Florida State had a 2-10 season in 2024. This is not the standard of the Seminoles. Head football coach Mike Norvell knows that, and realizes that changes needed to be made.
Norvell went out and hired new assistant coaches, as well as acquired new players via the recruiting trail and transfer portal. The offensive unit for Florida State was one of the worst in college football.
New offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn for his playcalling to help the running game. However, an underrated part of Malzahn's offense is getting the wide receivers in space to make plays. The Seminoles picked up 6'6" Duce Robinson from USC.
With that being said, I believe that the Seminoles will acquire more playmakers at the position. I am a huge fan of current players such as Hykeem Williams, Lawayne McCoy, Elijah Moore, Camdon Frier, BJ Gibson, and Jayvan Boggs. However, none of them are proven playmakers.
The name of the game for Florida State's coaching staff in the transfer portal is getting proven commodities. One name that I will be monitoring is West Virginia wide receiver Traylon Ray. He was originally a four-star prospect in the 2023 cycle from North Florida Christian School in Tallahassee, Florida.
The Mountaineers fired head football coach Neal Brown, and Ray has decided to enter the transfer portal. During the past two seasons for West Virginia, he recorded 46 receptions for 747 yards and seven touchdowns. Ray finished with three touchdowns in the last four games that he played.
Unfortunately, injury concerns are present with Ray, which cut his 2024 season short. The talented playmaker suffered a serious leg injury. Is it giving you PTSD Winston Wright Jr. vibes? I understand that Wright Jr's injury came from a car accident. However, it is a scary proposition to gamble on a player that is coming off a serious injury.
The coaching staff bet on themselves with running back Trey Benson coming off a serious injury, and we saw how he turned out. My opinion is that I don't mind Florida State taking Ray, but I would take three wide receiver transfers if the playmaker needs time to recover since he has two years of eligibility remaining.