Adam Fuller met with the media on Thursday after completing his second full spring as Florida State defensive coordinator.

Like offensive coordinator Alex Atkins on Wednesday, Fuller was asked a litany of questions about his unit. And like Atkins, he went position-by-position, breaking down players who stood out this spring, players who made big jumps and players who will be counted on a lot this fall.

"It's to a point now where I'm very confident in the group we have," Fuller said.

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With good reason. Fuller's first-team defense, especially, was the dominant unit in spring practice, routinely besting the first-team offense in team drills.

But while everyone knows about veterans Robert Cooper and Fabien Lovett and Jammie Robinson, Fuller seemed just as pleased with the newcomers and underclassmen at each position as well.

So, let's start with the defensive line. Even though the Seminoles lost Jermaine Johnson and Keir Thomas at defensive end, after 15 spring practices Fuller thinks the defensive line as a whole could be better -- or at least equal to -- what they had in 2021.

"We'll be significantly better inside," Fuller said. "There's no question about that. Because everybody's back and everybody's better. I'm really excited about our tackle and our nose. I think that's a really good spot for us right now.

"And then, I thought Dennis Briggs was playing really good football until he went down in that Louisville game. ... I think he and Keir have a lot of similarities just in how they play. And then Derrick McLendon is one of the most improved players we have on defense. We saw that. He's just stronger, he's more developed, his understanding is there, his physicality. All of that is growing. And Jared Verse is going to bring something here, there's no question about it."

Fuller went on to praise all of the young defensive linemen on the team, inside and out. But he said the two second-year players who probably had the best springs and could very well work themselves into the rotation are Joshua Farmer at defensive tackle and Patrick Payton at defensive end.

At linebacker, he noted that UCF transfer Tatum Bethune has been a huge addition to the group and the defense as a whole. But he's not the only player he's excited about.

"We're better than we've ever been here," Fuller said of the linebacker position under this coaching staff. "From Kalen DeLoach to Stephen Dix to Amari Gainer to D.J. Lundy, three years ago they were all playing. Now, they're still playing. And they've gotten better. So, we're seeing that growth from that group. That's been really exciting.

"I think obviously Kalen DeLoach has probably come the furthest. Amari is getting better. D.J. Lundy showed significant improvement. And I thought Stephen Dix, probably the last three or four practices, started to play a lot faster."

Then there's the group that might just have the most depth of any position on the entire team right now: The secondary.

Aside from cornerback Jarvis Brownlee, who is transferring to Louisville, the quartet of Jammie Robinson, Akeem Dent, Kevin Knowles and Omarion "Duke" Cooper were getting most of the snaps at the end of last season. And they're all back. Along with Renardo Green's return to corner from safety (and injury), and the addition of Louisville transfer Greedy Vance.

Of course, Fuller is optimistic about the growth and development of those players, but he also likes what he's seen from the newcomers and second-year players. He's seen enough from a few of them to think they could really challenge for playing time this fall.

And that's what's supposed to happen. If you're good enough, you're going to play. No matter your age. As Knowles and Cooper proved a season ago.

"Kevin Knowles came in as a true freshman and played good football," Fuller said. "And he's going to get better. ... Then you have guys like Shyheim Brown. He played in two games minimally last year and showed signs, but really wasn't consistent enough to break through in the safety group last year. But now he's in that top group. And he's somebody that's going to have a major impact.

"So, you take guys like that that came in together. Duke Cooper started from Game 5 on and played good football. Some meaningful snaps in critical moments. Made plays. Kevin, from the first snap against Notre Dame all the way through the year -- he averaged about 60 snaps per game. And then Shyheim barely played, if at all. And coming into this year, I see all three of them having a major impact."

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