The First Scrimmage Told Us Exactly What We Needed to Hear
Saturday's 100-play scrimmage wasn't going to crown a starting quarterback, and it didn't. But what it did reveal is arguably more important: this team has playmakers, and they're starting to show up in live action.
Ousmane Kromah ripped off what Norvell called an "incredible run" that had the entire coaching staff buzzing. Freshmen Devin Carter and Jasen Lopez -- both highly-recruited newcomers -- made catches in traffic that suggest the receiver room behind Duce Robinson is deeper than anyone expected. And Amari Thomas, a true freshman running back from Blountstown, broke off a big run of his own. When your young players are the ones making splash plays in the first scrimmage, that's not a red flag. That's a foundation being built.
On the quarterback front, Norvell's assessment was honest: "good and bad" from both Ashton Daniels and Kevin Sperry. Daniels opened the scrimmage hitting Jayvan Boggs on a deep post -- exactly the kind of explosive connection this offense needs. Sperry responded with throws that cleaned up mistakes from earlier in the week. Neither has separated, but both are improving, and that competition is making the entire offense sharper. The narrative around this program has been relentlessly negative for two years. But 100 plays on a Saturday morning in Tallahassee just showed us something the national media isn't paying attention to yet: this roster has talent, and it's starting to click.
The next scrimmage is April 4. If what we saw Saturday continues to build, the 6.5-win crowd might have to update their projections.
The Nole Wire Staff