Florida State vs. Southern Miss: Wednesday Practice Observations For The Seminoles

The defense made their presence felt throughout Wednesday's practice.

There is a lot of optimism and excitement building in Tallahassee after the Seminoles opened up their campaign with a dominating victory against LSU. The performance has Florida State sitting at No. 4 in the country ahead of its home opener against what some would say is an overmatched Southern Miss team on Saturday night.

With that being said, head coach Mike Norvell and the coaching staff are pushing the players harder than ever prior to this game. There is a noticeable uptick in the sense of urgency as the Seminoles look to stay on track against the Golden Eagles.

READ MORE: Mike Norvell Responds To Brian Kelly's Message Following Florida State's Beatdown of LSU

NoleGameday was in attendance for the entire session on Wednesday and jotted down some observations from the day.

— The Cleveland Browns, Atlanta Falcons, Jacksonville Jaguars, New Orleans Saints, and Detroit Lions had representatives viewing the practice.

— Sharp day for the kickers. Ryan Fitzgerald and Tyler Keltner both made kicks from 29 yards and 45 yards out with crowd noise blaring in their ears.

OFFENSE:

— The offense was held in check early in practice by a strong set of periods from the defense. Jordan Travis threw outside to Keon Coleman but Akeem Dent flew in to break it up on the first snap of two-minute drills. Dent nearly reeled in an interception on the next play after a pass to Jaheim Bell down the seam sailed on Travis. Braden Fiske and Gilber Edmond got to the quarterback for a sack to bring up fourth down.

This is where we saw Travis at his best. With pressure in his face in the pocket, he escaped multiple defenders before delivering a perfect throw to a receiver on the sideline in tight space. However, the defense responded. With the clock counting down to zero, Travis threw over the middle to Johnny Wilson but Shyheim Brown was able to get a hand on the ball to tip it into the air. Linebacker Tatum Bethune capitalized on the opportunity, pulling it in for a pick.

— The struggles continued into third-down work but the unit finally began to find some footing during the second half of practice. Wilson got things started with a patented grab on the sideline where he used his massive frame to seal off Azareye'h Thomas from having any chance of getting to the ball.

— That led to some success for the other offensive skill plays. Jaheim Bell caught a pass while working over the middle, Keon Coleman pulled one in after Jarrian Jones got tangled with his feet, Deuce Spann came down with a deep shot from AJ Duffy with Renardo Green in the area, and Goldie Lawrence made a nice catch on the sideline with Edwin Joseph in good coverage.

— Coleman provided a flashback of Sunday night with a rep in goal line 1-on-1's where he simply out-jumped the opposing defensive back while making a heck of a catch.

— Mike Norvell is all about watching how his players respond. After a tough outing during the special teams portion of practice, wide receiver Deuce Spann dialed in and picked up his performance throughout 1-on-1's and 7-on-7.

— Bless Harris had a solid rep against Jared Verse in 1-on-1's against the defensive line where he forced the powerful defensive end to take a wide angle around the quarterback.

— Hykeem Williams came down with a tough grab in the end zone where he was hit to the ground by a defender.

— Johnny Wilson pulled down a catch in stride from Travis while working deep down the sideline in 7-on-7.

DEFENSE:

— It was a very impactful practice for converted safety Kevin Knowles, who was in on two interceptions and some other key sequences. Knowles picked off a pass in 7-on-7 after undercutting a route from Brian Courtney and essentially turning into a receiver. He was able to have a similar result in 7-on-7 on a deep pass that sailed on a quarterback. Knowles also delivered a pop to Johnny Wilson on the sideline where it looked like the wide receiver would be able to make a grab. It was hard to tell if the play went as a fumble or incomplete pass.

— Linebacker Tatum Bethune cleaned up Jordan Travis for a sack during third-down work.

— Fabien Lovett had two promising sequences during red zone drills. Lovett exploded up the middle for a sack on AJ Duffy prior to getting through the offensive line and combining with another defender for a tackle for loss.

— Conrad Hussey had a nifty play where he was able to get a hand in front of Kyle Morlock for a deflection to get the defense off the field on third down.

— Ayobami Tifase got to Brock Glenn for a sack on a play where the defense brought a ton of pressure.

— Jarrian Jones broke up a two-point conversion play that was intended for Keon Coleman in the corner of the end zone.

— I keep seeing positive signs from true freshman cornerback Quindarrius Jones, who is still listed as the primary backup to Renardo Green. Jones delivered enough of a hit on Hykeem Williams to prevent a completion on the sideline. He made a nice read later in practice on a short pass. Jones came flying in for a deflection that he couldn't have timed any better.

— Renardo Green deflected a pass that was thrown over the middle by Travis after he was forced off his first option.

— Dante Anderson came away with a sack in the red zone.

— Defensive end Patrick Payton is clearly doing his part to step up as a leader. Payton worked with Byron Turner Jr. on his hand placement after one of his reps in 1-on-1's, taking the time to talk things over and make a correction. Pretty impressive stuff from a redshirt sophomore.

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READ MORE: Seminoles On The Move In AP Top 25 Poll After Putting Country On Notice In Win Over Tigers

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