FSU Seminoles

Chris Thompson is the starting tailback for Florida State. That much, Jimbo Fisher made clear. Devonta Freeman will get his share of touches, too, after the sophomore proved to be a valuable asset down the stretch last season.

But it's the No. 3 runner on the depth chart that has impressed Fisher the most lately, and he thinks James Wilder Jr. might be on the verge of a breakthrough.

"I really see him coming on," Fisher said. "He's feeling really comfortable, and that body's getting big. He's starting to take off, and that gives you another dimension."

That other dimension is power, and Wilder has plenty of it.

At 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds, Wilder is a load to bring down, playing the position the way a linebacker rather than a running back. That's a big weapon, and in short-yardage situations he expects to be the centerpiece in the FSU offense.

"With the goal line, that's my bread and butter; that's my time," Wilder said. "That's when the whole team is depending on me. When it's fourth-and-2, if somebody misses a block, they're still depending on me getting those two yards. I need to make sure I capitalize."

But what might set Wilder apart, what could be the difference between a small step forward from his 35-carry freshman campaign and a far bigger role this season, is Wilder's versatility.

His frame suggests he's a good between-the-tackles runner. But he's expecting to sneak up on a few people, too.

"We try to not set it up like, 'Oh, Wilder's in so he's going to run it up the middle,' " Wilder said. "Coming out of the backfield, they can throw me in there. The defense will think I'm a power back, but I'll go out on a wheel route. … We want to set it up where we're comfortable in different situations."

Wilder had just two receptions last season -- both coming against Notre Dame in Florida State's bowl game -- but Fisher said he's seen enough in practice to be comfortable using Wilder coming out of the backfield, too.

"He catches the ball so dadgum well, and he runs really good routes," Fisher said. "You don't think about it, but I've been very pleased."

McCloud iffy for opener: Defensive tackle Anthony McCloud was in full pads and running through early drills at practice Monday, but Fisher said he hasn't decided whether the senior will play against Murray State on Saturday.

McCloud missed nearly three weeks of practice with a small tear in his pectoral muscle, and while the recovery process has gone smoothly, Fisher wants to be careful not to push McCloud to return too soon.

"Anthony may be this week or he may be next week," Fisher said. "That can be one that if you try to come back too early, you can really set it back. But if you wait to make sure it's healed, then you should be fine. We're making judgments on that daily."

While the time away from practice has allowed the injury to heal, it hasn't kept McCloud from getting his work in.

Fisher said the veteran tackle, who checked in at nearly 325 pounds last season, has been doing conditioning workouts three times a day since the injury, dropping 12 pounds in the process.

"He's kept himself in tremendous shape," Fisher said. "That's one thing you worry about when big guys get injured is staying in shape. I think he went from about 324 to about 311 or something like that."

If McCloud is not available Saturday, Timmy Jernigan is expected to start in his place, with Nile Lawrence-Stample likely serving as the top backup.

Staying in the pocket: EJ Manuel has racked up more than 500 rushing yards in his career at Florida State, but judging by the early practices, the senior quarterback might be doing less damage with his legs in 2012.

Manuel said Florida State has only run a handful of option plays and QB runs in practice, and given the wealth of receiving targets he has at his disposal this season, he's expecting to spend far more time in the pocket and far less time as a runner.

"I think Coach Fisher wants a lot of those other guys to make plays," Manuel said. "I don't think he's going to need me to do it as much because we have so many horses now. Granted, if the situation comes, I'm sure he'll trust me to make a first down. I know we haven't been practicing it a whole lot, though."

Hunter maturing: The man at the center of Florida State's Twitter ban has made some big strides on and off the field, Fisher said.

Two months after sophomore Tyler Hunter tweeted rap lyrics promoting violence against police officers -- tweets that got the entire team banned from using the social network -- Fisher said there's been a noticeable change in Hunter's attitude.

"He's had a very good camp," Fisher said. "He's been very, very disciplined. Never any issues anymore. I think he realizes he made a critical mistake that's not indicative of who he is as a person. But he knows he was wrong -- and majorly wrong. He's really done a nice job of trying to change his image and what he's trying to be about."

Hunter has dealt with an in-house punishment, and he's participated in ride-alongs with local police. Fisher said that assuming Hunter completes his punishments this week, the sophomore will be on the field Saturday, likely as Florida State's No. 1 nickel back.

"He'll be playing," Fisher said. "He'll be ready to roll."

Florida State will still hit the practice field five more times before the opener, so Jimbo Fisher isn't making any promises that things won't change by the time the Seminoles take the field against Murray State on Saturday.

As it stands, Fisher has his starting lineup set, and Florida State released its first depth chart of the fall Monday with few surprises.

The two biggest position battles were at right tackle and field corner, and in both cases Fisher went with the player most fans were already expecting, with junior college transfer Menelik Watson nailing down the final spot on the offensive line and sophomore Nick Waisome taking over the corner job held by Greg Reid for the past three seasons.

Watson split time with Daniel Glauser throughout fall practice, and while Fisher said it was a particularly close battle, the reason Watson won the job was simple.

"He played better," Fisher said. "Glauser made tremendous strides, and I'd feel very comfortable putting him in the game and playing him, but I thought Menelik was definitely the most efficient and has a very big upside."

While both Glauser and Watson are in their first year at Florida State, it was experience that may have given the edge to Waisome in the battle for the cornerback job.

Waisome played only sparingly a year ago, but he showed a more consistent understanding of the playbook this fall than true freshman Ronald Darby, who opens the season at No. 2 on the depth chart.

"Nick's been around, played very well, made a lot of good plays, is an intelligent guy who's been in the system," Fisher said. "He had a very solid camp, and I look forward to watching him play on Saturday."

Fisher said Darby will get a chance to play against Murray State, and there remains a real possibility that both the tackle and corner jobs could see more fluctuations after the coaches get a chance to see players in a real game.

Meanwhile, the rest of the depth chart offered few serious competitions.

Rashad Greene will take over Reid's duties as the primary punt returner, a move Fisher announced last week. Lamarcus Joyner and Karlos Williams will continue to share kick return duties.

Chris Thompson is the official starter at tailback, and Fisher said the senior, who missed the bulk of 2011 with a broken back, will get the chance to run the ball often. Still, Fisher expects all three of his running backs to play.

"I feel very good about all three guys," Fisher said of his running back rotation, which includes Thompson, and sophomores Devonta Freeman and James Wilder Jr. "Chris is our starter and he'll get plenty of reps and plenty of carries, but we'll get Devonta and Wilder in. I've been really impressed with Wilder the last week, week-and-a-half."

Only a handful of true freshmen were even listed on the initial depth chart, but Fisher said several will get a chance to see significant action against Murray State.

Darby will get work at corner, and Eddie Goldman will back up Everett Dawkins at defensive tackle.

Reggie Northrup is currently listed as the No. 2 weakside linebacker, while Christo Kourtidis is listed as the No. 3 tight end behind starter Nick O'Leary and Penn State transfer Kevin Haplea.

Receiver Marvin Bracy is also listed as the No. 3 receiver at the Y position and as a backup in kick return duties, but Fisher said the freshman may be brought along slowly after missing significant practice time with a nagging hamstring injury.

"We're still working because he hasn't gotten as many reps," Fisher said. "But we feel very pleased because you can see his ability. He catches the ball on kickoffs very well, working on punts. But we'll have to judge this week how much progress he makes."

Every Sunday, NoleNation will take a look back at the week that was around Florida State, recapping the top stories and shedding a little light on a few that might have fallen between the cracks.

Florida State held its second and final scrimmage of the fall Thursday, and after Jimbo Fisher addressed the team at its conclusion, the mood among the players was clearly different.

"It's game week," quarterback EJ Manuel said.

In six days, Florida State's season will be under way, and Manuel and Co. are eager to start playing some real football.

But with the anticipation high and expectations even higher, there are still some questions surrounding this FSU team that Fisher couldn't find answers to during practice, questions that can only be answered through the grind of a full season.

Here are five key issues that still loom over the Seminoles as they get set for Murray State.

1. The battle at right tackle

To hear Fisher tell it, it really doesn't matter which of his two junior college transfers -- Daniel Glauser or Menelik Watson -- wins the starting job here, as both have looked solid during fall practice. But it was also just a year ago that another juco transfer had a supposedly strong fall and opened the season in the starting lineup, and Jacob Fahrenkrug's 2011 didn't exactly go as planned. There's a big difference between fall practice and Saturdays in the ACC. The bottom line is that FSU has added talent to the offensive line, but last year's struggles were vast, and there's still very little experience on this year's unit. Glauser and Watson have potential, but the success of the line will largely be defined by how much they turn that potential into production.

2. The experience at punter

As is usually the case during fall practice, the specialists get relatively little fanfare and relatively limited time to perfect their craft in a game-like atmosphere. That's of particular concern when you're tasked with replacing an All-American, as freshman Cason Beatty will be this season. Given the level of talent FSU has on defense, it's imperative that Beatty help the Seminoles win key field-position battles and give the defense a chance to shine. If he can't, it will be interesting to see if Fisher gets a bit less conservative on fourth downs.

3. The health at running back

Chris Thompson and Devonta Freeman have both had impressive returns from significant injuries, so there's reason for optimism that last year's running game, which finished 10th in the ACC, can improve. It still sounds as if FSU will go with a running back-by-committee approach in the early going, with James Wilder getting reps in short-yardage and goal-line situations, too. The rotation should also help to keep the backs healthy and fresh and seems necessary since there aren't many options further down the depth chart.

4. The depth at linebacker

Christian Jones says he loves his new role at weakside linebacker. Nick Moody says he's made a smooth transition from safety to the strong side. Vince Williams says he and Telvin Smith will continue to split time in the middle but insists both players have gotten better. If they're right, this could be a solid unit. If they're wrong, however, it could get ugly. Of every name on FSU's depth chart at linebacker, only Williams and Smith have taken significant reps at their current position, and true freshmen Reggie Northrup and Markuss Eligwe could be counted on to play a bigger role than coaches would like if there are any injury issues among the starters. It's a house of cards at linebacker right now, and defensive coordinator Mark Stoops needs to keep his fingers crossed that it doesn't all come tumbling down.

5. The questions at corner

Greg Reid's departure was probably the biggest story entering fall camp, but Nick Waisome and Ronald Darby appear to have soothed the bulk of the concerns. Both players have performed well throughout practice, and while neither has officially earned starting role yet, Fisher seems to be pleased with his options. Still, Waisome has little more than a handful of game reps under his belt, and Darby has been on campus for just two months. Will they really be ready to take over for one of FSU's most experienced veterans at a key position on the field?

"They don't have a choice," Manuel said. "Those guys have to step up and we expect them to do that. They understand the situation and I think they're excited about it."