FSU Football Fall Camp Observations: Passing Game Ascending With Preseason Winding Down

Malik Benson and Kentron Poitier flash as the offense continues to hit its stride.

Dillon Riera

The grind of the preseason is coming to a close with Florida State practicing for the fourth straight day on Thursday morning. The session marked the last time that the media will be in attendance until game week. The team is also expected to get some work in on Friday and Saturday.

It was a back-and-forth day with both sides creating their fair share of plays. I thought the wide receivers made some really tough catches and the defensive backs continued to battle. I came out of the practice pretty encouraged with the progression of the offense as this was probably their best day this fall - something I also pointed out on Tuesday. Steps are being made in the right direction.

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NoleGameday was in attendance for the session and we've listed some observations from different position groups and players below.

— The Chicago Bears and New York Jets had scouts viewing the practice. There was also someone from the East-West Shrine Bowl.

— Ryan Fitzgerald connected from 27 yards out to conclude a successful two-minute drive. Jake Weinberg was wide left from 34 yards out.

OFFENSE:

— The short to intermediate throws have been an area where the quarterbacks have struggled at times in camp. That wasn't the case on Thursday as I thought DJ Uiagalelei, Brock Glenn, and Luke Kromenhoek were very sharp when it came to connecting on layups.

Uiagalelei, in particular, seemed to find a nice rhythm that started early in the day as he led the offense downfield in two-minute drills. The highlights of the period were a pass to Ja'Khi Douglas over the middle followed by a deep shot to Malik Benson down the sideline that went for more than 30 yards. He connected with Benson and Ja'Khi Douglas for touchdowns in 1-on-1's on a pair of contested catches by the wide receivers. I feel comfortable saying Uiagalelei is playing his best football with the preseason wrapping up.

— It was a good practice for Brock Glenn as well. He led the offense into scoring range on a two-minute drill with a deep throw to Lawrance Toafili on the sideline. The pass led Toafili into open space and allowed him to get out of bounds inside the red zone. He found Micahi Danzy for a touchdown out of the backfield later in the day. In 7-on-7, Glenn went through his progressions and hit Deuce Spann over the middle after recognizing his first read wasn't open. Good to see after some up-and-down performances these last few weeks.

— Luke Kromenhoek delivered the throw of the day with a perfect deep ball to Jalen Brown in 1-on-1's. The pass went for 50+ yards and hit Brown right in stride.

— What a week for Malik Benson. He's back in the form we saw consistently in the spring where he's simply making ridiculous plays. On a day of contested catches, Benson came down with the most impressive one while matched up against Azareye'h Thomas in 1-on-1's. DJ Uiagalelei lofted a throw to the corner of the end zone and Benson made a highlight-reel grab with a vertical effort over one of the top defenders on the roster. Benson got by Thomas on an earlier rep for a sideline grab where he adjusted and pulled the ball in with not much space to work with.

— Kentron Poitier did his best to match Benson with a tough vertical catch on the sideline in team drills. He recognized a ball coming his way with Azareye'h Thomas face-guarding him and went up to finish the play. Poitier had another grab in 1-on-1's with Edwin Joseph all over him, keeping his concentration to make the catch despite bobbling it initially. He did drop an open pass later in the day but it felt like one of his better efforts this preseason.

— Bounce back day for Ja'Khi Douglas. I don't think he let a pass hit the ground all day which was good to see. That even included a catch on the sideline where Douglas ended up running into a folding table on the sideline and still held on. Douglas scored a touchdown on a difficult catch in the back of the end with Earl Little Jr. on top of him.

— Deuce Spann beat Shyheim Brown with a nice route to the sideline in 1-on-1's. He did have a drop later in practice. I thought Lawayne McCoy and Amaree Williams showed up well in the drill too.

— Nice concentration from Brian Courtney to stick with a tipped pass in the end zone and get a foot down before going out of bounds.

— Noted a strong blocking effort from Roydell Williams on DJ Lundy in pass protection drills. Coach YAC was fired up.

DEFENSE:

— Shyheim Brown lost a rep to Deuce Spann in 1-on-1's and was a little frustrated with himself. He responded with a pair of strong run fits in team drills, stuffing two plays that looked primed for more. Brown is playing really smart football at the moment.

— What a day for KJ Sampson, maybe his best of the preseason. His effort always show up and he's finding himself being rewarded for it. Sampson exploded off the snap to bury a running back for a tackle for loss. Instantly in the backfield.

— Justin Cryer has popped up over the last few days. His growth is noticeable as he enters his second season at Florida State. Cryer barrled over Kam Davis in pass protection drills - something that isn't easy to do. His speed flashed as it looked like he chased down Mike Norvell in the daily pre-practice race.

— DJ Lundy was moving really well on Thursday. He looked really fluid going through drills with the linebackers with Ernie Sims barking out instructions.

— I don't think Azareye'h Thomas would call this one of his best practices even if he played great coverage at certain points. He gave up a few catches on Thursday but responded with a nifty pass deflection while guarding Jalen Brown in the end zone that won the defense a drill.

— Luke Kromenhoek got out of the pocket for a scramble towards the sideline in team drills. The play happened to fall on third-down and safety Ashlynd Barker hustled from his spot to stop the quarterback just short of the line. The effort was recognized by Mike Norvell.

— Ricky Knight III nearly picked off a pass in the end zone in 1-on-1's, contesting and coming down with a tipped ball, his foot just wasn't quite in. Knight made a remarkable effort late in the day on a diving attempt where he secured a pick.

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