During his first six months on the job, Florida State wide receivers coach Ron Dugans worked every conceivable angle to build trust with his young players.

With Dugans being their third position coach in three years, he wanted to show them they could believe in him and that he'd be there for them in good times and bad. That he would coach them hard, but also have their back.

Earlier this month, when Dugans had to leave the team to be with his ailing mother, the former FSU standout learned that the Seminoles' wideouts have his back as well.

First, he received a video message from the players, letting him know they were thinking about him and praying for his family. Then after his mother, 58-year-old Kathryn Dugans-Brown, died on Aug. 20 following a battle with cancer, he was greeted by overwhelming support.

"It's been a special feeling," Dugans said before Tuesday's practice. "Just coming back and everybody making you feel like you're family."

DEAL EXTENDED! Get a 25% discount and a $75 eCard to Adidas.com

Dugans returned to the team this past Friday after missing about a week, and he acknowledged that it wasn't easy to focus on football while still in the grieving process. At the same time, he was well aware that the Seminoles' season opener against Boise State was fast approaching.

"The first day was a tough one," Dugans said, before adding that he didn't want to let down his players. "I can't let what I'm going through affect the job at hand."

While Dugans was away, FSU's other coaches and graduate assistants picked up the slack, overseeing the receivers in meetings and during drills.

Perhaps the only bright side to the entire experience for Dugans was seeing how well his players practiced and how hard they worked in his absence. Thanks to the efforts of FSU's video staff, Dugans was able to watch practice videos from the road, and he said he was very pleased with what he saw.