Coming into this season, Tamorrion Terry was thought of as one of the best returning receivers in the United States.

Through two games, he was a non-factor. Almost non-existent.

The only impact he had in those two losses was negative. He had a critical drop on what would have been a long touchdown pass against Georgia Tech, and then he got into a sideline shouting match with receivers coach Ron Dugans after being flagged for an offsetting personal foul with a Miami defensive back.

All of those expectations, all of that hype, and nothing positive to show for it through the first eight quarters of the 2020 season.

Well. Things have changed.

After a nice bounce-back effort against Jacksonville State, when he had six catches for 77 yards, the redshirt junior had perhaps the best game of his career on Saturday night against Notre Dame.

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Terry was targeted 10 times. He caught nine of them for 146 yards, including a 48-yard TD in the first half.

"I thought Tamorrion played at a high level," FSU head coach Mike Norvell said. "He made some big plays. Made some plays through contact, caught the ball better. It was something that we knew we would need (against Notre Dame).

"We knew that was going to be a big part, if we could get a one-on-one opportunity with him, to be able to see him rise up and have that type of performance."

Terry made his name during the past two seasons on the long ball. That's where he has been one of the best in the United States, and frankly, one of the best in Florida State history.

It was the intermediate stuff, though, the catches in traffic, that he sometimes struggled with throughout his Florida State career.

On Saturday against the No. 5 Irish, yes, Terry had the long TD catch on a double-move, but he also had a critical 25-yard grab on fourth down when the game was still in doubt. And he had another 30-yard catch in between two defenders on the first drive of the second half.

The nine catches tied a career high for the Georgia native. And the 146 receiving yards were the most against a Notre Dame defense in the last five years.

Terry now has 21 catches on the season for 275 yards, and he has surged into the Top 10 in FSU history with 2,207 receiving yards.

According to Norvell, Terry's breakout game on Saturday wasn't a surprise. He had seen it coming from the last two weeks of practice.

"He's been preparing in a much better way," Norvell said. "We're continuing to challenge and continuing to inspire him. He's a very talented young man. And I thought he did a great job."

Especially considering where he was two weeks ago. Terry was not only slowed by an injury against Miami, but he also got pulled for most of the second half after the run-in with Dugans.

It was something, Norvell said, that was addressed early the next week.

And the star receiver has responded.

"Terry has a chance to be, I believe, one of the more dominant receivers in college football," Norvell said. "The last two weeks of work, his approach and his mindset have really been so much improved from where it was earlier in the year.

"He also challenged himself. He understands the expectations. We sat down and had a real heart-to-heart conversation about what we want this to look like here moving forward. And I have a lot of respect for the way he worked (the last two weeks)."

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