Six days from kickoff, the most important Florida State story is not the quarterback and it is not the opener itself. It is five big bodies who have to keep Ashton Daniels clean and give Ousmane Kromah a lane. Mike Norvell has said he is looking for the best five. That is coach-speak for a unit that is close and not finished.
Here is the part that feels settled. Xavier Chaplin is the left tackle, the 6-foot-8 transfer who followed Daniels from Auburn and has the length this staff wanted on that island. Bradyn Welch-Joiner has been the center through camp. Nate Pabst, the Bowling Green transfer, has enough snaps and enough versatility that he is in the five somewhere, most often talked about inside. Those three are the known quantities. They are not a full line.
The right side is the hole in the picture. Herb Hand has options, and none of them have been named as locks. Chimdia Nwaiwu has put himself in the right-tackle conversation. Paul Bowling and Andre Otto have both been in the mix at guard. Jonathan Daniels is still around as a swing piece. That is a real group of names. It is also still an or. If Monday's depth chart lists two players at right tackle or right guard, that is not a hedge. That is the honest state of the room.
Norvell's own language last week was about communication more than about a finished depth chart. The line has been together for a camp, not for a season. The left side can look like a unit because Chaplin and whoever wins left guard have had the most reps next to each other. The right side has been shuffled. That shows up on the first third-and-long, when the edge comes free and Daniels has to throw earlier than the play wants.
A good night Saturday is not five pancakes and a 200-yard rushing day. It is Kromah hitting the hole on time, Daniels having a clean first step, and the second unit getting in without the pocket collapsing. New Mexico State is the game where a new line is allowed to look a little sloppy and still win. SMU on Labor Day is not. The Mustangs will test the edge that is still being cast this week.
The official two-deep is due Monday after Norvell's game-week presser. Until then, the honest version is this. Three spots feel like they belong to Chaplin, Welch-Joiner, and Pabst. Two spots, especially on the right, are still being written. That is the story of the week. Not a finished five. A five that has to become one by Saturday night.
Sources: Tallahassee Democrat camp and depth-chart reporting Aug. 10, Aug. 17, Aug. 19, and Aug. 22. Official roster names from Seminoles.com and CBS Sports. The Nole Wire is not credentialed on-site.