It's the way they talk about him. That's what should excite you most about Florida State true freshman Dontae Lucas.

Because football players know. The ones who play beside him, the ones who go up against him, they recognize before anyone else who has the chance to be special on a football field.

Sure, Lucas was an elite recruit. He was rated the third-best guard prospect in the country coming out of high school last year. But we all know that lofty recruiting rankings don't always translate to college success -- especially on the offensive line.

Yet in the first few days of his first preseason camp at FSU, Lucas had already worked his way onto the first-team offensive line.

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Even if he hasn't stayed there the entire time (junior Mike Arnold has been with the starters at right guard in the open portions of practice recently), that in itself shows you what the coaches think of Lucas' ability.

Now check out what the players think.

"He just brings like a dog mentality," sophomore defensive tackle Robert Cooper said. "Like he just wants to finish you. He wants to succeed bad. That's what I see, he wants to succeed really bad."

Said sophomore Keyshawn Helton: "A dog. That's what he is. A dog. He's going to tell you about what he's going to do to you. And he's going to do it to you. … He has a lot of confidence in himself. That's what it shows me. He's going to do it to you."

Graduate senior transfer Ryan Roberts was also asked about Lucas. At this point, his answer is not going to surprise you.

"That dude is a dog," Roberts said.

See!

"Like straight up," Roberts continued. "He came here to work. He pushes me to be a better player because he will never take a play off. I can guarantee you that."