2016-17 Florida State Football Team Preview
Well, it is time to discuss our favorite thing here at Small Talk: Florida State Football. Our schedule was released about a month ago, so we know just when our big games will be this year. But before we talk about our season, we need to look at the team itself. This team is returning a total of 16 starters, including our entire offense. But how sure are we that all of those people will be starting on day one against Ole Miss? Who will rise? Who will fall? Let's look at some of the bigger questions facing the Seminoles this season. With the Seminoles having the #1 recruiting class this year, how many of the true freshmen could end up starting at one point this season? This class is sure to bring home a National Title in the next three years. I believe it will also keep Clemson away from the ACC Title for awhile. But how many of these young stars will be featured this season as starters? Four Levonta Taylor is the top recruit for the Seminoles and the nation's top cornerback. He ran a 4.34 40-yard dash, the fastest of the corners. While he is a little undersized at 5' 11", he makes up for it in speed and physicality. During the Under Armour All-American Game (UAG), Taylor barely allowed any catches. He also wants to return kicks, his impressive speed will help in this aspect greatly. The Seminoles had a problem last season with dropping punts and kickoffs, so hopefully Taylor's hands are good when it comes to receiving. Ricky Aguayo is another name that people should get used to hearing. Although, they may accidentally think it is still Roberto because they are wearing the same number (19). Aguayo is one of the nation's top kicker, just like his brother before him. During the UAG, Aguayo made a 23-yard and 29-yard field goal, along with a pair of touchbacks. Considering Aguayo came to FSU as an early enrollee, I would expect him to start over Logan Tyler. Josh Brown is another early enrollee for this class of players. He is a 6'4" Outside Linebacker, making him a physically intimidating player when playing in a 4-3 defense. He is a little bit slower, running a 4.81, but that can change with some conditioning. So why would this guy start? First, being an early enrollee will get him time to practice with the team before summer practices begin for everyone. He officially will get a leg up on the rest of his competition for playing time. The other big reason is that FSU is thin at linebacker. The Seminoles lose Terrance Smith and Reggie Northrup to the draft this year and there is not an official say on who starts next year. This could be Brown's chance to jump in the depth chart. The last person on this list is the least likely out to the first years to play is our quarterback, Malik Henry. This has nothing to do with talent, but with the fact that he is a true freshman. It is not very often we see true freshman quarterbacks start at all. Fisher has not ruled out having him play for the job, but that leads us to our next question. Who will be our starting quarterback? There are three answers to this questions: Sean Maguire, Deondre Francois, and Malik Henry (Sorry JJ). Right now, it's Maguire's job to lose. Which is bad news considering he will not be playing in the spring game. Maguire had a decent 2015 campaign, but still came up short in the big games. He has a great arm, but he is stiff in the pocket. With our O-Line last season, we could've used a mobile quarterback (Thanks, Golson). While it is Maguire's senior year, I have a hard time believing he will be the starter on September 5. Since Malik Henry is a true freshman, I doubt he will be an official starter. My pick is Francois. He was the #3 duel threat quarterback last year and was red shirted this past season. People praised him for his arm strength and his mobility. His only draw back was his height. At 6' 2", Francois is at an average height for college quarterbacks. But height has never stopped players from doing well. Look at Russell Wilson or Darren Sproles. Both our very undersized for their position and both of them are key components in their respective offenses. I expect to see #12 suiting up and taking the field day one, but this will depend on how well he performs in the spring game on April 9th, and if he can outshine Maguire once he returns to practice. Who will play Linebacker next season? This may be one of the more important questions surrounding the team this off-season. Terrance Smith and Reggie Northrup are gone. It is time to look towards the next men up. Most likely, this will be Ro'Derrick Hoskins and Jacob Pugh. these two did receive a great deal of playing time last year and Hoskins was plugged in for Smith as the MIKE during the middle of the season. While not one of the nation's top linebackers, Hoskins and Pugh got the job done. These will not be the only linebackers in the game though. We fully expect to see the younger talent get a shot at playing. Matthew Thomas is another name we could see take the field. Thomas has been injured as of late, but Fisher is excited about him when he gets healthy. As for any freshman starting, Josh Brown is still a guy we could see be suiting up early. Another one would be Keion Joyner, the #8 Outside Linebacker from North Carolina. He was one of the many players the Seminoles were able to reel in on National Signing Day. ESPN says that he needs to work on his pass coverage, but with his speed, calling it "sideline-to-sideline," Joyner could make Seminole fans very happy. Time for my favorite question now: Will this be Dalvin's Year? Yes. Yes. A million times Yes. Another off-season of conditioning on his knee, an offensive line returning each starter, and a quarterback that can be a running threat as well all spell success. Honestly, don't be surprised if Dalvin breaks his own rushing record this year.
