Florida State’s fall camp is moving past the halfway point, and with the Week 0 opener against New Mexico State set for August 29, the Seminoles are still sorting out a depth chart that isn’t fully locked in yet. Mike Norvell’s seventh season in Tallahassee is heading into the stretch where jobs get won, and a handful of players have clearly helped themselves.
One of the clearest risers has been quarterback Trever Jackson Marshall. The JuCo transfer from Iowa Western missed FSU’s first of three scrimmages, but after Scrimmage 2, Norvell was talking about his “exciting” potential, and the buzz started to shift toward Marshall taking the QB2 spot from Kevin Sperry.
If that happens, it would say something about Norvell and his staff, given Florida State’s issues developing homegrown talent at the position. But if Marshall proves to be a smart portal addition, he could soften that blow.
In the secondary, true freshman defensive back Vero Beach native, the 6-foot-3, 200-pound KJ Bolden has gone from barely being on the radar to drawing direct praise from Norvell. The coach mentioned him this week as a player who looks like he belongs. Whether that turns into real safety snaps is still an open question, but the early signs suggest he’s much closer to contributing than most expected entering camp.
Another young defender making noise is Caleb Williams. The four-star true freshman hasn’t played meaningful football since his junior year, but he’s shown enough in camp to stand out at a position where defensive coordinator Tony White needs someone who can change the game. Williams missed Scrimmage 2 with a minor injury, but the bigger picture is that he looks like a potential cornerstone for Florida State’s defense down the line, even if his role this season stays limited.
At cornerback, the picture has changed quickly because of injury. Notre Dame transfer Karson Hobbs, who had been expected to split slot duties with Duke transfer Ma’Khi Jones, suffered a torn ACL this week and is out for the year.
That injury has created ripple effects, including the possibility of Ashlynd Barker moving closer to the line of scrimmage or Nehemiah Chandler sliding inside. It also may give chance to Knight, whom Norvell pointed to as a player pushing for snaps in Hobbs’ absence.
Knight logged just 24 snaps across two games last season, but he may finally be ready for more.
On the outside, Jones looks like the favorite to start opposite Ja’Bril Rawls. He’s coming off last year’s season-ending injury, but early indications from camp have him in pole position for the CB2 job.
Chandler and Charles Lester III are still in the mix for those reps, yet Jones appears to have separated himself. That’s a spot that will matter, because Rawls tends to make quarterbacks think twice before testing him.
The slot receiver battle has also been worth watching. With Norvell back on the headset, Florida State looks ready to lean heavily on 12- and 21-personnel this season, but the competition between Jayvan Boggs and Jasen Lopez for slot snaps has stood out.
Lopez has made the most of extra reps while Boggs has been limited early in camp, and even if Boggs regains a starting role before camp ends, Lopez should still be the primary punt returner. Either way, he’s making it hard to keep him off the field.
Then there’s the backfield, where Florida State’s stance on Ousmane Kromah has become pretty clear. The 2025 four-star ran for 408 yards on 73 carries as a true freshman, and the Seminoles added Quintrevion Wisner from Texas in the portal after seemingly not being fully sold on Kromah.
That move initially suggested a committee approach with Kromah, Wisner and Samuel Singleton Jr. all in the mix. But everything coming out of Tallahassee from coaches and players points to Kromah as the clear RB1.
He may even be the best player on an offense that also brings back All-ACC wide receiver Duce Robinson.
Florida State still has work to do before August 29, but these seven names have already helped shape the story of camp.
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Florida State Momentum Is Building Across More Than Just Football
Florida State opened the new season with a sharp reminder that its success is not confined to the football field. The womens soccer team rolled past Stetson 4-0 in its opener, keeping alive an undefeated non-conference run that has stretched since 2019, while the broader athletic department continues to find ways to build momentum in different corners of the program. Even the mens basketball side is getting in on the push, landing a sponsorship deal with ReliaQuest for the 2026-27 season in a move that underscores Florida States more sport-by-sport approach.
The ripple effect is showing up in other places, too. Daniel Hughes earned a spot on the Ray Guy watch list as one of the nations top punters, and recruit Jaxon Holly made noise with a noteworthy senior season opener. For Florida State, it is the kind of August stretch that suggests there is plenty happening beyond the headline sport, with multiple programs adding their own reasons for fans to pay attention. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Defense Is Chasing The One Thing It Lacked Last Year
Florida State heads into its 2026 opener against New Mexico State in two weeks with a clear point of emphasis on defense: creating more havoc. Last season, the Seminoles sat near the bottom in forced turnovers, and that shortfall has become one of the main themes of fall camp as the unit works to sharpen its edge before the first snap counts.
Ashlynd Barker is part of that push in a new rover role, blending safety and linebacker responsibilities in a spot designed to help the defense play faster and more aggressively. Barker described the group as relentless, and that kind of tone fits the bigger assignment now in front of Florida State, which is trying to turn activity into takeaways instead of just stops. [Read more 🡒]