FSU Football Fall Camp Observations: Seminoles Kick Off Final Week Of Preseason With A Bang

The final week of the preseason arrived with no drop-off for the Seminoles as the team slowly begins to shift its focus to LSU.

The final week of the preseason has arrived as Florida State is slowly beginning to shift its focus to LSU. That was evident on Wednesday morning as the team spent the latter portion of practice going over some early preparation for the Tigers on both sides of the ball.

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In a familiar tune this fall, head coach Mike Norvell once again came out of this practice pleased with the pace and physicality. There wasn't any sign of a drop-off from the Seminoles after two days off. In fact, the offense and defense both got after it consistently with both sides making plenty of plays.

The practice lasted over two hours with the team in full pads. NoleGameday was in attendance for the entire session and jotted down some observations from the day.

— The San Francisco 49ers, Las Vegas Raiders, Baltimore Ravens, New Orleans Saints, and Ottawa Redblacks (CFL) had personnel at the practice.

— ESPN's Chris Fowler and Holly Rowe were also viewing the session from the sideline.

— The kickers bounced back following what was a shaky week. Tyler Keltner connected from 30 yards, 35 yards, and 37 yards. Ryan Fitzgerald matched him from 30 yards and 37 yards. Encouraging sign after the struggles over the past few practices.

— Trey Benson, Samuel Singleton, Deuce Spann, Caziah Holmes, Winston Wright, and Destyn Hill were working with the kickoff return unit. Wright seems to be moving as well as he has since the leg injury he suffered over a year ago.

OFFENSE:

— Redshirt junior Tate Rodemaker had a couple of nice moments during Wednesday's practice. That included two high-level throws to the sideline that helped the offense create big plays. Rodemaker hit Goldie Lawrence over a leaping Edwin Joseph for a massive gain down the sideline. On the next snap, he tossed another pass to the outside, connecting with walk-on Cason Pielock, who made a tremendous catch. That was enough to get the offense in field goal range for a made kick as time expired.

— It was a solid day for Brock Glenn, who was able to get into a little rhythm during 7-on-7. Glenn connected on three straight passes, including a dart to Jaheim Bell in stride over the middle of the field as the offense recorded three consecutive first downs. The true freshman is clearly ahead of schedule at this point in his career.

— Johnny Wilson came to life earlier this preseason with some eye-popping moments. Wide receiver transfer Keon Coleman took that title on Wednesday as he was simply all over the field. Coleman used all of his verticality for a catch against Fentrell Cypress in 1-on-1's. He made another tough catch on the sideline during team drills before getting out in space in 7-on-7. What was maybe even more impressive was how often Wilson, Coleman, and Jordan Travis were all discussing sequences on the sidelines following plays.

— The offense got moving on the ground in the second half of practice and running back Trey Benson was the beneficiary. Jeremiah Byers and D'Mitri Emmanuel cleared out a few defenders to spring Benson to the second level on a run. A few plays later, Benson was able to find a cutback lane and dart by Akeem Dent while taking an angle to the sideline.

— Tight end Jaheim Bell continues to show up day in and day out. He had multiple flashes on Wednesday, including a route in 1-on-1's where he made space on Kalen DeLoach with a small fake.

— Mike Norvell said after practice that the last seven days have been encouraging for true freshman Hykeem Williams. He's getting into the shape that Florida State expects and it's paying off. Williams hauled in a pass in 7-on-7 that looked like it would be picked off and took it upfield for a big play. He made a tough back-shoulder grab later in the day.

— Wide receiver Destyn Hill dropped a pass while working over the middle. On his next rep, he made a big play after coming down with a deep shot that was thrown his way. Hill got a step on Greedy Vance for a touchdown in the corner of the end zone in 7-on-7 as well.

— Still listed as a linebacker/tight end on Florida State's roster, Brian Courtney was back at his old position on Wednesday. He had at least one catch, beating Conrad Hussey in 1-on-1's. It's unclear what position he'll be consistently working at throughout the 2023 season.

— Hill wasn't the only Seminole to have a bounce-back moment during practice. Preston Daniel had a ball deflect off his hands and get intercepted. During the next period, he made up for it with a touchdown catch over the middle. What a way to respond!

— Winston Wright had a couple of nice sequences during practice. He beat Greedy Vance two during 1-on-1's, including a rep where he was able to get a step on the cornerback and work deep for a catch as he went to the ground.

— Jerrale Powers pulled down a catch in 1-on-1's while being guarded by KJ Kirkland.

— True freshman offensive lineman Chris Andre Otto drove back Jaden Jones during 3-on-2's. 

DEFENSE:

— The good days keep rolling in for promising safety Shyheim Brown ahead of a season where he's going to play a ton of important snaps for the Seminoles. Brown was in position for an interception early in practice and nearly pulled down another one later in the day. He's consistently in the right spots and has been trending upward in a big way as of late.

— Wednesday marked cornerback Fentrell Cypress's most active practice of the preseason as he was all over the field. Cypress forced an incompletion while guarding Hykeem Williams on the sideline early in the day, making things extremely uncomfortable in tight space. He responded with a deflection a few plays later that was popped up and picked off by Shyheim Brown. That sparked him into the remainder of practice as Cypress locked down Williams yet again in 1-on-1's before picking off a pass in 7-on-7 that Preston Daniel couldn't haul in.

— Mike Norvell raved about the young defensive backs after practice yet again, something that has become common over the last few weeks. True freshman cornerback Quindarrius Jones ripped down an interception on an errant pass that was thrown by a quarterback under pressure.

— Renardo Green nearly pulled down a pick in 1-on-1's. The wide receiver he was defending essentially had to try and bat the ball down to prevent the turnover.

— Azareye'h Thomas had a really nice in 1-on-1's where Deuce Spann caught a pass in front of him but he recovered to knock the ball out as the two were going to the ground.

— I thought Byron Turner Jr. showed nice awareness throughout the practice. He was able to sniff out a screen and force the opposing runner back inside to quickly force a stop.

— Dante Anderson's hustle catches my eye at least once every practice. Today, it was a run by Caziah Holmes to the left side as Anderson took him down at the sideline. Anderson took a smart angle later in practice to stop Lawrance Toafili on the sideline.

— Ja'Bril Rawls nearly intercepted a pass late in practice where he was in a better position for a catch than the intended receiver.

— Linebacker Justin Cryer stuffed a running back around the line of scrimmage after working past an opposing blocker.

— Defensive tackle Daniel Lyons blew up a running play after fighting through the offensive line for a tackle for loss

— Patrick Payton and DJ Lundy put pressure on the quarterback to force a bad throw during the middle part of practice.

— Jaden Jones and Ashylnd Barker combined for a tackle for loss early in the day.

— Braden Fiske and Darrell Jackson stood out during 3-on-2's against the offensive line.

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