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By Richie Barnes
Florida State's Campus Correspondent
TheRoadtoTampaBay.com
Excitement is back in Tallahassee as Florida State comes off of its first nine-win season since the Chris Rix era in 2004. Last season, the Seminoles were just one conference win away from playing in the Dr Pepper ACC Championship Game for the first time since 2005. A program with a storied history is hoping that 2009 is the year it will return to the national radar. Was last year's 42-13 rout of Wisconsin in the Champs Sports Bowl a sign of things to come, or is FSU still fighting to find a new identity? The 2009 season will tell all as the Tribe turns its "Road to Tampa Bay" into a Warpath.
Offense
On offense, everything starts up front for FSU. The Seminoles return all five starters on the offensive line, which many believe will be the best in the ACC. The front five are led by preseason All-American Rodney Hudson who will be a third-year starter at left guard. To his right is center Ryan McMahon, previously a freshman All-American. To Hudson's left is another former freshman All-American in tackle Andrew Datko. Expected to fill out the right side will be junior Brandon Davis and sophomore Zebire Sanders.
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Quarterback
Christian Ponder
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As Florida State's strength is expected to be a monster rushing attack, the biggest beneficiaries of Rick Trickett's offensive line will be the running backs. Sophomore Jermaine Thomas is primed to have one of the best seasons at running back in recent FSU history. As a true freshman, Thomas averaged a stunning seven yards per carry He had his coming out party against Georgia Tech, when he toted the ball nine times for 130 yards.
The only thing stopping Thomas from being the Seminoles' first 1,000 yard rusher since Warrick Dunn in 1996 is the depth behind him. Sophomore Ty Jones is a speedy bruiser and will see his fair share of carries. The forgotten man is junior Tavares Pressley, a former top junior college running back from California who tore his ACL is fall camp last year. If he comes back 100 percent healthy, he will add a third dimension to the backfield that will keep opposing defenses from sleeping at night before they play the 'Noles.
Quarterback Christian Ponder will be a second-year starter. As with any experienced quarterback at Florida State, expectations for him are set very high. Last season, Ponder started all 13 games and showed his ability to both pass and run with the football. Ponder will need to improve his downfield passing and learn to slide when running the ball in order to advance his personal skill-set. If Ponder can take the proverbial 'next step', this offense has a chance to do great things.
Ponder did lose his top two receivers in Preston Parker and Greg Carr, but has enough talent around him for the Seminoles to move the ball through the air. Bert Reed and Taiwan Easterling both had stellar freshman campaigns, combining for over 600 yards and four touchdowns. Reed is extremely dangerous in the open field, and Easterling has proved clutch as he made several big third-down catches last season.
Rounding out the group of receivers who will see the most plays this season are seniors Richard Goodman and Rod Owens. Also look for walk-on Louis Givens, who could be on scholarship by the time the season starts, to be a threat on screens and reverses.
A secret weapon on offense could be the tight end, which has not been used much in recent Florida State offenses. A more experienced offensive line will allow for more tight end releases and gives Ponder another target. Caz Piurowski will be a senior, and many feel he will have a big year at the position. FSU also has two sophomores in Beau Reliford and Ja'Barris Little, who could surprise and produce this season.
Defense
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Linebacker
Dekoda Watson
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On defense, senior linebacker and preseason All-ACC pick Dekoda Watson should be the emotional leader of the group. The South Carolina native sat out this spring due to injury, but insists he will be 100 percent for fall camp. Helping him out as the Seminoles' second line of defense will be junior Kendall Smith and sophomore Nigel Bradham. The group looks to be the strength of Mickey Andrews' always stout defense and should create havoc on opposing offenses.
Up front, Florida State will count on junior Markus White to have a huge season at defensive end. Just two years ago in junior college, White tallied 23.5 sacks. He spent last season adjusting to the speed of big-time college football and will need to produce more in order to fill the void left by NFL-draftee Everette Brown. Opposite of White at defensive end will be senior Kevin McNeil, who could make it to the next level with a big year.
In the middle of the line, Florida State will likely start seniors Justin Mincey and Kendrick Stewart unless Budd Thacker recovers fully from the injuries that sidelined him in the spring. Several underclassmen are right behind them pushing for playing time and could start producing as early as this season. Sophomores Everett Dawkins and Moses McCray are physically ready to compete and could compete for the starting jobs, while freshman Jacobbi McDaniel will add depth and contribute early.
At cornerback, Patrick Robinson was snubbed from preseason All-ACC honors, but is expected to be healthy and should have a monster senior season. Robinson snagged six interceptions as a sophomore but had a quiet junior year after missing a few games. On the other side, Ochuko Jenije is expected to start, but must elevate his game or else freshman Greg Reid could come in and take his job sometime this season.
With the loss of Myron Rolle, Korey Mangum moves from cornerback to rover and will try and fill the void on the field. After a disappointing spring, Mangum needs take his game up a notch since underclassmen Terrance Parks is right behind him pushing for the job.
Jamie Robinson returns at free safety and is primed for a big year. He had two picks in Florida State's annual Garnet and Gold Game and will finally be completely familiar with the position heading into the 2009 campaign after making the conversion last season.
2009 Prediction
Florida State was picked to win the Atlantic division at the annual ACC Football Kickoff and anything less would be a disappointing season. Seminole Nation expects big things now!
Big targets on the schedule include home games against Miami (September 7) and Georgia Tech (October 10) and a pair of tough road games at North Carolina (October 22) and Clemson (November 7). Other conference games, equally as big, include at Boston College (October 3), NC State (October 31), at Wake Forest (November 14) and against Maryland (November 21).
On the non-conference schedule, FSU hosts Jacksonville State (September 12), heads out west to play BYU (September 19) and hosts USF (September 26). The Seminoles finish the season against archrival Florida, who many are picking to repeat as national champions.
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