No matter how you shake out the numbers, Florida State was a mess on both sides of the football in 2019.

The ineptitude of the offense has been well documented. There was substandard play at quarterback, and the offensive line was arguably the worst among all Power Five programs. Throw in a third different offensive coordinator in three seasons, and it’s no surprise that the Seminoles finished the season ranked No. 73 in scoring offense.

The real surprise was how poorly the defense fared in 2019. Despite having six former five-star and six Rivals100 defensive recruits on the field, the Seminoles finished No. 90 in total defense, which was second worst in the ACC. To put that into perspective, the rival Florida Gators had just one five-star and three Rivals100 members playing on defense last season but finished No. 9 in total defense.

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There’s been plenty of speculation to explain why the defense massively underachieved last season. Several players clearly under-performed, there were key injuries, and an ill-conceived switch to a three-four base scheme all contributed to the defense's downfall.

Yet despite all of the negatives in 2019, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the future.

First, the defense will be significantly more experienced in 2020. All in all, nine of 10 defenders that started eight or more games in 2019 are back this season. Former five-star recruits Jaiden Lars-Woodbey and Joshua Kaindoh will also return after missing most of last season because of serious injuries.