During Florida State's spirited 31-28 victory over Miami on Saturday, a true freshman emerged in the defensive backfield to start his first-ever game as a Seminole.

Omarion Cooper made sure to leave his mark on the storied rivalry, racking up four pass deflections, two tackles and grabbing a first-quarter interception in the process. Cooper's pick was the first turnover of the game on either side and helped shift momentum in FSU's favor early on the way to a 17-0 lead.

"Played as good of a game in his first start -- that's an incredible performance for that young man. He's just continuing to grow," FSU head coach Mike Norvell said. "We felt this was the time. There's a lot of thought that goes into it, but when you earn the opportunity, you have to seize that opportunity. He definitely did that throughout the course of the game."

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FSU defensive backs coach Marcus Woodson was also impressed and broke down what he told the freshman before his first start in the historic rivalry between the 'Noles and the 'Canes.

"Go out and play. Go out and have fun," Woodson said. "He was a kid who was well-prepared. He shows up every day with the right attitude. He's a film junkie. He studies the opponent. He studies the game plan that we present to our players. So it was no surprise to me, as a coach, the way that he performed."

While he knew Cooper had the talent to play right away on the college level, Woodson said he didn't know how quickly the 6-foot-1, 186-pound cornerback would develop.

"He's everything that we expected for him to be," Woodson said. "And to be honest, he's exceeded some of our expectations as well. Just with how early he met those expectations. He's a phenomenal kid. Has the right attitude, and that's what we look for in the process of recruiting. It's bigger than talent.

"It's a character evaluation that we have here with Coach Norvell that we take great pride in. So we knew that we had the right one the day he sent that NLI in."

Cooper's interception came just five minutes into the game and on only the Hurricanes' fifth offensive snap. Tyler Van Dyke, Miami's quarterback riding a hot streak coming in, was cooled off early on when Cooper stepped in front of a lofted, deep-shot throw 40 yards downfield.

"It was because of how I practiced [last] week," Cooper said of the play. "So the coaches gave me the opportunity."

The former Lehigh Acres star broke down one of the reasons he's been able to climb up the FSU depth chart so early into his career.

"Coming from high school, the physical ability was there," Cooper said. "It was always the mindset coming into college. Your mind's got to be sharp with everything. That's all it is -- the mindset."

One of the many impressive skills the freshman has shown already is the ability to locate the football in the air and high-point it like a wide receiver.

He did that on his interception Saturday and on his interception at Clemson a few weeks earlier.

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Woodson said that is a natural gift that Cooper also has worked to refine.

"You can work it as a coach, but then some guys just have a knack for the football. And he has that," Woodson said. "You can do ball drills until you're blue in the face as a coach. But if a kid doesn't have it -- if they don't work at it -- then they won't make the play when they're put in position to make it like he did."

It wasn't just a singular play where Cooper flashed, either. Woodson said he's been a "consistent" and "trustworthy" player during the 2021 season.

"That's the one thing that he has -- the competitive edge," Woodson said. "The thing that we didn't know was the mental piece, as far as how quick he could process what we do schematically and understanding the information we give him from an opponent's standpoint as well.

"He came in and showed us he's trustworthy. And we didn't have any hesitation when it came to making the decision to start him."

FSU had not one, but two freshman defensive backs starting in the defensive backfield on Saturday. Fellow first-year Kevin Knowles has received heavy time in all 10 contests this season and started five of the past six games at nickelback.

"Those two freshmen are unlike most freshmen," Woodson said. "They're very mature. So they became pros early in the process. They trust the process, and they know the work that it takes to be prepared for the moment. For us as a staff, we've got total confidence in those guys. That's why there are two of the 11 taking the field on the first play of the game."

Moving forward, the staff certainly sounds comfortable relying on Cooper in key situations the rest of the season.

"The moment is not too big for him," Woodson said. "If he made the play in that venue we played in on Saturday against Miami, I feel good that he'll make it against Boston College on the road."

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