FSU Seminoles

As ACC teams begin to start practicing again, Heather and I will have a quick preview of each team to get you caught up on the basics. Next up to open camp ...

School: Florida State.

Start date: Today.

Predicted finish at media days: First, Atlantic Division.

Biggest storyline: Can the Seminoles match increased expectations this year? It seems like we have been waiting on Florida State to return to its rightful place among the elite for ages now. Many thought last year was going to be the year, as the Seminoles were picked to win the Atlantic and started the season ranked No. 5 in the coaches' poll and No. 6 in the AP poll. But Florida State faltered to an 8-4 record in the regular season and went 5-3 in conference, tied with Wake Forest for second in the Atlantic. Not exactly the return everybody imagined. Headed into this year, expectations are high once again not only in the ACC but nationally as well. Florida State starts the season ranked No. 7 in the coaches' poll, so there clearly is confidence that THIS will now be the year of the Seminole. Florida State has 17 starters returning, including quarterback EJ Manuel and one of the most talented defensive fronts in the nation. The time is now for this team.

Biggest position battle: Cornerback. With the dismissal of three-year starter Greg Reid, that position is now up for grabs headed into fall camp. Unfortunately for the Seminoles, this position went from one of strength to one of major question marks. None of the potential replacements has much in the way of game experience. Among the options: sophomores Tyler Hunter and Nick Waisome, who were expected to compete for the top nickelback job. There also is freshman Ronald Darby, who ran track in high school. As for returner, where Reid excelled, potential options include Darby, freshman Marvin Bracy, sophomore Karlos Williams and safety Lamarcus Joyner.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Rashad Greene will be on the practice field this afternoon as Florida State opens fall camp, but he won't be at full speed for another week after undergoing an appendectomy two weeks ago.

The sophomore receiver was home in Albany, Ga. when he was began experiencing symptoms of appendicitis and was taken to the hospital, head coach Jimbo Fisher said. The appendix never ruptured, so doctors were able to remove it without invasive surgery, and Greene's recovery figures to be brief.

Fisher said Greene, who led Florida State in receiving last season despite missing four games, has been training for the past week after taking a week off from workouts.

"We're going (to be) precautionary ourselves the first week to make sure we don't overload him," Fisher said. "But he's at 70, 75 percent. Two or three practices, maybe a week -- he should be going."

Other notable injuries still lingering from this offseason:

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Jimbo Fisher's hands were tied, which made the decision easy.

He called senior Greg Reid into his office last week, and he informed one of the most accomplished members of the Seminoles roster that his career at Florida State was over.

"We had a great conversation," Fisher said Monday, just hours before FSU opened fall camp. "A very sad conversation."

Reid was dismissed for a violation of team rules, his third off-field incident in little more than a year, and that made the end inevitable, Fisher said.

It was Fisher's first public comment on Reid's departure since the senior cornerback was dismissed last week, but the words were offered more as a salve than a rebuke.

"That's the issue is our standards and our rules and what we go by, and it had to be done," Fisher said. "I still think the world of him."

Now, Florida State turns the page.

Practice will begin Monday with sophomore Nick Waisome taking first-team reps at boundary corner, with a myriad of alternatives ready to rotate in throughout the next few weeks.

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Looking forward to real, live football, NoleNation takes a run through Florida State’s 2012 schedule, going game-by-game to find the best storylines and matchups of the upcoming season.

Florida Gators

Saturday, Nov. 24: Doak Campbell Stadium, Tallahassee

2011 record: 7-6 (3-5 SEC). It was a tough debut season for Will Muschamp, as the Gators suffered their first six-loss season since 1987 and their first losing season in SEC play since 1979. Making matters worse, they dropped their second straight to in-state rival FSU, 21-7. Florida was 0-6 against FBS teams that finished the 2011 season with a winning record.

Coach: Muschamp (7-6, second season)

Series record: 57th meeting, Florida leads 33-21-2.

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