FSU Seminoles

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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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 2013.

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 the start of spring practice.

First up: Cornerback

2012 recap: Last season began with a seemingly huge setback when three-year starter Greg Reid was dismissed from the program just before the start of fall camp. As it turned out, however, FSU had plenty of in-house answers. Freshman Ronald Darby and sophomore Nick Waisome stepped in to more than adequately fill the void, and FSU's pass defense finished as one of the best units in the country.

Departures: It seemed a foregone conclusion long before the season ended, and as expected, junior Xavier Rhodes opted to pass on a fifth year in Tallahassee and will head to the NFL draft. It's a big loss, as Rhodes had blossomed into one of the best cover corners in the nation, and 2012 might have been his best season as a Seminole.

Arrivals: Redshirt freshman Colin Blake will get his first taste of action. FSU has two four-star commitments at the position in Marquez White (Dothan, Ala./Northview) and Michael Johnson (Miami/Booker T. Washington). White is the 17th-ranked corner in the nation, according to ESPN.

Biggest question mark: Replacing Rhodes is obviously the top priority, but with the impressive 2012 campaigns from both Darby and Waisome, the answers appear fairly obvious. What might be a more intriguing question is who steps in as the third man in the cornerback rotation -- a list that could include more work from nickel Tyler Hunter, early playing time for the youngsters or, perhaps most likely, an expanded role for rising sophomore Keelin Smith.

Breakout star: Darby seems the logical choice. He never quite overtook Waisome for the starting job in 2012, but it wasn't for a lack of trying. Darby finished the season having appeared in all 14 games, making 22 tackles and recording eight pass breakups and one forced fumble en route to being named a freshman All-American. He's perhaps not quite as physical as Rhodes, but his speed is elite and he has the potential to quickly develop into one of the marquee defensive backs in the conference.

Projected 2013 starters: Darby and Waisome, with Hunter as the top nickel option.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- A week ago, lightning ended Florida State's win over Savannah State with nearly 25 minutes of game time remaining. It meant little to the starters, who had long since retired to the sideline.

For the freshmen getting their first significant taste of action, however, the abrupt ending to the game was a missed opportunity. Against Wake Forest on Saturday, however, they were able to make up for lost time.

By the fourth quarter of Saturday's 52-0 win over the Demon Deacons, sophomore Karlos Williams was the lone member of Florida State's defense on the field that wasn’t a freshman or redshirt freshman.

"They held up real well," defensive end Cornellius Carradine said. "They're still trying to adjust to the system, but they held up great. They'll get more comfortable as the season goes along."

Defensive tackle Eddie Goldman finished with three tackles, including one for a loss. Defensive ends Chris Casher and Mario Edwards Jr. both saw action in the second half, combining for two more tackles. Ronald Darby and Keelin Smith both got plenty of work in the secondary, and they picked up right where their veteran teammates left off, smothering the overmatched Wake Forest offense.

"They played hard," sophomore defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan said. "The coaches are real tough on them, and I'm just glad to see them out there making plays and still hunting. That's the biggest thing."

What can you take from a 55-0 game against a bad FCS team that was played with a running clock for 11 minutes then abruptly called for weather reasons with nine minutes to play in the third quarter?

The answer: Not very much. But Jimbo Fisher will watch film on it anyway, so we're pushing forward with this week's grades.

QUARTERBACK

Florida State scored 124 points in its first two games, so it's tough to offer much in the way of insightful criticisms of EJ Manuel's play, but we did note a few loose ends after the Murray State game that offered some minor cause for concern. It took just two plays for Manuel to provide a rebuttal Saturday.

Manuel connected with Rodney Smith for a 61-yard TD pass on the second play of the game, and it was all easy from there. His final numbers -- 11-of-13 for 161 yards and three TDs -- illustrate both how small an obstacle Savannah State was and how sharp Manuel looked in dismantling the Tigers. The only two incompletions of the day for Manuel were a drop by Rashad Greene and a ball he threw away while avoiding pressure.

What was most encouraging, Fisher said, was the fact that Manuel was in complete control of the game, looking off his first and second reads and finding an open man on all but one play.

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Senior Chris Thompson has looked sharp during Florida State's fall practice, and, 11 months after breaking two bones in his back, he continues to get the majority of the first-team reps.

While Thompson appears set to hold the nominal role of starter at tailback, sophomore James Wilder Jr. believes it'll be running-back-by-committee throughout the season for FSU.

"I think [the coaches] are going to keep us on the field, everybody," Wilder said. "We're going to be a team that rotates."

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It has been a revolving door at right tackle since Florida State wrapped up a bowl win over Notre Dame nine months ago, with junior college transfer Menelik Watson being the latest lineman to get his turn.

Watson spent much of the first week of fall practice working with the second-team offense, but in the last two Florida State practices he has taken the bulk of the reps with the ones.

Watson has only been playing football for the past few years, having grown up in England. His fundamentals are still a bit raw, but at 6-foot-6 and 320 pounds his physical stature makes him an imposing force.

"He's raw, but when he gets his hands on you, no one's going anywhere," said QB Clint Trickett, who has worked with Watson in the second-team offense through much of fall practice. "I saw him handle (Brandon Jenkins) a couple times."

Watson's first-team reps come at the expense of fellow juco transfer Daniel Glauser, who spent Wednesday's early workouts with the No. 2 unit.

While Bobby Hart had been the starter at right tackle during the final two months of the 2011 season and Bryan Stork appeared to have a handle on the job at the end of spring, head coach Jimbo Fisher said he now sees it as a two-man battle between the two transfers.

"Those two guys are playing right now at right tackle, and they're doing some really good things," Fisher said.

The rest of the line appears somewhat settled with Stork in the middle, Josue Matias and Tre Jackson at the guard spots and Cameron Erving looking exceptional at left tackle.

"Cam Erving's been the most impressive to me," Trickett said. "Cam looks like he's a three-year All-American out there."

Ready to rumble: Wednesday's practice was the last for Florida State before its first scrimmage.

For a bulk of the presumed starters there's not much to prove, but for a number of the highly touted youngsters, Thursday's scrimmage will be a first look at how they perform at game speed.

"It's going to be pretty exciting to see what the young guys do when they get up against each other," safety Lamarcus Joyner said. "We'll see if they go with the flow when the game gets a little bit faster out there. That's the part we're waiting for."

That might be particularly true of freshman corner Ronald Darby, who has earned positive reviews during early practices and could stake his claim to the starting field corner job now held by Nick Waisome.

"We've been rotating there at corner with a couple different guys," Fisher said. "(Darby) is doing a really good job. He's learning."

Keelin Smith and Colin Blake, the other top options at corner, have both been limited during practice. Blake has been in a non-contact jersey for the past week, while Smith has been sidelined with a knee injury.

Meanwhile, senior Chris Thompson has looked strong since returning from a broken back, and he has gotten the majority of the reps with the No. 1 offense. Thursday's scrimmage should provide the veteran with his biggest test yet.

"I'm looking forward to seeing how Thompson will perform after coming back from that injury," Joyner said.

Extra points: Florida State's kick return drills included a bevy of potential options, including Darby, Joyner, Marvin Bracy, Karlos Williams and Rashad Greene. … Safety Terrence Brooks continues to wear a blue non-contact jersey during practice but has not appeared limited during workouts. … Greg Dent is still in a non-contact jersey following an offseason knee injury, too, but he continues to earn raves from coaches and teammates for his improved play so far. "You would think that he had some magic potion or something," Trickett said. "He's been playing his butt off."

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.

Week 1 of fall camp is in the books, and while it hasn't gone exactly according to plan, a few storylines began to emerge.

1. The weather

Fans pining for an indoor practice facility got plenty of ammunition during the first week of practice, with Monday's workouts washed out completely, while Tuesday and Friday included lightning delays. The rest of the week, Jimbo Fisher dodged the raindrops by having the Seminoles practice at 5:30 in the morning -- a diversion from the normal schedule that players didn't seem to mind too much.

“You wake up early and get it out of the way," senior fullback Lonnie Pryor said. “It’s early, but once you’re up and get going [practice] goes kind of good and the rest of the day is just free.”

2. The offensive line

No unit will be under more scrutiny leading up to the start of the season than the offensive line, which allowed the most sacks in the ACC last season and remains something of a work in progress for now.

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Defensive tackle Anthony McCloud will miss at least the next two weeks of practice after suffering a small pectoral tear during workouts Friday.

McCloud, a third-year starter, was participating in board drills -- one-on-one blocking drills against another lineman -- when the tear occurred.

"He tried to give an umph and there was a big guy on the other end, too," coach Jimbo Fisher said.

More serious tears can require surgery and sideline a player for months, with USC defensive end Devon Kennard a recent example. But Fisher downplayed the severity of McCloud's injury, calling it just a small tear. Fisher said he believes McCloud will be ready for the Seminoles' opener Sept. 1 against Murray State.

With McCloud out, sophomore Timmy Jernigan will pick up some of the slack at defensive tackle, while freshman Eddie Goldman could get some extra looks, too.

Senior Jacobbi McDaniel, who is recovering from an ugly ankle injury, isn't ready to push his way into the mix, however. He's been relegated to individual drills exclusively, and Fisher said the team is in no rush to get McDaniel into full practices.

"We're bringing him along slowly," Fisher said.

Glauser gets work

Daniel Glauser continues to get the bulk of the first-team reps at right tackle, as Fisher looks to find an answer at a position that's seen the depth chart change rapidly since the start of spring practice.

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