8 things to like from the first day of Florida State football fall practice

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8 things to like from the first day of Florida State football fall practice

Liam Rooney, Tallahassee Democrat · Tallahassee Democrat

Wed, Jul 24, 2024 ·

6 min read

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The sounds of Florida State's warchant blaring through speakers and head coach Mike Norvell's whistle piercing the air as he runs downfield can only mean one thing.

Seminoles football is back.

FSU opened preseason practice Wednesday, one month away from opening its ACC title defense against Georgia Tech in Dublin, Ireland on Aug. 24.

While Norvell mainly wants to bring players up to speed in the first week of action, there were some standouts from the first day.

That included redshirt senior running back Lawrance Toafili , who is emerging as a leader for this year's team.

Here are eight things we saw from day one of FSU fall practice.

Lawrance Toafili leads a confident group of versatile running backs

Florida State football players participate in day one of the Seminoles fall camp at Florida State University on Wednesday, July 24, 2024.

While the defense took much of the attention, Toafili and the running backs had some impressive moments.

Toafili has become a leader of the group alongside Alabama transfer Roydell Williams . The pair looked the part, often taking charge of drills and running clean reps.

Both Toafili and Jaylin Lucas look to be assets as pass catchers in the backfield, allowing the duo to open up the Seminoles' offensive playbook when they are on the field. Both players got some action as rushers and pass-catchers during day one.

"He's a human joystick," Toafili said about Lucas.

"He just adds another skill set to the offense, he is very dangerous in space and can run through the tackles.

While Toafili and Lucas are more all-around backs, Williams and freshman Kam Davis bring some power to the room with their running styles. Factor in dynamic players like Micahi Danzy and Caziah Holmes , and the running backs could be the key to the Seminoles' season.

Freshman wide receivers Elijah Moore , Lawayne McCoy stand out

Freshman wide receivers Elijah Moore and Lawayne McCoy made some impressive catches and looked comfortable against college competition.

Moore was the favorite target of fellow freshman, quarterback Luke Kromenhoek , and he even scored a touchdown during the 11 vs. 11 portion of practice, with Norvell running over to the freshman following the play. Moore stands 6-foot-4 inches tall and his large frame gave him the advantage over some defensive backs in one-on-one coverage.

McCoy, a smooth route runner, looked confident for a freshman trying to make an impact on day one. The 6-foot- freshman made some nice catches, but he particularly impressed in his route running.

Alongside the pair of true freshmen, redshirt freshman and LSU transfer Jalen Brown had some good moments, as did sophomore Hykeem Williams .

Kyle Morlock, DJ Uiagalelei show promising connection

Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei opened fall camp with a solid showing, with a lot of room for improvement, and at times it looked like his best moments came when targeting redshirt senior tight end Kyle Morlock .

The duo connected a couple of times in drills and scrimmage work, with one play in the 11 vs. 11 session resulting in a touchdown pass from Uiagalelei to Morlock. The tight end worked deep and Uiagalelei connected with him on a well-placed ball.

After the success of Jaheim Bell at tight end last season, Morlock could find himself being a bit more involved come kickoff. While a different style of player to that of Bell, the redshirt senior offers Uiagalelei something different in the passing game.

Steady showing from quarterback room led by Uiagalelei, Brock Glenn

With Jordan Travis now part of the New York Jets organization, the attention is on the quarterback room as FSU fans look to see how life after Travis goes.

The Seminoles brought in Uiagelelei from Oregon State, and have continued to develop redshirt freshman Brock Glenn and other young quarterbacks. On day one of practice, Uiagelelei and Glenn had solid showings throwing the football and commending the offense.

Both players were able to showcase the different parts of their game, with Uiagelelei flexing his deep ball at times and Glenn showing some impressive arm speed to fit the ball into tight windows.

In the 7 vs. 7 and 11 vs. 11 portions of practice, Glenn looked poised at times with some nice passes, including some under pressure. Uiagelelei made some good throws and even connected for a touchdown.

Kromenhoek was another quarterback who looked comfortable in the pocket, with the freshman looking Moore's way a lot in the passing game.

Patrick Payton posied for another standout season

FSU's defensive line looks ready to follow up last season's dominance with a sequel. While Jared Verse and Braden Fiske are gone, Patrick Payton is back , and he impressed on the opening day of practice.

Flying through drills, Payton showcased the combination of speed and power that has made him such a threat to opposing offenses in his college career.

During the 11 vs. 11 team scrimmage, Payton was challenging the offesnice line every snap, putting pressure on the quarterback, and even getting a sack on Uiagelelei by pushing offensive linemen back so far, as Verse did against Florida last season.

Fentrell Cypress, Azareye'h Thomas, defensive backs impress

Leading the Seminoles' strong defensive showing was the play of defensive backs Fentrell Cypress and Azareye'h Thomas . The duo created matchup problems for the Seminole wide receivers and rarely gave up catches when in coverage.

Alongside the pair, Shyheim Brown looked confident in his reads at the safety position, supporting Cypress and Thomas in coverage during scrimmage work. The defensive backs were very physical when matching up with the wide receivers.

One of the more impressive plays from Cypress came when he jumped a route and nearly intercepted Uiagalelei's pass, swatting the ball away mid-air.

FSU's defense as a whole looked sharp

The true standout of the day was the entire defensive unit.

While working through drills, it seemed like the defensive players had an air of confidence about them, allowing for crisp and clean drills at times.

During the scrimmage, the front seven was pressuring the FSU quarterbacks into quick decisions. The unit rarely allowed big plays, though the offense did break them open soon, with players like Payton, Thomas, Cypress and Auburn transfer linebacker Cam Riley looking confident.

The Seminoles seem to have carried over momentum from last season's dominant defense, and could be set for a similar showing this year.

Strength and size on display for FSU football

The work of FSU strength and condition coach Josh Storms has been well publicized. Working in the weight room has become a key part of the success that the Seminoles have had in recent seasons, and this year's team seems to be following the same model.

Freshmen like BJ Gibson, Charles Lester, Danzy , Moore and Kromenhoek , among others, have all added muscle since joining the program and look stronger at the start of fall camp. The Seminoles look like a physical team, and at times it showed that during practice.

Overall, it looks like adding strength and muscle was a key offseason priority for a large majority of FSU's roster.

Liam Rooney covers preps sports for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at LRooney@gannett.com or on Twitter @__liamroone y

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU football opens fall camp 2024: 8 takeaways from day 1

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