TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – With Florida State’s first spring scrimmage in the books, coach Jimbo Fisher has a lengthy list of things he’d like to see before the Seminoles hold their Garnet and Gold spring game on April 8.
“Competitiveness, consistency, assignments, alignments, physicality, do your job, enthusiasm, leadership,” Fisher said. “About everything you’d look for (during a game)."
That last point may be Fisher’s top priority.
As the Seminoles adjust to life without veteran stalwarts like Dalvin Cook, DeMarcus Walker and Marquez White, Fisher said he’s still looking for more players to break through as vocal leaders in the huddle.
He’s pleased with the team’s effort and intensity on the field, but said he would like to see a more “dominant” personality emerge.
“We need more of it,” Fisher said. “I’m not mad, it’s just kind of the personality of this team. … There’s just not a lot of those vocal, vocal guys on this team – but there’s a lot of good players. They play hard, they play good. I like that. But you don’t need a lot (of vocal leaders). You only need one or two. You don’t need a lot of guys to be leaders.”
The good news for the Seminoles is that they’ve got plenty of time to fill those roles.
The spring game is still nearly two weeks away, and there’s more than five months until FSU’s season opener against Alabama on Sept. 2.
Otherwise, Fisher said the scrimmage was typical for this time of year.
Both the offense and defense took turns making plays, and where the team might have lacked in precision it made up for in physicality.
Although he assessed the team’s current position as “just OK,” he also allowed that there were “some really nice plays.”
“Good throws and catches, pressures, good tackles,” Fisher said. “A lot of good hits on both sides of the ball. But we’ll look at the film and judge.”
Monday’s scrimmage also offered an opportunity for FSU’s seven early-enrollees to get their first taste of game-style action inside Doak Campbell Stadium.
And while Fisher chuckled and said most of the newcomers looked like just that, he did have praise for freshman quarterback Bailey Hockman.
A Georgia native and a rare left-handed quarterback at FSU, Hockman is competing to be the top reserve behind starter Deondre Francois.
“I like what he’s doing,” Fisher said. “Got a lot of instincts, good arm strength, usually very accurate.”
The Seminoles will hold their annual Pro Day on Tuesday and return to the practice fields on Wednesday.
Patrick out, expected to return
Junior running back Jacques Patrick, perhaps the frontrunner to start this fall, missed the scrimmage but is expected to return to practice Wednesday, per Fisher.
Fisher said that Patrick twisted his knee in a non-contact drill but that MRI results did not reveal anything serious.