After sitting out year, FSU football's Travis Jay ready to make his mark

According to Rivals' recruiting rankings for the class of 2019, Jay was rated the nation's No. 15 cornerback and the No. 22 player in the state of Florida. Listening to Fuller speak about the redshirt freshman, one gets the sense the best may be yet to come.

"He played a lot of positions in his career in high school," Fuller said. "Coach Coe (Madison County head coach Mike Coe) does a great job, and they're doing everything they can to develop players and win games. I think that's going to help him in a lot of ways."

Fuller especially likes that Jay played quarterback in high school; he loves when defensive players can bring that experience to the college level.

But if there is a drawback to that approach, it's that Jay never really got a chance to polish his skills at any one spot. Even on defense, there were times that he lined up at cornerback and other times at safety. And that was when he wasn't scoring touchdowns on offense or returning punts.

"Initially, it's going to be a bit of a learning curve for him, just locking into one position," Fuller said. "But once that happens, there's so much natural football to him ... it's just about getting those reps in right now."

Because of his great size -- Jay is listed at 6-foot-2, 188 pounds -- there was some speculation he might end up at safety on the college level. But Fuller and secondary coach Marcus Woodson had him at cornerback during the first week of spring practice, and that is where he'll work whenever football practice resumes.

"I think that could be his best position from a dominance standpoint," Fuller said. "There's a value to every position on offense and defense in our program. But if we can find guys that can play corner at a high level, I think that's ... I don't want to say where we start on defense, but it's a major emphasis.

"If we have to pick between an 'A' corner or an 'A' safety, I always would rather have the 'A' corner."

Whether Jay can prove to be that type of player in 2020 is to be determined. But after sitting out last season, he is beyond excited about the opportunity.

Jay, who also led Madison County to a state basketball championship as a senior, said last fall was the first time he could remember sitting out a sports season. That led to frequent bouts of frustration and sadness, but Jay said he got through it with the encouragement of his parents, high school coaches, friends and teammates.

"It was difficult," Jay said. "I had never sat out from football before. I just knew I had to do the little things (academically) to get back on the field. That was a teaching moment, and it taught me a lot."

And while Florida State's spring practice didn't last long -- the session was cut short after three practices due to the coronavirus outbreak -- Jay appreciated every moment.

"I felt free again," he said. "I was having fun."

He also was making plays.