Florida State will face the Stanford Cardinals with several players missing the game or playing with injuries. Luckily for FSU, Stanford isn’t a good team and has several players listed on its injury report as well.
The good news is that this game could be a great opportunity for the young players on the roster to show what they can do. FSU coaches bragged about the number of young players who contributed in the games earlier this season. Those numbers declined once they started ACC play, which isn’t rare since the competition improved.
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However, some of these young players shouldn’t be a liability on the field for the amount of time they’ve been in college. True, having new coordinators probably changed that clock somewhat, but FSU is halfway through the season.
FSU is thin at the receiver, tight end, and defensive back positions, but there’s young talent available. Elijah Moore, Landen Thomas, and Lawayne McCoy should see ample time to shine. Micahi Danzy has already proven to be a major contributor, and that should continue.
The Desir twins and Kevin Wynn have been impressive as freshmen on the defensive line. This game will be a good chance to see that continue, while adding Amaree Williams to that list at defensive end. The secondary will have players like Cai Bates, Charles Lester, Shamar Arnoux, Ricky Knight, and Jamari Howard vying to make their presence felt.
Nearly all of these players were blue-chip recruits out of high school, and many are in their second year in college. At some point, the return on the investment must show in more of these players. The Stanford game would be a good spot for it to happen and something to build on.