Tony White coached for the first time inside Doak Campbell Stadium. It was for all of about 10 plays before rain and lightning forced the Seminoles inside on Tuesday night.
“It's really neat to start off at Doak and getting that feeling there,” White said. “It was awesome. It was a really cool feeling to be in there, especially with the families and stuff in there. and when we moved into the IPF, it kind of quieted down and just was ball.”
White spoke to the media on Wednesday, a day after FSU’s first scrimmage of preseason camp. After seeing the scrimmage and reviewing the film, here are some thoughts from White:
FSU put pressure on the quarterback
Good news: FSU’s defensive front was able to apply pressure and disrupt the quarterbacks’ rhythm.
Bad news: The Seminoles missed on a number of sacks as the quarterbacks, wearing green jerseys, often proved elusive.
“We didn't have enough sacks,” White said. “The combination of both coverage and guys getting up to the rush, working in different combinations of rushers. TKnight (defensive line coach Terrance Knighton) was throwing guys in there, different spots and all that stuff. So it's hard.
“All of those guys back there, we must have missed five, six, seven sacks, but they're so mobile back there running around. Which is great training for us, because we're in this league where we’re going to see a whole bunch of athletic quarterbacks.”
Camp optimism for Jaden Jones
Jaden Jones was the No. 1 junior college player in the class of 2023 but knee surgery and a lengthy recovery have kept him from playing a down at FSU. That could change this fall.
Jones isn’t expected to start for the Seminoles, and it remains to be seen if he will be in the two-deep depth chart ahead of the Alabama game, but he could get some reps in a line rotation. And with FSU coaches searching for depth up front, Jones is working toward a return to the field.
“Just coming off of injury and all that stuff, you saw his work ethic,” White said. “He works his butt off. He's one of the first ones in the building, one of the last ones leave. Just a really humble young man, and to see him go out there and no restrictions, not hesitating, no fear of the injury before. It was really, cool to watch him play. He played really well.”
The mental mistakes added up
There were typical August issues that showed up, and that included penalties. Many of them could be categorized as mental mistakes but also wanting to perform well in a scrimmage setting.
“The biggest, disturbing thing was the penalties,” White said. “I think we had a couple unsportsmanlike penalties, lined up offsides a couple times or misalignments. Things like that that really bug you. They extend drives. Two of those penalties actually ended up where we stop them (the offense), we get the penalty, and then they go on to score. So those really are the things that you need to control.”
A positive is that the defense made stops. But while coaches want to see physicality, the Seminoles can’t afford unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. Or penalties off pre-snap alignment.
Cross training vs. specialization
FSU assistants and players have often mentioned that they are cross-training at various spots within their position group.
Omar Graham Jr. said he has worked at all three linebacker spots, while Chris Thomsen said his tight ends have worked as in-line blockers, in the slot and at fullback. White said safeties were training at all three spots in the nickel alignment, while defensive linemen were cross-training, too.
While this is the nature of the spring and often is so for parts of camp, there will come a time when coaches will aim to find a player’s strength and place him in a specified role.
“As we do more with this team, scrimmaging, you're going to see more specialization — guys showing what they're what they're better at,” White said. “So it's just us watching the practice, watching the film and going back and saying, ‘Hey, this guy is better here. Let's make sure he is there the majority of time vs. putting him in this spot that he's not as good at.’ So that's a continuing thing,
Looking forward to Jacksonville
White was asked about FSU’s trip to Jacksonville, which helps players and coaches bond in practices at the University of North Florida.
“I heard this is a great week for identity,” White said. “Call this identity week. You're gonna go down there and you're going to really find out the toughness of the team, so to speak. Looking forward to it.”
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