The Florida State football 2023 season is in the books with a 13-1 record.
The Seminoles capped off a perfect regular season with an ACC Championship victory over Louisville on Dec. 3 in Charlotte.
Despite not losing in 13 games, FSU was snubbed from the College Football Playoff field for one-loss teams in Alabama and Texas .
Both the Crimson Tide and Longhorns lost their semifinal matchup , with No. 1 Michigan and No. 2 Washington set to square off in the National Championship Game Monday.
As we wrap up the 2023 season, here's a look back at the final statistics, along with Pro Football Focus grades, for the Seminoles' defensive players.
| Player |
Snaps |
Tackles |
TFL |
Sacks |
Hurries |
MT |
PBU |
Stops |
PFF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payton |
610 |
44.0 |
14.5 |
7.0 |
32 |
11 |
10 |
28 |
70.4 |
| Verse |
586 |
41.0 |
12.5 |
9.0 |
35 |
9 |
2 |
24 |
83.0 |
| Fiske |
444 |
43.0 |
9.0 |
6.0 |
19 |
5 |
0 |
25 |
73.0 |
| 427 |
32.0 |
7.0 |
5.0 |
10 |
0 |
2 |
15 |
57.0 |
|
| Lovett |
337 |
22.0 |
4.0 |
1.0 |
9 |
0 |
0 |
18 |
78.6 |
| Edmond |
321 |
23.0 |
1.5 |
1.0 |
5 |
4 |
0 |
8 |
63.8 |
| 274 |
19.0 |
2.0 |
0.0 |
6 |
3 |
1 |
10 |
59.5 |
|
| Turner |
259 |
23.0 |
2.0 |
1.0 |
9 |
3 |
1 |
9 |
65.9 |
| Briggs |
194 |
14.0 |
1.5 |
1.5 |
5 |
0 |
0 |
5 |
69.9 |
| Lyons |
144 |
16.0 |
0 |
0 |
8 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
74.7 |
MT = Missed Tackles
Jared Verse continued to show why he is going to be a force on Sundays for a long time. Even though he started the season slow with 0.5 sacks through four games. He had 4.5 in the last two games alone.
Verse's run coincided with Patrick Payton slowly figuring things out in the second half of the season, easing the pressure of double teams off of him. With Payton returning for another season, he can rise into the conversation as a first round pick next season. His 10 batted balls at the line of scrimmage led the team.
Payton, along with Gilber Edmond and Georgia transfer addition Marvin Jones Jr. could cause headaches for defenses next season.
As expected, Braden Fiske and Fabien Lovett formed a formidable duo inside. They will be hard to replicate production-wise, but Joshua Farmer and Darrell Jackson provide similar upside.
| Player |
Snaps |
Tack |
TFL |
Sacks |
MT |
PBU |
Cov. |
Stops |
PFF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 563 |
68.0 |
10.5 |
7.0 |
7 |
1 |
56.1 |
29 |
75.8 |
|
| Bethune |
489 |
70.0 |
5.5 |
0 |
12 |
2 |
73.5 |
30 |
75.6 |
| 403 |
54.0 |
6.0 |
2.0 |
2 |
3 |
56.4 |
28 |
78.3 |
|
| Graham |
368 |
23.0 |
2.0 |
1.0 |
7 |
0 |
57.1 |
10 |
54.3 |
| Nichelson |
101 |
17.0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
41.9 |
6 |
52.5 |
MT = Missed Tackles; Cov = Coverage grade
Kalen DeLoach became a major threat as a pass rusher this season, while both he and Tatum Bethune were also solid in coverage. He answered a lot of questions about the linebacker corps entering the season. Along with DJ Lundy, the trio combined for 23 tackles for loss.
Redshirt freshman Omar Graham Jr. and freshman Blake Nichelson each began to show flashes of their potential as the season wore on, with Nichelson even burning his redshirt playing an integral part on special teams and earning snaps at linebacker.
| Player |
Snaps |
Tack |
INT |
PBU |
Tar. |
Rec. |
% |
Yards |
TDs |
NFL |
PFF |
| Brown |
421 |
53.0 |
1 |
1 |
15 |
8 |
53.3 |
89 |
0 |
43.5 |
70.4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green |
373 |
43.0 |
1 |
13 |
60 |
31 |
51.7 |
290 |
3 |
75.0 |
87.6 |
| Cypress |
346 |
40.0 |
0 |
7 |
52 |
26 |
50.0 |
503 |
1 |
90.5 |
72.2 |
| Thomas |
281 |
29.0 |
0 |
6 |
43 |
21 |
48.8 |
304 |
2 |
87.7 |
77.1 |
| Jones |
259 |
25.0 |
3 |
2 |
31 |
16 |
51.6 |
158 |
0 |
26.7 |
88.1 |
| Dent |
247 |
44.0 |
0 |
1 |
6 |
3 |
50.0 |
27 |
0 |
62.5 |
65.1 |
| Vance |
230 |
18.0 |
1 |
3 |
28 |
12 |
42.9 |
121 |
2 |
64.7 |
79.0 |
| Knowles |
222 |
31.0 |
0 |
1 |
8 |
7 |
87.5 |
63 |
1 |
139.1 |
63.0 |
| Hussey |
112 |
22.0 |
1 |
2 |
6 |
3 |
50.0 |
38 |
0 |
30.6 |
75.4 |
Jarrian Jones was an elite, shutdown cornerback this season. Jones finished his redshirt senior with the 15th-best grade in coverage per PFF. He was also fifth in NFL passer rating with his 26.7 rating. He likely played himself into an NFL Draft pick.
Fentrell Cypress II came along in the second half of the season, as he continued to get more comfortable with the Seminoles. FSU getting him back for another season is a major win for the program, as he said he was excited to be a leader for the freshmen like Charles Lester , Cai Bates and Jamari Howard coming in next year.
Shyheim Brown played well this season, along with Akeem Dent in the starting safety role. With Dent exhausting his eligibility, Conrad Hussey will have a chance to step into much larger role after looking good as a freshman.
Reach Ehsan Kassim at ekassim@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Ehsan_Kassim. You can also follow our coverage on Facebook (NoleSports), Instagram (tlhnolesports) and YouTube channel (NoleSportsTD).
No one covers the 'Noles like the Tallahassee Democrat. Subscribe using the link at the top of the page and never miss a moment.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Jared Verse, Braden Fiske, Jarrian Jones led FSU football defense
