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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From the impending quarterback competition to finding replacements for departing juniors, Jimbo Fisher will have his work cut out for him during the next few months as he lays the groundwork for the 2013 season.

With that in mind, we're going to go position by position, looking at Florida State's strengths and weaknesses as the Seminoles prepare for spring practice.

Previously: Cornerbacks, wide receivers/tight ends, defensive tackles, and running backs can be found HERE.

Next up: Special teams

2012 recap: Special teams is a pretty broad term, so it's tough to look back on last season and call it a success or a failure for Florida State when, the truth is, it was a little of both. On the plus side, kicker Dustin Hopkins turned in the best season of his remarkable career, setting the NCAA scoring mark for kickers in the process. Lamarcus Joyner and Karlos Williams both were exceptional on kick returns once again, and FSU even accounted for three punt-return touchdowns in its first season without Greg Reid. Of course, the flip side of that was the significant struggles by freshman punter Cason Beatty, including a block against NC State that likely cost FSU the game, a bevy of turnovers on punt returns that resulted in a revolving door at the position, and a truly ridiculous number of special teams penalties (with Williams responsible for a season's worth by himself).

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Jimbo Fisher got the news on Monday, nearly two full days before Jalen Ramsey's official letter of intent would inch its way through Florida State's fax machine.

A month earlier, Florida State had been little more than a small blip on Ramsey's radar, but things had changed. Ramsey had a good rapport with FSU's new defensive coordinator, Jeremy Pruitt, who had recruited him while still coaching at Alabama. As January's chaos finally began to fade, it was that relationship that pushed Ramsey toward the Seminoles, but when the final decision was made, even Pruitt was kept in the dark.

"[Ramsey] wanted to keep it close,” Fisher said, “so I didn't even let it out to Jeremy, not to anybody.”

That combination of new voices and Fisher’s steadfast control provided a perfect synopsis of how Florida State managed to put together the nation's ninth-best recruiting class on Wednesday in spite of an offseason of overwhelming transition in which six assistant coaches left for other jobs.

Fisher was careful to bring in veteran recruiters to fill the vacancies on his staff, including former coordinators Sal Sunseri, Billy Napier, Charles Kelly and Randy Sanders. Fisher insists all were hired with long-term goals in mind, but the short-term benefit was that several new doors were opened on the recruiting trail. FSU wouldn't have been in the picture for Ramsey or defensive end DeMarcus Walker had Pruitt not arrived first.

"That was his guy from the start," Walker's high school coach, Adam Geis, told ESPN.

For weeks, it seemed Florida State might slump to the finish, but instead the Seminoles closed with a bang, with the new blood on the staff helping to reel in late additions like Ramsey and Keith Bryant.

"I actually think it opened up more doors in guys we ended up getting on the back end of it," Fisher said. "It's probably a wash, but we got in on some key guys I never thought we'd have a chance to get in on."

On the other hand, it was Fisher's staunch demands to have his fingerprints on every aspect of the program that allowed FSU to navigate the turbulent waters after so many coaching changes in the weeks leading up to national signing day. The opposition had an easy sales pitch to recruits: The assistants they had trusted were gone. But Fisher had an answer: He'd been there all along, and he wasn't going anywhere.

"That's why I try to stay very active in everything we do, whether it's coaching or recruiting," Fisher said. "You have to stay very much involved to bridge those gaps and be able to translate that back to your guys and to our new coaches when they get out there."

The irony is that level of involvement might have helped push a few coaches, such as offensive coordinator James Coley, out the door to jobs where they enjoyed a greater degree of freedom in coaching and play-calling. But the rewards of Wednesday's signing class were ample evidence that Fisher's vision works. It was his third consecutive top-10 class.

In the weeks between FSU's Orange Bowl victory and Wednesday's recruiting finish line, Fisher was the point man, lead salesman and de facto recruiting coordinator. He was on the road in South Florida, locking up FSU's biggest catch in Matthew Thomas. This was Coley's domain, but Fisher didn't miss a beat in landing the nation's top linebacker.

"I've always recruited South Florida," Fisher said. "Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm -- that's been my area for years. It actually felt good, back in the system for a while doing the ground work."

It was Fisher who closed the deal with wavering linebacker E.J. Levenberry, and it was Fisher who ensured Thomas provided a crown jewel in this year's class. Fisher was the touchstone while the rest of the staff adjusted on the fly.

In the end, the plan wasn't foolproof. FSU waved goodbye to a few key commitments, such as offensive tackle Austin Golson, and it failed to reel in a few other big fish, such as receiver Stacy Coley.

But this was still an overwhelming victory for Fisher and Florida State. The changes came at a frenetic pace, but Fisher had been prepared with new hires who already understood his system and recruits who already believed in it.

"It's very tough," Fisher said, "but our guys did a great job of it and we were able to bridge that gap."

Cornerback Jalen Ramsey (Brentwood, Tenn/Brentwood Academy), the No. 14 player in the ESPN 150, discusses signing with Florida State.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Jimbo Fisher has spent the past two months selling his program to a class he couldn't have known would come together so well in the end. Amid chaos in the coaching staff and a bevy of last-minute shifts, Fisher was the man in the middle of the action, assuring his 2013 commitments that the program was in good hands, and their futures remained bright at Florida State.

When the dust settled, Fisher beamed.

"It think it was a great day," he said after Wednesday's final letter of intent came across the fax machine. "I'm very proud of our class. We hit a little bit of every position throughout the whole class."

This wasn't another sales pitch. This was as honest an evaluation of Florida State's take on national signing day as Fisher could muster.

No, FSU didn't hold together the entirety of the class it had assembled before six assistant coaches left for greener pastures. Yes, Fisher lost out on some key battles for recruits. Some needs were met, others fell a bit short.

But after a whirlwind six weeks in which Fisher was both assembling a staff and a recruiting class, sometimes nearly singlehandedly, the end result was about as good as he could have hoped for.

Florida State landed 22 players -- though offensive lineman Richy Klepal isn't expected to play for the team for medical reasons -- and ended the afternoon with ESPN's No. 9 overall signing class.

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