With his dad in the military, Deante McCray spent time in Japan and Italy before his family settled into Jacksonville.
McCray returned close to home this offseason when he transferred from Western Kentucky to Florida State. And this week, the Jacksonville Sandalwood standout is back in the First Coast as the Seminoles practice on the University of North Florida campus. But that doesn't mean he wanted family around on the practice field as McCray was all business.
“Back at my last school, I always was by myself, had to figure it out on my own. I love my family, I just told them, ‘I want to keep it like that. I don’t want to break the cycle.’ I want to stay locked in. I’m going to have them come visit me for sure before I leave here."
McCray took up football late, first competing in the sport of flag football while living in Japan. When he moved to Jacksonville in the ninth grade, McCray learned the sport quickly and landed a scholarship to Western Kentucky. McCray competed in just three games as a freshman in 2022, taking a redshirt. But the next two years, McCray had a combined 101 tackles and 3.5 sacks.
His dad's work ethic is the reason McCray pushes himself.
"My dad is in the military," McCray said. "I always see him, a hard-working man. That’s where I get my inspiration from. Every day, anytime I feel like I don’t want to be here, my body feels like garbage or whatever. I think back to all of those days he didn’t want to go to work. He always kept it good. He always had to do what he had to do — be a grown man."
The 6-foot-4, 287-pound McCray isn't the biggest name among FSU's nearly two dozen transfers. Defensive end James Williams, linebacker Elijah Herring and cornerback Jeremiah Wilson all have experience at Power 4 schools and are expected to make an impact in 2025.
But McCray is versatile, able to play multiple spots on FSU's defensive front, and played in Western Kentucky's 3-3-5 scheme.
"He's been grinder," FSU defensive line coach Terrance Knighton said. "He looks the part. He's long. He's how you want them to look. With his versatility, being able to play nose tackle, three-technique, end, he can do anything. That's the type of guys you look for in this defense."
After spending part of his formative years in Europe and Asia, and taking to football late relative to boys who would have years of experience from pee wee and middle school, McCray is all smiles about what's next and feels fortunate to be at FSU. And with two years of eligibility left, McCray has time to put down roots in Tallahassee.
"I started here and look where I’m at now," McCray said. "I’m at Florida State. I never thought I’d be at Florida State. It’s a blessing. But I’ve also been everywhere. I used to live in Japan, Italy. A lot of that stuff I just look back on like, ‘Man, I never thought I’d be doing this in a million years.' I’m blessed. I’m really blessed."
Hot, humid, lightning
Coach Mike Norvell has for years said he hopes for hot, humid days when the Seminoles hit the road for practices in Jacksonville. FSU held practice No. 1 on an intramural field on the UNF campus.
Norvell said the Seminoles had a “good, physical practice” in the heat and humidity, although they had to wait out a lightning delay.
“I thought guys responded well, especially with the little delay that we had at the early part of it,” Norvell said. “Thought we got some good, physical work.”
Quote of the day
Norvell has discussed missed chances at grabbing interceptions in camp, a theme that continued on Thursday. While FSU’s defensive backs have broken up passes, that’s not good enough for Norvell.
“I tell them all the time, ‘Plenty of people are happy with PBUs. We’re not PBU university, we’re DBU university,” Norvell said. “You got to go make the play. Go finish the play.’ That’s something that you got to go and be able to finish in those moments. … Those are game changers. Those are ones that absolutely impact the course of all things.”
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