As far as first impressions go, KJ Sampson looked the part in shorts. The Florida State defensive tackle, despite beginning his third season, had not consistently shown he’s ready for a bigger role.

New defensive coordinator Tony White was curious, challenging Sampson with a question that appears to have motivated him.

“I didn’t know anybody. When we came over here, in Tour of Duty, you saw a big body who can actually move, who’s twitchy,” White said. “And you’re looking at him and you’re like, ‘Why aren’t you the guy?’ You see just the inconsistencies early on in spring ball. He’s a big, twitchy guy. But when it’s time to play big, you got to play big. When it’s time to be twitchy and move around, you do that. He’s capable of doing that.”

From White to defensive line coach Terrance Knighton to head coach Mike Norvell, they have seen enough to think Sampson is capable of being a significant part of FSU’s rotational depth up front. Sampson is still relatively inexperienced, earning just 34 snaps in 2023 and then 115 snaps last fall. He had six of his 10 tackles vs. Miami, and he has shown glimpses of what he can offer.

It’s just about seeing a big and twitchy guy show up practice after practice. Sampson showed up frequently in the open scrimmage on Saturday, disrupting plays by pushing through the offensive line and getting into the backfield and also grabbed an interception (that he returned for a touchdown) off a deflection from defensive end Amaree Williams that was celebrated by Knighton and others on social media.

“KJ is a guy we’ve challenged — it’s just the consistency,” Norvell said. “You see the athleticism. You feel the explosiveness. Just continuing to take that next step with the consistency of the physicality. Being active in the run game. He’s taking ownership of that.

“We’ve got a guy that’s still relatively young in his overall experience but now this is the year. Going into third year, you want to see a big step. I thought today was a really good day for him.”

Norvell commented that Sampson has had some good moments and challenging moments. Sampson will have to fight through double teams as well as the frustrations that are part of the job of a defensive tackle.

FSU’s coaches know what they have in Darrell Jackson. But with Daniel Lyons out for the spring due to injury, it’s clear the coaches gave Sampson a longer look on Saturday to see just how disruptive he could be.

Sampson is older but short on experience. Going back to White’s motivational question — “Why aren’t you the guy?” and it’s clear that Sampson needs these reps to further his development and show that he can be an impactful lineman in FSU’s rotation.

“We forget even though they’re older guys, they’re freshmen in terms of being on the grass and playing-wise. He’s a guy who continues to elevate his game. He was challenged by myself, T-Knight. We said, ‘Hey, man, you are a really, really good athlete. You are a big, twitchy, physical athlete. Be that guy. Just go out there and put it on display.

“And it was fun to watch him make a play and build that confidence up. We’re going to need him to be his best. With all of the guys who are moving around, you never know (with) injuries, all that kind of stuff, we need to play a lot of guys. He’s going to be one that has to step up and he played well today.”

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