There is a need for dramatic change. There are also questions of how much Florida State coaches can change in a relatively small window of time, given a bye week to then prepare for the team’s final two games.
Can the scheme adjust? Likely tweaks but not wholesale adjustments.
Can the physicality, attitude, confidence and energy change? FSU interim defensive coordinator Randy Shannon discussed playing smart, fast and physical, which of course sounds like coachspeak. But then again the Seminoles (1-9) have often been lacking in those areas this fall.
“You just got to find out what can people do,” Shannon said. “It ain’t what you can do, it’s what people can do. And you find out what they can do and you do it. Our scheme is our scheme, what we run. But you find out who can execute it and who has certain techniques, certain coverages.”
Shannon took over FSU’s defense during the bye week after coach Mike Norvell dismissed defensive coordinator Adam Fuller (as well as offensive coordinator Alex Atkins and receivers coach Ron Dugans) following a 52-3 loss at Notre Dame. Norvell’s message to Shannon was simple.
“I want our players to play fast,” Norvell said. “I want them to be confident in what they're doing. … I want them to make sure when they get on the field, the communication, what they're being asked from a schematic responsibility, that it's something that plays and fits to them, but I want them to be able to go out and play fast and play free here these next two games.”
FSU’s defense has struggled in the last three games, allowing 36, 35 and 52 points, essentially contests where they weren’t competitive in the second half of games against Miami, North Carolina and Notre Dame. It looked and felt like the message from Fuller to the players was not resonating.
The Seminoles have struggled in particular against the run (115th at 192.4 yards per game), while faring relatively better vs. the pass (53rd at 206.4 yards). But they also haven’t generated takeaways, just two interceptions in 2024 and none since recovering a muffed punt at SMU on Sept. 28.
Will the defense look any different under Shannon? It’s likely less schematic and more about developing confidence.
“He’s a funny, chill guy,” linebacker Omar Graham said. “But when we get on the field, he’s really fired up. It’s real easy to be comfortable with him.”
Shannon has a track record of coordinating successful defenses, including those at UCF from 2018-20. UCF was 36th in the FBS in scoring at 22.7 points per game in 2018 and then 41st in 2019 at 23 points before slipping to 92nd in 2020 (a COVID season) at 33.2 points.
Shane Burnham, who coached alongside Shannon at UCF and was on FSU’s staff as an analyst, thinks the Seminoles will play “really loose.”
“I think they’ll play with more emotion than they have to this point,” Burnham said. “Randy, the way he handles kids, he is going to take the job seriously. But Randy is going to have a good time. Those guys are not going to play anything but loose and confident.”
Confidence was a frequent theme in Shannon’s interview after practice on Tuesday. He discussed preparing for Charleston Southern’s option, being sound, focusing on keys and explaining to the Seminoles the why of what the coaches were doing. Shannon said he will move out of the coaches’ box and down to the field to coordinate the defense, with analysts Greg Moss, Phil Simpson and Ernie Sims being eyes for the coaches up top.
But it was clear he emphasized the importance of instilling confidence through preparation in the Seminoles, to be ready to play fast.
“If you coach them hard, and they believe that they’re going to be a first-rounder, they’ll be a first-rounder,” Shannon said. “If you coach them and make them feel like they’re just an average guy, they’ll be an average guy. We got to coach like those guys are first-round picks."
Observations: Coaches take on expanded roles in Tuesday's practice
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