FSU Seminoles

Call it a premonition from a player all too familiar with what it feels like to get hurt.

Chris Thompson had darted downfield during a practice last Wednesday, and something just felt wrong. It wasn't a cramp or a pop -- but something with his hamstring felt off.

"Just the way I run, I can tell," Thompson said. "It's just something I really can't explain, but I can tell."

That's all head coach Jimbo Fisher needed to hear to pull back the reins on his starting running back as the season opener approached.

Thompson was held out of last week's scrimmage, and he was limited for the next couple of practices as he rested the hamstring. But after a week, Thompson insists he's back to 100 percent, and a potentially sticky situation was avoided.

"It wasn't anything serious because I stopped it before it was serious," Thompson said. "Now being back at practice, I'm starting to feel good again."

Thompson, who missed most of last season with a broken back, will be the starter against Murray State on Saturday, but Devonta Freeman and James Wilder Jr. are expected to see work, too.

"I feel very good about all three guys," Fisher said. "Chris is our starter, and he'll get plenty of reps and plenty of carries, but we've got to get Devonta and Wilder in, too."

McCloud out for opener: The torn pectoral muscle that has sidelined senior Anthony McCloud for the past three weeks will keep him out of Florida State's opener against Murray State, Fisher announced Tuesday.

McCloud, a two-year starter at defensive tackle, tore the pec during the first week of fall camp and has not been a full participant in workouts since.

Fisher said his training staff has preached caution, and although they were hopeful McCloud could return in time for the first game, the injury has been a little slower to heal than originally thought.

"It was going to be very close," Fisher said of whether McCloud figured to be ready for the opener. "But even if we were playing for the national championship, (the trainers) said they wouldn't feel comfortable with him going this week."

Timmy Jernigan is expected to get the start at defensive tackle in McCloud's place.

Hicks has surgery: Tight end Dan Hicks is done for the year after undergoing micro-fracture surgery on his knee.

Hicks suffered what was believed to be a relatively minor injury when a player rolled onto his leg during a practice two weeks ago, but when the knee was scoped, doctors found significantly more damage.

"They went in there to do the cartilage and there was an old injury that was pretty bad, it had been bothering him, and they saw it," Fisher said. "They had to do it right then."

Hicks has spent his first three seasons at Florida State as a defensive end, but he moved to tight end this spring to serve as Nick O'Leary's primary backup.

With Hicks out, Florida State will turn to Penn State transfer Kevin Haplea and true freshman Christo Kourtzidis, and Fisher said he's been pleased with both players.

"I think Haplea and Christo are doing a really nice job," Fisher said. "They've learned well, they block well, they're doing a lot of little things."

Some games offer clear and present danger to college football's title contenders. Others are slightly below the radar, yet feature opponents just as intent on spoiling a season. ESPN Insider Travis Haney has a look at the trap games that are most likely to serve as roadblocks in the BCS championship runs of the top eight teams in the preseason AP poll.

Florida State opens the 2012 season Saturday against FCS opponent Murray State, and while fans are no doubt excited for the season to begin, the opponent remains something of a mystery. So we talked to MSU head coach Chris Hatcher to get some inside information about the Seminoles' first foe of the season.

The Racers might not be a familiar foe, but Hatcher has plenty of ties to the area. Hatcher played and coached at Valdosta State, and his resume also includes stops at Kentucky and Georgia Southern. We previewed this game earlier this summer in our March on 2012 profiles, but Hatcher provided a good bit more detail.

Nole Nation: You've had a chance to see your team in action for the past month. How prepared do you think your guys are for the season opener in Tallahassee?

Chris Hatcher: We've gotten a lot better, there's no question about that. Whether that equates to us having more wins, only time will tell. But we're a much deeper team than we've been in the past.

Unfortunately a lot of that depth has come from freshmen that we've just signed. But we practice well, and I think for our level of ball at the FCS, we have an opportunity to have a good team, to be competitive in our conference. I'm excited about the progress that our program's made in a three-year period. When we got here, they'd only won 13 games in five seasons. We've won 13 in the past two. We're looking to step that up a notch this season.

NN: You've coached your share of these types of games in the past. What is it that you hope your team can get out of going up against a top-10 opponent like Florida State?

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Menelik Watson used to be a boxer, and it shows.

He's 6-foot-6 and tops 320 pounds, but he moves with the ease of someone half his size -- his feet quick, his body graceful.

At the point of contact, however, Watson is fierce. His hands are powerful, punishing.

"I feel it, and it hurts man," said defensive end Cornelius Carradine, who has wrestled repeatedly in the trenches with Watson during fall practice. "I have to give him an arm or bull him so he won't grab me. Because if he grabs you, pushes you, punches you -- it's impossible."

On the other side of the line, Cameron Erving is an equally formidable adversary.

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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."