With the Florida State football team scheduled to open spring practice on March 21, it's time for our annual spring practice position previews.
We begin today with Five Things to Know about FSU's QBs.
The Big Picture
It's not unusual for the quarterback position to be the primary focus of fans and media during spring practice -- especially when there is not a clear-cut returning starter.
What is unusual about Florida State's situation this year is the Seminoles have both an abundance of returning experience, and also great unknowns about who will win the starting job, the health status of a main candidate, and how the signal-callers will adapt to a brand-new offense.
With Willie Taggart taking over as head coach, what we know for sure is the 'Noles will play at a much faster tempo, they will use spread concepts on offense, and they also will rely heavily on the running game. This past season at Oregon, the Ducks boasted the nation's No. 12 rushing offense at 251.0 yards per game. In Taggart's final season at USF in 2016, the Bulls ranked No. 5 nationally with 285.3 rushing yards per game.
But that doesn't mean the passing game will be an afterthought. Taggart will expect his quarterbacks to make great decisions, to be a threat with their arm and their feet, and to be a team leader.
Experienced QB could be new twist
If Deondre Francois or James Blackman wins the starting job in 2018, they will give Florida State its first truly experienced quarterback since Jameis Winston's sophomore season in 2014.
When Everett Golson took the reins in 2015, he did have experience as a starting quarterback at Notre Dame, but he was tasked with learning both a new offense and also building timing and chemistry with a whole new set of skill-position players. When Francois was named the starter in 2016, he had yet to play in a college football game. And when Blackman took over in the second game of 2017, he was just a few months removed from high school.
Things will be much different if Blackman or Francois wins the job this year. While it's true that both players still have to learn Taggart's offense, which will be constructed with the help of new offensive coordinator Walt Bell, they have at least had the opportunity to lead this FSU team into battle for a full season.
Center Alec Eberle has snapped to both of them, and offensive linemen like Derrick Kelly and Landon Dickerson have been in the huddle with both of them. Wide receiver Nyqwan Murray has caught passes from both of them, and running backs Cam Akers and Jacques Patrick have taken handoffs from both of them.
That familiarity is important for several reasons, with perhaps the biggest being that those players know how Blackman and Francois will handle adversity in game situations. And even though this is an entirely new offensive coaching staff, the starts that Francois made in 2016 and Blackman made in 2017 will give the coaches a strong feel for what to expect from those players when it comes to live game action.
