FSU Seminoles

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- No position on Florida State's roster spent so much of the 2012 season in flux, and yet as this spring draws to a close, Jimbo Fisher insists he's sufficiently comfortable with the status quo at punt returner -- at least for now.

While punt return practice amounted to only about a week of work this spring, the two primary candidates to see work were the two players who bookended last season with the job -- Rashad Greene and Kenny Shaw. Both remain in competition for the role this season.

"You've still got other guys that will be in there, too, but punts are more about catching the ball than running," Fisher said.

His caution comes with ample evidence, as FSU fumbled away a myriad of punts last season, eventually costing Greene and, later, Tyler Hunter the job. That left things up to Shaw to close out the season, and he proved to be relatively effective. His 12.4 yard average trailed both Greene and Hunter, who both averaged better than 15, but Shaw never put the ball on the ground.

"When they gave me the job, I tried to do my best, and the coaches say I did a heck of a job," Shaw said.

But whether it's a job Shaw keeps remains to be seen. He's got a leg up now, but aside from Mario Pender, he's had little competition.

That may change in the fall when a bevy of potential return men join the fray. Hunter and Ronald Darby will both return from injuries that cost them the spring and could join the mix, along with speedster Marvin Bracy and incoming freshmen Ryan Green and Jalen Ramsey.

Perhaps the most intriguing candidate, however, is Lavonte Whitfield, whose combination of game-breaking speed and soft hands make him a good fit as FSU's next great punt returner.

"He's very natural at punt returns," Fisher said. "That sucker, punts will come down and lay right as his feet, and he'll scoop them up and go. He's got some tenacity to him."

For all of FSU's miscues in the punt return game a year ago, matching the production of 2012's return men may not be easy.

Florida State's average of 14.49 yards per return ranked eighth in the nation, and the Seminoles were one of just five teams to return three punts for touchdowns for the season.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Mario Edwards Jr. might be the heir apparent to a trio of NFL-caliber defensive ends this season, but he's still got a ways to go to match the consistency of Bjoern Werner, Cornellius Carradine and Brandon Jenkins.

Jimbo Fisher said he's seen improvement in his sophomore pass rusher, but Edwards has struggled to put a series of good plays -- and more importantly, good practices -- together.

"He's still got to come on," Fisher said. "He's got to play much more consistent and get a little more of an urgency to him."

Edwards, who had five tackles, including 1.5 for a loss, in Monday's scrimmage, said he's trimmed 25 pounds off his frame since he arrived last summer, but new defensive ends coach Sal Sunseri said there's still room for improvement.

"He's finding out that with what I want to do, it's taxing and we've got to get him into better shape," Sunseri said. "He's going to fight through it, and he's going to be good. He's got a lot of talent."

Fisher echoed those sentiments, saying that while Edwards might not be where he needs to be yet, he's not far off from where Werner and Jenkins were at the same point in their careers.

"He's that guy, a young guy, but he can take off," Fisher said. "He's at that stage where a lot of those other ends were. But he's got to continue to grow and let us push him."

For his part, Edwards said he's far more comfortable now than he was eight months ago, and new coordinator Jeremy Pruitt's defense has helped the adjustment.

"It's no more reading, it's just see it and go, more of an attack," Edwards said. "And being my second year, the speed of the game has slowed down. I'm feeling more comfortable."

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- With the departure of stalwart fullback Lonnie Pryor, Florida State's offense might rely a bit more on the tight ends in 2013, and that could be a boon for Kevin Haplea.

The senior, who transferred from Penn State just days before the start of fall camp last season, has impressed new tight ends coach Tim Brewster with his ability to do all the little things necessary at the line of scrimmage.

"Haplea has a little thump to him," Brewster said. "He's the type of guy that I think can become a post player, and we're looking for a post player -- a guy that can dominate on the line of scrimmage. Because one thing we're going to do is, we're going to run the football."

While Chad Abram looks to have the fullback spot locked up, he may not offer the same versatility that Pryor brought to the FSU offense a year ago, and Jimbo Fisher has hinted that he could look to use starting tight end Nick O'Leary as a halfback and potentially run a lot more two- and three-tight end sets.

That could mean a good bit more work for Haplea, who is finding his footing in Year 2 with the program. Fisher said Haplea has caught more passes during the past few days of practice than he did all of last season.

O'Leary is still the starter at the position, and he's outpaces his competition in terms of potential by a strong margin. But while Haplea has excelled at the fundamentals, O'Leary is still working on the nuance of his position and hoping to overcome some ugly mistakes he made in 2012.

"He's a guy that's got tremendous talent, but he needs to understand that the details of the game are very important," Brewster said. "The fundamental aspects of tight end play, all the little things are important. It's not about the big picture, it's about seeing the little picture, the little things involved in every play."

Fisher said O'Leary continues to mature, and he hopes to see the junior tight end blossom into a dominant force this season. There have been some encouraging signs this spring, but O'Leary remains a work in progress.

"If he gets those little things, he's really tough to handle," Fisher said. "The details are more refined, and that's the challenge for him right now."

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Tim Brewster is excited to be at Florida State, and he's not interested in tempering his enthusiasm -- particularly on the recruiting trail.

Just days after taking over as FSU's new tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator, Brewster took to Twitter to lay the groundwork with some top targets.

"All the ballers in Miami just know I'm coming to getcha," Brewster tweeted as part of a flurry of excitement aimed at south Florida recruits.

It might have been an ostentatious opening salvo in the recruiting battles with his in-state rivals, but Brewster is making no apologies. That's how he does business.

"I'm not bashful, and I'm extremely proud of the university I represent," Brewster said. "I just want to make sure that people understand, we're going to take an extremely aggressive approach to getting the best players in the state of Florida to come to Tallahassee. We're going to recruit relentlessly."

It's an infectious enthusiasm, and it's a big part of what caught Jimbo Fisher's attention after former FSU recruiting coordinator -- and south Florida expert -- James Coley departed to join the Miami Hurricanes.

Still, Brewster knows that all his in-person excitement doesn't always translate well to social media. It's just that when he's excited about something, he just can't help himself.

"If you're not using social media, you're missing the boat. It's a tremendous way to reach out, because young people today, that's how they communicate," Brewster said. "I try not to go overboard, but it's hard sometimes, because I enjoy it."

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Sean Maguire is the fourth man in a three-man race.

At least, that's the perception among most fans of the much-hyped quarterback competition at Florida State between veteran Clint Trickett, big-armed Jacob Coker and recruiting stud Jameis Winston, but Maguire isn't buying into that story. Sure, he's at the bottom of the totem poll when it comes to publicity, but Jimbo Fisher won't be picking a winner based on popularity.

"Everyone portrays it as them three, but in my mind, and I know in Coach Fisher's mind, I'm right there," said Maguire, a redshirt freshman from New Jersey. "I've been working hard, and this is my chance to prove I belong right there."

It's hard to fault the media hype surrounding the other three quarterbacks. They've all carved out their own dramatic narratives. For Maguire, however, his most intriguing characteristic might be his invisibility.

At Maguire ran a wing-T offense at Sparta (N.J.) Seton Hall Prep that diminished his recruiting hype. Like Coker, he might have gained some buzz once he arrived at FSU, but Maguire had the misfortune of coming in at the same time as Winston, the country's top recruit. Since then, he's toiled in the relative anonymity of working fifth on the depth chart. The lack of a spotlight, however, provides good motivation.

"I knew exactly who was here. It's not like I haven't seen them play. I came to practices when I was getting recruited," Maguire said. "I think the competition is awesome. I could've taken the easy way out and gone to some school up north and been starting, but I'd rather compete with the best. That's the way I look at it."

So Maguire has set his sights on proving the doubters wrong -- or, in some cases, simply reminding people he's in the mix, too. He's added about 15 pounds in his first year at FSU (up to about 210), made a priority of improving his footwork, and kept his nose in the playbook whenever possible.

"I love to stay in the weight room later than everyone or stay watching film or stay after practice and throw," Maguire said. "I feel like no matter what happens in life, if you continue to do that, you'll be eventually rewarded."

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida State's first practice of the spring Wednesday offered few similarities to the way the 2012 season concluded.

A wealth of players have moved on, though Menelik Watson still mixed with his former teammates on the offensive line as Bobby Hart worked at his old position with the first-team offense. Thanks to construction of the new indoor practice facility, even the surroundings were off. But the biggest difference was the raised voices of a bevy of new coaches running through drills that resembled those led by Mark Stoops and James Coley a year ago, but now came with a distinctly new tenor.

"They're a little in shell shock right now," said new defensive ends coach Sal Sunseri. "They're probably in there saying, 'Boy, the man is crazy.' But I want them to think that."

Sunseri was perhaps the most vocal of the new coaches, but there was plenty of volume to go around. New quarterbacks coach Randy Sanders helped Jimbo Fisher corral four candidates vying for the starting job. Charles Kelly, Jay Graham and Tim Brewster barked at their position groups, and Jeremy Pruitt commanded his first practice as a college coordinator.

For all the changes, however, Fisher said the day went smoothly.

"Most of those guys know the tempo of what we do in practice, how we practice, so it really wasn't that big a change," Fisher said. "It's the same tempo of practice, but they may emphasize a different individual drill, add a call or two, just the verbiage. Some of the new stuff was a little different."

Considering the mass of walk-ons, a bevy of players adjusting to new roles and the rust that comes from nearly three months without an official, organized practice, there was still a few moments of chaos -- P.J. Williams caught grief for not wearing his helmet, Giorgio Newberry heard an earful following a misstep during a drill -- and the assignments weren't entirely sharp. That's to be expected on Day 1, Sunseri said, but it's not exactly tolerated.

"The kids are open, they're listening -- and I'm going to ride them," Sunseri said. "I'm going to ride them because it's not easy to do what we're asking them to do."

The hope is things progress quickly as Fisher and his new assistants install more of FSU's offense and defense for Day 2 of practices Thursday. But as starting points go, Fisher said, Wednesday's work was encouraging.

"It's never where you want it to be on the first day, but I'm not displeased at all," Fisher said.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- With spring practice less than a week away, the fervor surrounding some of the most-hyped storylines of 2013 has already been raging for months. The three-way battle at quarterback, the return of Bobby Hart to the limelight, Lamarcus Joyner's move to cornerback -- Jimbo Fisher already has plenty to keep his eye on.

But while those stories will continue to headline Florida State's preparations for the 2013 season, there are a handful of other intriguing players to watch this spring. They might not be in the running for a starting job, but they should offer plenty of reasons to watch as they look to impress a new group of coaches and find their own niche for the upcoming season.

Mario Pender (RB/RFr.)

When it comes to sheer intrigue, the entirety of Florida State's returning redshirts could probably make the list -- with Jameis Winston probably atop it. But while there will be genuine interest in Justin Shanks' weight or Marvin Bracy's speed, it's Pender who likely leads the pack in non-QB buzz from fans. The highly touted tailback missed all of 2012 with a groin injury and is just now getting back into full swing. His workouts during fourth-quarter drills earned raves from Fisher, who compared his burst and home-run ability to Chris Thompson -- only Pender is a bit bigger and stronger. Does that mean a job awaits this fall? Not exactly, but he'll definitely have his coaches' attention.

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