This offseason, Florida State locked down 2025 four-star running back Ousmane Kromah for a second season in Tallahassee. He returned with Samuel Singleton Jr., but that didn’t stop Mike Norvell and general manager John Garrett from picking up Texas transfer Quintrevion Wisner in the portal.
All indications are that Kromah signed a two-year deal out of high school. Yet, despite him being part of the plan after a 72-carry, 408-yard true freshman campaign, the Seminoles opted to add to an already crowded backfield with Wisner and a dual-threat quarterback, Ashton Daniels, who is likely to take 5-10 carries every game.
Kromah was good in Year 1, but didn’t exactly live up to lofty expectations, partially due to the time-share with Gavin Sawchuk and Singleton. That may have led FSU to hedge its bets against him reaching his projected ceiling as a sophomore with the Wisner pickup.
Now, however, Norvell is lauding Kromah for his offseason work and fall camp performance. All signs point to that breakout coming right on their original schedule, and while it’s a good problem to have, that could only complicate an already crowded backfield.
Mike Norvell names Ousmane Kromah as the Scrimmage 1 standout
Florida State held the first of three scheduled scrimmages at Doak Campbell Stadium on Tuesday night, and in his media availability afterwards, Kromah was the first name out of his mouth when asked who stood out. According to John Evans of Noles247, he was complimentary of Singleton, Wisner, and wide receiver Micahi Danzy as well, but it seems Kromah is starting to steal the show.
Last season, with Gus Malzahn as the offensive coordinator and David Johnson as the running backs coach, the Seminoles seemingly had a revolving door in the backfield. Only twice did Kromah hit double-digit carries in a game, and the braintrust was criticized for preventing its running backs from getting into a rhythm alongside run-first QB and the team’s leading rusher, Tommy Castellanos.
With Malzahn gone, Norvell is reassuming his place as the offensive play-caller and has consistently indicated that he’s going to do a lot with two backs on the field.
That’s something he excelled at during his time at Memphis, and particularly in 2018 when he had two 1,000-yard rushers, Darrell Henderson and Patrick Taylor Jr., while Tony Pollard cleared 500 yards on the ground. Future NFL running back Kenneth Gainwell was also on that roster and recorded just four carries, so Norvell has had too many mouths to feed before.
Martin has also explicitly stated that “this year is going to be different” in regard to the backfield rotation. On Monday, he also told reporters that he’s going to ride the hot hand and that Tuesday night’s scrimmage would give him a good idea of who is getting the first carry for Florida State when it opens the season in Week 0 against New Mexico State.
It sounds as though that player is going to be Kromah, and that’s a good thing. A homegrown talent that Norvell invested in on the recruiting trail turning into a potential star is inarguably positive for his program. But does Florida State have room for a bell-cow?
Ousmane Kromah could turn FSU’s running back plans on its head
Kromah averaged 5.7 yards per carry as a true freshman. He did so with just a 40 percent rushing success rate and very few true breakaway runs, so there’s a lot of meat left on the bone. Kromah shed a bit of weight this offseason, which could boost his top-end speed, and another year of development will undoubtedly improve his vision.
So, what if it all comes together? Sure, you want to keep running backs fresh, and it’s nice to have a stable of them, but if it were a two-year deal from Kromah, nothing is guaranteed past 2026, and that’s especially true for his head coach. So, if he’s the best one, you’ve got to get your money’s worth.
Assuming this hype comes to fruition, Wisner can still factor in as a third-down back and in two-back sets. He’s a well-rounded player, which is why adding him made sense. He can be complementary no matter how the rest of the room shakes out because his game has no real weaknesses.
Still, if Kromah deserves 20 carries a game, and Daniels is toting the rock about 10 times, what does that leave for Wisner and Singleton? And if Wisner is a 5-10-carry-a-game player, no matter how good he is with those carries, that was a poor allocation of resources to pay up for him this offseason.
Again, Kromah taking a real step is not a bad thing. It could just complicate things and force Norvell to dust off the old Memphis 21-personnel playbook to keep everyone happy.
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