Schoffel column: Being his own man is good start for FSU's Mike Martin Jr.

It had to be tempting at times during the past 20-plus years.

With a father as successful as his -- and while following in some gargantuan footsteps in the baseball coaching profession -- there had to be moments when Mike Martin Jr. thought about mimicking some of his dad's more endearing traits.

Maybe adding a little Southern drawl to his speech. Perhaps taking a few extra moments to collect his thoughts before answering questions, striving to give the most diplomatic responses possible. Attempting to maintain a buttoned-up, polished demeanor in every occasion.

No one would blame Mike Martin Jr. if he did any of that. Forget the family ties, that's what many up-and-coming coaches do when they work for ultra-successful bosses.

In the college football community, how many of Nick Saban's former assistants have become head coaches and suddenly sounded exactly like Nick Saban? Closer to home, did anyone not notice that Jimbo Fisher co-opted "Dadgum" after replacing Bobby Bowden? And I'm not even suggesting that Fisher intentionally latched onto the phrase to curry favor with longtime Florida State fans. It very well could have been completely subconscious.

Those things can happen when people spend a lot of time together. They can pick up each other's mannerisms and quirks.

But that just makes Martin Jr.'s approach all the more interesting, in my mind.

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While it might have made sense for him to do it from a career advancement perspective, I've never gotten the sense in the nearly 20 years that I've covered him that Mike Martin Jr. patterns any of his behaviors after Mike Martin Sr.

They both have a quick wit and a solid sense of humor. But other than that and some physical characteristics, that's where the similarities end.

"I am Mike Martin Jr.," he said about four minutes into his introductory press conference Monday afternoon. "I'm not Mike Martin Sr."

Well, that probably went without saying.

Even for people who had never really heard Martin Jr. speak before, they could tell pretty quickly that things are about to be different around these parts.

First, there was the younger Martin's playful banter with athletics director David Coburn about being "frugal" -- something that could be a touchy subject given FSU's current financial situation. Then there was his not-so-subtle reference to former football coach Jimbo Fisher when he used a very familiar word to discuss mental challenges facing today's student-athletes.

"Dare I say clutter?" he quipped, eliciting groans from some of the university's higher-ups.

"I'm kidding," he said with a wry smile. "It was a joke!"

It was a funny line in the first place, but it was even funnier when you saw the smirk on Martin Jr.'s face. He knows all too well that Fisher is persona non grata inside Florida State's athletics department, and yet on the biggest day of his professional career, he couldn't resist the temptation to make a slightly uncomfortable joke.

You would seldom, if ever, hear something like that from Mike Martin Sr. -- at least in a public setting. He could be funny, without question, but he almost always steered clear from the controversial, particularly in his later years.

It's a safe bet that Florida State's next head coach will take a slightly different approach.

If you're unsure, just go back and watch Monday's press conference.

While saying he would remain true to his legendary father's core principles, Martin Jr. outlined a number of changes that he plans to instill immediately. Everything from which dugout the team mans during games to removing the players' names from the backs of their jerseys.

*ALSO SEE: 5 key takeaways from Mike Martin Jr. press conference

From a strategic standpoint, he vowed to be more aggressive offensively.

"I don't want another [fastball] taken on the inner-third of the plate," Martin Jr. said, before illustrating what he meant by using his hands as dividers on the podium.

He then explained that the Seminoles will embrace a more proactive recruiting strategy.

"I want to recruit faster," he said. "I want to recruit earlier."

To make that possible, he said he plans to be on the road recruiting just as much as his assistant coaches: "Like the old saying, 'Act like a head coach but work like an assistant.' That's the way it's going to be."

Martin Jr. and his new staff will have their work cut out for them in that area. For most of this recruiting cycle, the Seminoles have been trying to sell prospects on a future with no known leader. They were able to land a handful of commitments based on the program's reputation and the likelihood that Martin Jr. might end up getting the top job.

In many other cases, FSU's only hope was convincing those players to at least wait on making a decision until the coaching search was over. Martin Jr. took a moment during Monday's press conference to thank those prospects for being patient and giving him a chance.

Now, he expects to start sealing those deals.

If FSU's new head coach can make major strides in recruiting, it will be a huge first step in winning over some of the detractors who have been very vocal on our message boards and on social media. It also will be a positive first step in returning balance to the Seminoles' rivalry with the Florida Gators -- one that has been completely one-sided in recent years -- and also chasing the sport's national championship trophy, which proved so elusive for his father.

It is Florida State's struggles in those two categories that had some fans both ready for Martin Sr. to retire and eager to see some new blood infused into the program. As much as they appreciated the 40 years of sustained success, they were ready for a fresh approach.

Promoting Mike Martin's son was not exactly what they had in mind.

Athletics director David Coburn told Warchant on Monday that he heard from plenty of those constituents over the last several months, but he said he and FSU President John Thrasher were convinced that Martin Jr. was the right person for the job.

"To a certain extent, familiarity breeds contempt," Coburn said. "I think there's a lot of that at play here, and I think that's unfortunate. I think if his name weren't Martin and you were talking about a 22-year assistant coach with the record we've had -- being in the World Series two out of the last three years -- I think you'd be crazy not to take a long look at him."

No one knows better than Martin Jr. that he is coming into the job with a less-than-100 percent approval rating from the fan base. While answering questions from the media on Monday, he brought those critics up on his own. Instead of focusing entirely on the positives -- the way his father might have in such a public setting -- Martin Jr. confronted the negatives.

He said he's been doubted since he was an undersized catcher suiting up for the Seminoles in the early 1990s. (Actually, he went back even further than that -- to when he was a scrawny aspiring basketball player who survived in that arena thanks primarily to his confidence-instilling coach at Cobb Middle School, Adolph Hicks. "He was the first one who really believed in me.")

"I was always told I was only on the team because of my dad," Martin Jr. said. "I caught my first game in Division-I at 150 pounds. ... I've never taken anything for granted. I've never been given anything. I want this team -- my teams -- to take on my personality.

"I want to play with a little edge."

Mike Martin Sr. had plenty of "edge" throughout his career as well. But he preferred to keep it out of the public eye.

Mike Martin Jr. lets it all hang out.

As I spoke with people around the athletics department in recent months, the consensus seemed to be that Martin Jr. would be a very good hire from an on-field perspective. As one person with close connections to the program put it to me recently, "Between those foul lines, they're not going to find anyone better."

The concern from that person and many others was how Martin Jr. would handle the other aspects of the job: Managing his assistant coaches; maintaining positive relationships with boosters, fans and media; creating a positive and healthy environment for the players.

Since he's never been a head coach before, those are all things Martin Jr. will have to prove on the job. And there's no way for me, or anyone else, to know for certain whether he will be a success or failure in those endeavors.

I will say this, though. One thing I have always liked about Martin Jr. is that he is very self-aware.

In private conversations -- and even some with the tape recorder running -- he has been blunt about the Seminoles' shortcomings in different areas. That was on full display during Monday's press conference.

He knows that many fans believe FSU is too selective at the plate, and he made it clear that he's going to take a different approach. When asked why he didn't make that change during his years as the Seminoles' hitting coach, Martin Jr. tried to be as tactful as he could. "Assistants make suggestions," he said, noting that his father had his own offensive philosophies -- as well as ultimate say in all decisions.

Martin Jr. knows Florida State's coaching staff has been criticized for not hustling enough in recruiting, and he made sure to bring that up on his own during the press conference. He vowed to overhaul their approach.

He also knows people think he can be rough around the edges -- a point that likely was hammered home to him in conversations with Coburn and Thrasher. It's why he said several times Monday that he plans to bring in high-energy, positive-minded assistant coaches. He said he's not interested in a "Bobby Knight style of coaching."

Now, we've all watched enough introductory press conferences to know that talk is cheap. It's much easier to make promises than to deliver on them.

But there's something refreshing about a leader who confronts his perceived shortcomings and addresses them publicly. Who doesn't try to shield his staff and players from all criticism.

There's a time and place for that type of diplomacy, sure. But there's also a time for raw emotion.

I can't sit here and guarantee that Mike Martin Jr. is going to accomplish all of his -- or your -- goals for Florida State baseball in the coming years. He can't either.

But for the many vocal FSU fans who have been constantly clamoring for change, there might be more of that than you expect -- even if the name remains the same.

Contact managing editor Ira Schoffel at ira@warchant.com and follow @IraSchoffel on Twitter.

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