There are a ton of new faces but expectations remain sky-high for Florida State as the team prepares for spring practice. The Tour of Duty is underway as the Seminoles begin their offseason program and that has provided an opportunity for the newcomers to get their feet wet in Tallahassee.
FSU is going to look different on both sides of the ball with nearly 40 players joining the team via the transfer portal or high school recruiting class. The biggest change will be Oregon State graduate transfer DJ Uiagalelei taking over the reins of the offense after former star Jordan Travis exhausted his eligibility following the 2023 season.
That transition is an aspect that people across the country are keen to watch unfold. ESPN analyst Greg McElroy, who flip-flopped on his stance regarding Florida State and the College Football Playoff leading up to Selection Sunday, says that his biggest question for the Seminoles is Uiagalelei's fit into head coach Mike Norvell's system.
“The biggest question I have for Florida State is how does DJ Uiagalelei fit into this offense? Because if you look at what Jordan Travis was, and what they've really recruited too, they really wanted a mobile quarterback that's got some twitch," McElroy said on a recent episode of Always College Football. "Now, DJ Uiagaleli is mobile, but I would not describe him as a guy that's twitchy. He's not going to be a guy that's going to make you miss in the backfield then take off and burn you."
Uiagalelei and Travis have some similarities but also a lot of differences that could add wrinkles to Florida State's offense. The former Oregon State and Clemson standout sports a much larger frame at 6-foot-4, 245 pounds that will be useful in short yardage and power situations. He's also got a strong arm, evidenced by his career-high 8.4 yards per attempt last season.
“He’s a mover and shaker and he can create hard yardage. He’s great in short-yardage situations," McElroy said. "He’s good in quarterback-designed power between the tackles. He’s going to be great after contact. He’s a big guy and he’s really strong and he’s pretty dang athletic but he’s not really that twitchy guy they’ve had in the past or that they've had success with so I will be really curious how they're going to factor his skill set. Really good off play action, he's got a big arm so he can push the ball down the field, he's a pretty good deep baller thrower, how will they block it up for him in this offense? It's probably going to look a little different."
Mike Norvell and quarterbacks coach Tony Tokarz are hoping to unlock Uiagalelei's full arsenal during his final season of collegiate eligibility. The former five-star prospect has a ton of potential and could be deadly if he reaches his vast ceiling. He's completed 695/1176 passes (59.1%) of his passes for 8,319 yards with 57 touchdowns to 24 interceptions while adding 1,132 rushing yards and 21 more scores between his time with the Tigers and Beavers.
More importantly, Uiagalelei is 30-10 as a starter and has proven himself as a high-level signal-caller in the ACC and PAC-12. His teams have achieved at least eight victories in all four of his years at the college level, including two double-digit win seasons.
While Uiagalelei's exact fit with the Seminoles remains to be seen, McElroy is currently giving Florida State a 33% chance to make the first 12-team College Football Playoff. He believes there are three to four losable games on the schedule but is operating under the assumption that the team finishes 10-2.
Florida State will return to the practice fields in March to kick off the spring.
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