I was sure Leonard Warner was gone.

It was mid-December, and newly hired Florida State football coach Mike Norvell had just announced that defensive coordinator Adam Fuller would be following him from Memphis to Tallahassee.

At the time, I just assumed most FSU defensive players would be excited about the arrival of a new coaching staff. It wasn't as if the last crew was getting things done. Even if the players liked Harlon Barnett and some of the other defensive assistants not named Odell Haggins (who would be staying), there was no way they could've wanted another season like the one they just finished.

So during a media opportunity leading up to the Sun Bowl, I asked Warner if he was looking forward to getting started with the new coaches.

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It wasn't exactly a hard-hitting question. And I certainly wasn't expecting him to say anything controversial. Ninety-nine times out of 100, a player in Warner's situation would answer in the affirmative and say he is eager for the opportunity.

This was that other one.

Warner didn't say anything outlandish. He didn't question the coaching hires or complain about the changes. But he did admit he was a little apprehensive. He said he'd be lying if he said he was excited.

Looking back on it now, how could he be?

Like all of the fourth- and fifth-year players on this Florida State football team, Warner's college career had been one disappointment after another. The team hadn't won enough. Players hadn't been put in positions to succeed.

In Warner's case, he played for one position coach as a freshman and another one as a sophomore and junior. And to be honest, I don't think either one was Florida State caliber. The results certainly back that up.

Yet for some bizarre reason, I thought Warner would be excited about starting over again? As if he should have been confident that the people hiring coaches around here finally got it right?

I never ran Warner's quotes from that day back in December. I happened to be the only person talking to him, and I decided it would be best to sit on them and monitor the situation. What I expected to happen was he would enter his name in the NCAA transfer portal after the bowl game, and I would then use those comments to provide context about why he was leaving.

Like I said, I was sure he was gone.