know that you can never have too many pass catchers. I remember when Keon Coleman was being mentioned as someone who was being pursued and I did not love the idea since they already had Johnny Wilson and Jaheim Bell.
I will admit when I was wrong because Coleman had a more than solid season for Florida State in that offense with quarterback Jordan Travis throwing him the football. Should fans be worried about the pass catchers on the roster? No, they are very talented. However, should fans be open to the idea of acquiring more in the transfer portal when the next window opens up? Absolutely.