Five sacks against Ole Miss and another four against Charleston Southern was a good way for Florida State's defensive line to begin the year.
Then Week 3 arrived, and with it came a 63-20 loss at Louisville.
The Seminoles' defensive front struggled mightily in that game. They were unable to contain Louisville's running attack, and they also failed to get consistent pressure on Cardinals quarterback Lamar Jackson.
Suddenly, there were real questions about a group that was supposed to be a team strength. Even FSU's defensive linemen had to reevaluate their level of preparation and focus.
"What it is its just human nature when people think they have all the answers," senior defensive end DeMarcus Walker said. "Then you have these coaches who've been doing this job for 20, 30 years and they've seen every single thing. They've seen it all."
It didn't help, of course, that injuries were slowing starting defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi and starting defensive end Josh Sweat.
But an ensuing loss to North Carolina showed the problems ran deeper than that. Video replays of certain plays showed a lack of effort -- players "loafing" instead of running full speed. That led to the Seminoles being challenged by their coaches and the entire team signing promise notes, vowing to bring total effort on every play in practice and games.
Since then, Florida State's defensive line has become arguably the best unit in the nation; the Seminoles finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in the FBS with 47 sacks. They're a major reason why No. 11 FSU (9-3) was able to turn around its season and will face No. 6 Michigan (10-2) on Dec. 30 in the Capital One Orange Bowl.
"When bad stuff happens, you have look at yourself in the mirror like, 'All right, maybe I don't have all the answers,'" Walker said. "That's what I believe what most of the guys on the team had to face."
Talent was never an issue. Since he took over as head coach in 2010, Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher and his staff had been assembling elite prospects on the defensive front.
Experience wasn't an issue, either. Walker was one of three returning starters from 2015 while redshirt sophomore Demarcus Christmas went from oft-used reserve to becoming a full-time starter.
"It was just good to get them healthy again," Fisher said. "They're really learning -- you don't realize some things -- the average person doesn't see on a D-Lineman. How he frees up a [linebacker], how he double-teams and eats up a gap.
"They're starting to understand that."
