How it started, how it's going: FSU LBs boast familiar faces, but new look

Florida State's new coaching staff likely had concerns about taking over a defense that ranked 90th in the country in total defense in 2019 and allowed an average of nearly 425 yards each game. At the same time, the Seminoles might have been encouraged about the experience of the linebacker corps, which was expected to be working behind a dominant defensive line.

Emmett Rice and Amari Gainer were returning after ranking second and third on the team in total tackles the year before, and the Seminoles also brought back senior Leonard Warner, who ranked fifth in that category. There also were several backups who had shown potential, including sophomore Jaleel McRae, as well as talented newcomers Stephen Dix Jr. and D.J. Lundy

But as we covered in the last installment of this series, FSU's defensive line never lived up to the hype in 2020; neither did the entire defense. And because of that, it's difficult to judge how much of the Seminoles' struggles with run defense was a result of the linebackers' lackluster play and how much was due to breakdowns in the overall unit.

Either way, FSU finished the 2020 season ranked 97th in the country at stopping the run, allowing nearly 200 yards per game. The Seminoles allowed opponents to average 5.12 yards per carry, which actually ranked in a tie for 103rd.

First-year linebackers coach Chris Marve seemed to draw improved play out of both Gainer and Rice, who ranked first and second on the team in tackles, but the rest of the group was definitely a work in progress.

Warner ended up getting moved from the starting lineup to the bench and then to defensive end. Dix Jr. won a starting job midway through the year and finished third on the team in tackles, but he experienced a number of "freshman moments." Lundy saw some action as well, as did McRae and veteran DeCalon Brooks.