Buff's FSU Draftable Players Scouting Reports

It’s that time of year where I share my thoughts on draftable FSU players. I am NOT a scout, I have not been trained as a scout, nor do I really have any special scouting. What I do have is an obsession with Florida State football, some idea about the character and work ethic of these players, and most importantly I have seen every single play they’ve made in the Garnet and Gold. I’ve been pretty honest about FSU players over the years and I’ve hit on more predictions than I’ve missed with this specific subset of talent (Jermaine Johnson made the Pro Bowl in year 2 and I was screaming about him from the rooftops!)

Jared Verse, Edge - Verse is an athletic freak who has only gotten better with each passing week, giving tremendous credit to the FSU coaches who developed him after his transfer in from Albany two years ago. He was great for both of his years at FSU, but by the end of this past season he was at his peak performance featuring a variety of pass-rush moves, most especially a move where he dips his shoulder as if he’s trying to get the corner only to come up under the pad level of the tackle and drive him back to the quarterback. He did this against Florida so well that he actually registered a sack by knocking the quarterback down with the offensive tackle and did it again the next week in the ACC championship game. He offers unusual power (backed up by 31 reps at the combine), a non-stop motor, is an unapologetic trash talker, and a guy who is going to be special in the NFL. I don’t like to make predictions about where guys will get drafted because I don’t know enough about everyone else in college football, but Verse is a no-brainer early first rounder.

Braden Fiske, DT - The hyper-productive Fiske came over as a grad transfer from Western Michigan and immediately stepped into a starter role on what became a dominant FSU defensive line. He and Verse were too much to handle for both Florida and Louisville in FSU’s final two games before the playoff snub. Other than his height, he is a bit undersized in the measurables, but is an explosive athlete who wins with speed and quickness, often splitting double teams and getting into the backfield to disrupt plays or create sacks or TFL’s. His combine testing numbers back this observation up as he was first in his group in the 40 and the broad jump and among the leaders in nearly all on-field testing categories. He also had 26 reps in the bench press. The word from the FSU beat is that he spent a great deal of time with Antonio Pierce during the FSU Pro Day, so the Raiders are definitely a team that might covet Fiske in the second ahead of the Giants.

Keon Coleman, WR - Suffered an injury in the middle of the season that slowed him down, thus the importance of the combine for him and the poor 40 time will not help his cause. Transferred to FSU from Michigan State late last spring and led the Seminoles in every major receiving category. Perhaps his best traits, and those that will see him be successful in the NFL are his outstanding hands and his ability to make contested and challenged catches. He is a former basketball player at MSU and uses his understanding of angles and space to shield defenders off the ball. As a personality, he wasn’t at FSU all that long and receivers can be tricky to figure out, but he always seemed like a good teammate. I think he’s going to be a very productive NFL receiver because of his big body and good hands.

Renardo Green, CB - FSU’s shutdown corner this past season who didn’t give up a touchdown until very late in the year. A very quiet player who has just gotten the job done week after week against the best receivers on the opposing team and who seemed to rise to the occasion on the biggest stage (Go watch FSU vs. LSU and note how he shut down Nabers, keeping him to his lowest regular season yardage total.) He’s probably going to have to tone down his physicality in the NFL, but I suspect he’ll be one of those quietly dependable players who will make a roster and hang around for a decade playing the #2 corner role.

Jarrian Jones, CB - If you had asked me three years ago what I thought about Jarrian Jones and the NFL I would have laughed at you. When he came to FSU as a transfer from Mississippi State he was extremely raw and vulnerable in coverage. Since then he has completely transformed himself, really thriving once moved into the slot corner position where his combination of size and speed made him into a reliably consistent defensive back for FSU. Extremely fast (4.38) with a bigger frame, he was able to cover well and hold up against the run. His stellar combine reportedly has him moving up draft boards. He’s all gas and no brakes, so he can occasionally play out of control and will probably need to grow into an NFL role.

Trey Benson, RB - Nicknamed “The Brick” by his teammates, Benson came over to FSU from Oregon a few seasons back after suffering a terrible leg injury as a freshman for the Ducks. He is an excellent runner after contact and with his size and speed he forced a lot of “business decisions” out of corners and safeties at the second level. His major weakness is that he doesn’t always hit the hole decisively and will sometimes dance around looking for a home run rather than taking the 3-4 yard run and getting up to fight another play. I’ve seen him projected as high as the third round, and he’s generally considered among the top available running backs.

Jaheim Bell, TE/H-Back - Another player who transferred into FSU this season with high expectations but was injured early in the year, Bell is a versatile player who is mostly a tight end, but also took snaps at running back. Extremely athletic but undersized to be an inline blocker, he’s a mismatch/Swiss army knife type player who can flourish in the right system. I don’t have a lot to say about him because he was only at FSU one year and was hurt for most of it and not at full speed.

Johnny Wilson, WR - One of my favorite FSU players in this draft simply because he’s such an oddity and a really good teammate. A huge (6’7”) target who is quicker than fast, he was at his best in the biggest games, particularly in 2022 at Louisville when he put on a show after Jordan Travis was hurt and had to leave the game. He was a willing, and as would be expected with his size, an effective blocker on the perimeter. Other than the lack of top end speed, the biggest knock on Wilson and what is a deep concern for me in the NFL is that while he had a knack for grabbing the difficult catches but would often lose focus and drop some of the easy ones. Catching the ball consistently is going to be his challenge.

Fabien Lovett, DT - Lovett was poised to have a breakout season in 2022 until he was hurt on the very last play of the season opener against LSU. This ruined his 2022 and led to a slow start in 2023. Part of the very deep rotation at defensive tackle at FSU, I expect Lovett to have a better pro than college career, barring any unforeseen injuries. He is a big body, two-gap style defensive end who is going to be able to anchor against the run but will not offer much as a pass rusher. I really like him as a mid-round run stuffing defensive tackle.

Kalen DeLoach, LB - Fast (4.78) but undersized playmaking linebacker who was always nearby to provide a big play when FSU needed it the most. His sack, forced fumble, and scoop and score against Clemson was FSU’s play of the year in 2023. Excellent tackler and a particularly effective blitzer, he was FSU’s best coverage linebacker. I expect his safety size will scare away some teams but his knack for making plays should translate well to special teams (especially with the new kickoff rules) and I can see him eventually working his way onto the field as a situational player. The FSU beat mentioned that he has spoken with the Giants.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfnK_FXwk5w

Tatum Bethune, LB - A very productive tackler at inside linebacker, Bethune offers tremendous football instincts and an above average ability to stop the run. He was also effective in pass coverage, grabbing the interception in the end zone that sealed the victory against Louisville in the ACC Championship game. He was a big hitter for FSU in the hole and brought plenty of physicality to the position. He also had a fun hit on Jayden Daniels in the 2023 season opener. I suspect that he lacks the pure athleticism to be a starter in the NFL but he brings plenty of football instinct to the position.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvYuJmCMxQo

Akeem Dent, S - The only player on this list that wasn’t invited to the NFL scouting combine, Dent is an interesting player, beginning his career as a much lauded high school cornerback who eventually moved to safety at FSU and earned a starting role for his final three seasons. He’s very undersized for a safety (under 200lbs) but extremely fast (4.38) and athletic (3-cone under 7 seconds.) He was one of those quietly dependable players, not really making many splash plays but also not getting exposed in coverage. I’m not sure that he has a place in the NFL, but his measurables certainly play. I’d be interested to hear what someone who knows more about safety play says about him.

Jordan Travis, QB - And finally we get to JT13. First, let’s start with the negatives: He doesn’t have the prototypical frame of an NFL quarterback and lacks the ideal arm strength. As another poster noted in the thread about him, he was often late throwing the deep post. Another potential knock is that his feet are an important part of his game and his injury history, particularly the gruesome break late this past season will certainly play against him in the draft. Now, onto the positives: First of all, you are not going to find a more humble or hard-working kid than Jordan Travis. His character is everything you want in a quarterback and he is a natural leader who has the intangibles to be a positive as a backup or potential starter. Another big positive is his tremendous growth over his career, beginning as a running quarterback with questionable throwing skills to a potential Heisman candidate in his final season. As a player, Jordan is definitely more of a gamer than a pure passer, with exceptional running skills that allow him to extend plays and/or make plays outside of the pocket. Even with game breaking running skills, he developed into a pass first quarterback (likely to avoid injury, ironically) who kept his eyes downfield often when he should have tucked it and run. I’m not sure if he’s an NFL starter and I would consider him a long shot, but it would not surprise me one bit if he rose to the occasion as he has so many times before and turned himself into one.