It's not just that Florida State's players and coaches have positive things to say about first-year offensive line coach Alex Atkins.
There's nothing new or surprising about an assistant coach being talked up by his fellow assistants and the people he's coaching. That happens every season. Everywhere.
It's the way they talk about Atkins that sticks out the most.
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It's not typical. Certainly not around these parts, where the FSU offensive line has become a punchline of sorts after years of abysmal performances.
Atkins isn't laughing, though. According to veteran lineman Brady Scott, it doesn't sound like there is a whole lot of back-slapping and smiles when the new offensive line coach is at work.
It's all business on the field.
"It's just the way he coaches," Scott said of Atkins. "He's not my friend. He's not nice."
Scott then realized how that sounded and immediately added: "I mean, he is nice off the field."
But on it, not so much.
Atkins came to Florida State after stints as the offensive line coach at Tulane -- where he first impressed both head coach Mike Norvell and offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham -- and then as the offensive coordinator/offensive line coach at Charlotte.
In his one season with the 49ers, they improved their yards-per-carry average from 3.71 to 4.94. They improved their rushing attack by 38 yards per game, their total yards by 69 yards per game, their scoring by eight points per game, and they cut their sacks-allowed total in half.
He made a similar impact during his time at Tulane.
Dillingham and Norvell thought they were getting one of the rising coaching stars in the country when they lured him away from Charlotte. But after being on the same staff with him now for over eight months, it sounds like his fellow coaches have even more admiration for his ability.
"Alex is a great teacher," Norvell said. "He is an incredibly bright football coach. Understanding schemes, techniques, the way he develops guys, the way he can communicate ... I think in all aspects, he is a first-class coach. And what allows him to be a first-class coach is I think he's a first-class man."
