As college football fans prepare for a coming season, it's only natural to focus on two primary groups of players -- the veterans who have contributed in the past, and the newcomers who might be able to make an instant impact.
One group that often gets lost in the shuffle, however, is the players who redshirted the previous season.
No matter how much hype they received during the recruiting process or on their signing days, redshirt freshmen are almost always an afterthought for two main reasons: They aren't yet proven on the college level, and their names are no longer fresh in the minds of fans and media.
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Well, if Florida State football coach Willie Taggart in his correct in his assessment, the Seminoles' large class of redshirt freshmen in 2019 could make a major leap back into the public's consciousness.
Twelve of the 21 players Taggart signed in his first FSU recruiting class -- a haul that was ranked in the top 10 nationally -- are coming back as redshirt freshmen. And the second-year head coach says he loves the development he has seen from that group over the past 12 months.
"I've seen those guys get bigger and stronger from last year," Taggart said. "Their confidence is out the roof right now."
Players receive redshirts for a variety of reasons. Some aren't quite ready to contribute physically, some need to mature emotionally, some are set back by injuries, and some simply don't get an opportunity due to crowded depth charts.
Two members of FSU's 2018 class who likely would have been major contributors if not for injuries were defensive back Isaiah Bolden and linebacker Amari Gainer.
Bolden shined in preseason camp and actually played against Samford in Week 2, but he was sidelined by a season-ending shoulder injury in that contest.