Which Florida State Recruits Will Impress During Spring Practice?

Florida State is sending 13 players to the NFL Combine, tied for the most of any school, which means the Seminoles will be a prominent school on draft day, but for the kids still on campus, a number of talented players are leaving the program and opening up starting positions for the next generation.

Players like Bjoern Werner, Tank Carradine, EJ Manuel, Xavier Rhodes, Brandon Jenkins, Menelik Watson and Dustin Hopkins are leaving for the NFL draft and that means the recruiting classes of Jimbo Fisher will be put to the test.  Florida State has the ninth ranked class in 2013 led by outside linebacker Matthew Thomas, cornerback Jalen Ramsey, athlete Ryan Green and defensive tackle DeMarcus Walker.

In total, seven defensive starters and three offensive starters will be gone from the senior class that went 4-0 in bowl games and captured the school’s first ACC title since 2005. Add in the loss of Hopkins, one of the best kickers in college football history, and a number of freshman and sophomores will have the opportunity to compete for playing time.

Of the four top recruits signed by Fisher, I would not be surprised to see Thomas to get some early playing time as a true freshman with the departures of Vince Williams and Nick Moody and could play alongside leading tackler, Christian Jones and senior Telvin Smith if he impresses early.

Ramsey has a great deal of talent, but one area that is still strong is the secondary despite the loss of Rhodes who may be a first-round pick. Safety Lamarcus Joyner returns for his senior season and leads a talented group in the defensive backfield that includes Terrence Brooks, Ronald Darby, Tyler Hunter and Nick Waisome, so Ramsey may find it difficult to see much action as a true freshman.

Having a number of young talents ready to ascend to starting positions is the reward of having top-10 recruiting classes for three years in a row. And we will see that depth pay off along the defensive where four starters along the line will be replaced, and one of those new starters will be last year’s top overall recruit, Mario Edwards Jr. who will look to have a super sophomore season after a playing behind three-future NFL players.

With so many seniors leaving the program and a number of underclassmen starting, you hope that there won’t be a leadership void that costs them in the win-loss column. This is certainly possible for the Seminoles who lose a four-year starter at quarterback in Manuel and the plethora of defensive talent that will be playing on Sunday’s from now on.

With a revamped coaching staff in place, some chemistry issues could come into play early for the team, but spring practice will be the time to iron out those details so the team can look to make a return appearance to the Discover Orange Bowl in January.

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Patrick is the host of “The Wake-up Call,” on Sportstownchicago.com airing Wednesday mornings from 8-10. View his show’s website here.