Florida State football finished 2022 with an impressive 10-3 record. Its only losses came against Wake Forest, North Carolina State and Clemson. All three losses were within 10 points, and quarterback Jordan Travis played banged up in some of those games. Overall, this proved to be a major step forward for the Seminoles last year.
This season, FanDuel Sportsbook has opened the bidding on Florida State’s win total at 9.5, with the over juiced to -134. The Seminoles are also +185 to win the ACC, which narrowly trails Clemson. Bookmakers expect a similar season for Florida State this year. With that said, let’s get into Florida State football predictions with a season preview and roster overview.
2023 Florida State Football Predictions & Season Preview
Florida State Football 2023 Season Preview: Coaching Staff
Florida State now enters Year 4 of the Mike Norvell era. After starting slow, the Seminoles have built themselves into a powerhouse in the ACC. Along with Norvell, Florida State returns offensive coordinator Alex Atkins, who took over in 2022. In addition, Adam Fuller and Randy Shannon return as co-defensive coordinators.
Florida State Football 2023 Season Preview: Offense
Quarterback
Florida State returns Jordan Travis for this fourth season as a starter. Travis has steadily improved, culminating in his breakout 2022 season. He completed 226 of his 353 passes (64%) for 3,214 yards (9.1 yards per attempt), 24 touchdowns and five interceptions. Travis also possesses elite mobility. He rushed 82 times for 417 yards last year. Prior to 2022, he eclipsed 500 rushing yards in back-to-back years. Travis finished as the highest-graded quarterback and third-highest-graded passer in the ACC last year, per Pro Football Focus. Behind him, Florida State returns 2022 4-star recruit A.J. Duffy. Duffy did not see much time last year, but he could jump Tate Rodemaker as Florida State’s backup. Either way, this team brings pretty good depth at quarterback.
Running Back
The Seminoles lost their second-leading rusher Treshaun Ward to Kansas State. However, they return lead rusher Trey Benson and pass catching specialist Lawrance Toafili. Benson is 6-foot-1, 215 pounds, and rushed 154 times for 994 yards and nine touchdowns last year. He also caught 12 passes for another 142 yards with just one drop. Benson proved hyper-efficient, averaging 4.53 yards after contact and forcing a missed tackle on 51.3% of his attempts. Toafili comes in at 6-foot-0, 187 pounds, and rushed 94 times for 454 yards and five touchdowns last year. As a pass catcher, Toafili caught 24 passes for 268 yards with just one drop. He averaged 2.41yards after contact and forced a missed tackle on 12.8% of his attempts. To ease the loss of Ward, Florida State grabbed Caziah Holmes from Penn State in the transfer portal. The Seminoles also added 4-star freshman Samuel Singleton. Even Rodney Hill returns, who carried 27 times for 144 yards last year.
Wide Receiver
Florida State lost second and third leading receivers Ontaria Wilson and Mycah Pittman. However, stud Johnny Wilson returns. He caught 43 passes for 897 yards and five touchdowns last year. His 3.36 yards per route paced the ACC, while he played out wide 85.9% of the time. If Wilson can clean up his six drops, he could hear his name called early in next year’s NFL Draft. To ease their losses, the Seminoles added Keon Coleman from Michigan State in the transfer portal. Coleman is 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, and caught 58 passes for 798 yards and seven touchdowns last year. He recorded a strong 2.07 yards per route, while playing out wide 94.5% of the time. An argument can be made that he was the top transfer at the position in this cycle. The final starter could be former West Virginia transfer Winston Wright, who sat out last year due to injury. Wright is 5-foot-10, 183 pounds, and previously caught 63 passes for 688 yards in 2021. He played in the slot 94.3% of the time that year and logged 1.86 yards per route. For depth Deuce Spann, Ja’Khi Douglas, Darion Williamson and Kentron Poitier all return. Poitier caught 14 passes for 283 yards. Williamson caught eight passes for 131 yards. Douglas caught 10 passes for 123 yards. Spann also grabbed eight passes for 64 yards. Florida State also landed 5-star freshman Hykeem Williams this offseason, in addition to 4-star recruit Vandrevius Jacobs at the position. The receiver position should be loaded for Florida State this year.
Tight End
The Seminoles lost Camren McDonald this offseason, but they upgraded at the position with Jaheim Bell transferring in from South Carolina. Bell is 6-foot-3, 232 pounds, and had some peculiar usage with South Carolina last year due to injury. Last year, he rushed 73 times for 261 yards and three touchdowns, while catching 25 passes for 231 yards. South Carolina dealt with so many injuries that Bell played a considerable amount of running back. Back in 2021, Bell logged 30 receptions for 497 yards and five touchdowns. Bell only blocked on 26% of his snaps, but that number could rise in a more traditional role. The Seminoles also added two time All-American Kyle Morlock from Shorter College. He led their team with 30 catches for 446 yards and six touchdowns last year. Florida State also returns tight end Markeston Douglas, who caught 14 passes for 190 yards and a pair of touchdowns last year. Douglas is 6-foot-4, 270 pounds, and blocked on 63% of his snaps last year. This position should be even better in 2023.
Offensive Line
Florida State lost left guard Dillan Gibbons and right tackle Jazston Turnetine. The Seminoles return left tackle Robert Scott Jr., who played 662 snaps last year. Scott will now enter his fourth year as a starter. Center Maurice Smith also returns after 803 snaps last year. He also has three seasons of experience under his belt. Right guard D’Mitri Emmanuel returns with 834 snaps of experience from 2022. Prior to starting last year with Florida State, he started three seasons with Charlotte. He now has 2,394 snaps of college experience. Finally, Bless Harris should be back at right tackle after getting injured just one game into last season. Harris entered the 2022 season as the starter and should retake that job. This leaves just one open spot at left guard. Keiondre Jones transferred in from Auburn, where he started for three seasons. His best year came in 2021, before a slight step back last year. Casey Roddick also comes in from Colorado with 2,101 snaps of experience. He was actually one of the better players on that Colorado roster last year. Finally, Jeremiah Byers comes over from UTEP after starting the past two years. Byers was excellent in pass protection last year, allowing just eight pressures and no sacks. Somehow, this group should be even better in 2023.
Florida State Football 2023 Season Preview: Defense
Florida State ranked 30th on defense in 2022. This included the 30th-ranked run defense, 38th-ranked pass rush and 54th-ranked secondary. The Seminoles lose a few starters, headlined by safety Jammie Robinson, but this unit looks solid ahead of 2023. They brought in four transfers and five recruits of at least 4-star caliber.
Defensive Line
On the edge, Florida State lost Derrick McLendon II, who recorded five tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks last year. This position should still be solid with future NFL prospect Jared Verse back. Verse played 412 snaps last year and somehow logged 17 tackles for loss and nine sacks. Patrick Payton also returns after six tackles for loss and five sacks. In addition, the team went out and acquired Gilber Edmond from South Carolina. He played 654 snaps off the edge last year, generating 21 pressures.
The interior defensive line lost Malcolm Ray, but it should be set up here as well. Fabien Lovett comes back after playing just 210 snaps due to injury. He proved elite on the interior when active. His injury allowed Dennis Briggs Jr. to step up and play 386 snaps, which actually gives Florida State excellent depth. He recorded 3.5 tackles for loss and three sacks last year. From there, the Seminoles brought in Braden Fiske from Western Michigan. Now entering his sixth year, Fiske was a complete wrecking ball last year. He generated 48 quarterback pressures on 737 snaps. This unit will be solid again in 2023.
Linebacker
Linebacker should also be a position of strength for Florida State. The top three linebackers in Kalen DeLoach, Tatum Bethune and D.J. Lundy all return. DeLoach played 598 snaps and ranked third on the team with 65 tackles. He was also excellent in coverage with seven pass breakups. Bethune played 502 snaps last year and ranked second with 84 tackles. He was also strong as a blitzer, recording 9.5 tackles for loss. Finally, Lundy recorded 48 tackles on 383 snaps, giving the Seminoles great depth.
Defensive Back
Florida State returns all of its legitimate contributors, losing just a few role players. The starters project to be Renardo Green, Jarrian Jones and Virginia transfer Fentrell Cypress. Green played 594 snaps and broke up five passes last year. Jones played 406 snaps himself with four pass breakups. He profiles more as a nickel defender. Even with both returning, Cypress could immediately step in as Florida State’s top defensive back. He broke up 14 passes and logged 39 tackles last year. If any of them get hurt or underperform, Kevin Knowles II is also back after 520 snaps. Knowles broke up a pair of passes but will be useful depth for Florida State. The same goes for Azareye’h Thomas, who played 327 snaps at corner last year.
The Seminoles lost their top tackler in safety Robinson. However, they return Akeem Dent and Shyheim Brown, who played 556 and 442 snaps apiece. Dent broke up four passes and recorded 53 tackles. Brown came in with two pass breakups and 36 tackles himself. The Seminoles are not as deep at the safety position, but they have an incoming 4-star recruit in Conrad Hussey coming in. They could also move one of their depth corners if need be.
2023 Florida State Football Schedule & Predictions
Florida State Football 2023 Schedule
The Seminoles play a non-conference schedule consisting of LSU, Southern Miss, North Alabama and Florida. The LSU game occurs at a neutral site in Orlando, but they will travel to Gainesville for the Florida matchup. Within conference play, they travel to Clemson and then face Miami at home. They actually draw most of the bottom half of the ACC but make up for it with their tough out of conference games.
Florida State Football Futures Bet & Prediction
The Seminoles’ schedule is not built like most ACC teams. They should be clear favorites in six or seven games. They will be close to even in terms of odds against LSU, Clemson and then slight favorites against a few others. With the odds moving towards efficiency, the Seminoles are not sneaking up on anyone in the odds market for now. Because of that, they are not the best team to bet right now. The best odds have disappeared, and better prices could emerge within the season. They draw LSU Week 1, and a loss could change the ACC Title odds even though that game does not impact the conference standings. For that reason, Florida State to win the ACC is the top bet, but wait before taking a stance.
Best Florida State Football Futures Bet: Win ACC (+185 at FanDuel)
You can read the rest of Matt Gajewski’s 2023 college football season previews and predictions below!
- Alabama Season Preview & Predictions
- Arkansas Season Preview & Predictions
- Auburn Season Preview & Predictions
- Baylor Season Preview & Predictions
- Florida Season Preview & Predictions
- Georgia Season Preview & Predictions
- Iowa Season Preview & Predictions
- Iowa State Season Preview & Predictions
- Kansas Season Preview & Predictions
- Kansas State Season Preview & Predictions
- Kentucky Season Preview & Predictions
- LSU Season Preview & Predictions
- Michigan Season Preview & Predictions
- Mississippi State Season Preview & Predictions
- Missouri Season Preview & Predictions
- Oklahoma Season Preview & Predictions
- Oklahoma State Season Preview & Predictions
- Ole Miss Season Preview & Predictions
- South Carolina Season Preview & Predictions
- TCU Season Preview & Predictions
- Tennessee Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas A&M Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas Tech Season Preview & Predictions
- Vanderbilt Season Preview & Predictions
- West Virginia Season Preview & Predictions
