Florida State’s offseason notebook is starting to fill up, and Monday brought a little bit of everything: a new gameday voice at Doak Campbell Stadium, a pair of Seminoles landing on Bruce Feldman’s Freaks List, recruiting visitors lining up for major fall weekends, and a preseason scrimmage that mostly came and went without much drama.
The biggest change inside Doak is behind the microphone. Florida State decided not to bring back Woody Hayes after 17 years as the public address announcer, and the school announced Eric Luallen as his replacement.
Luallen already has deep ties to the program. He played offensive line for Bobby Bowden from 1986-89, and he’s been the play-by-play voice for FSU baseball since 2007.
For Seminoles fans, it’s a familiar name and a familiar sound.
On the field, Micahi Danzy and Mandrell Desir both earned national attention by making Feldman’s 2026 Freaks List, which spotlights the most physically gifted players in college football. Danzy landed at No. 12, which fits for a receiver who has already flashed rare speed and power.
The 6-foot-1, 194-pound junior reportedly cleaned 335 pounds this offseason and can still reach 23 miles per hour on the field. Mike Norvell has talked about Danzy sharpening his route-running this offseason, but even before that refinement shows up, Danzy was already one of Florida State’s most dangerous weapons.
Last season, he averaged 42.2 yards on his six touchdown catches.
Desir’s inclusion is just as eye-catching, especially for a player who arrived as a three-star recruit in the 2025 class and still managed 6.5 sacks as a true freshman. Feldman’s reporting says Desir bench pressed 405 pounds, squatted 515 and consistently hit 20.2 MPH on GPS tracking. That’s the kind of profile that gets noticed fast.
Recruiting, meanwhile, is about to heat up around Tallahassee. Florida State will host SMU in Week 1 on Monday night in one of Labor Day weekend’s marquee games, and the Seminoles are set to welcome two of the top players in the 2028 class.
Five-star edge rusher Kameron McGee already scheduled a gameday trip, and five-star defensive lineman Prince Che will be there too. Che is the No. 2 defensive lineman and the No. 12 overall player in the 2028 class, and he has 13 gameday visits lined up for the 2026 season.
That includes a stop at LSU on Saturday earlier that same Labor Day weekend, so Florida State isn’t alone in the mix, but getting him on campus is still a meaningful development.
The Seminoles will also host a different kind of prospect later in the fall. Unranked 2027 defensive lineman Jeremiah Mark is planning to be in Tallahassee for Clemson on Halloween.
The 6-foot-5, 275-pound rising senior has started to draw serious attention after coming from the basketball side and piling up offers from Miami, Alabama, Ole Miss and LSU. His visit list is a long one, too, with LSU, Texas, Ole Miss, Florida, Texas A&M, Alabama, Miami, Michigan, Ohio State and Georgia Tech all on the schedule.
Florida State also got through its second of three fall camp scrimmages on Sunday night. Running back Quintrevion Wisner and linebacker Izayia Williams missed the action because of lingering injuries, but otherwise the preseason has stayed relatively clean. The staff is still sorting through the bumps and bruises from the scrimmage, but the Seminoles have avoided anything major so far.
In Other News...
FSU Has A Freak Athlete Fans May Soon See Very Differently
Florida State has spent a good chunk of camp trying to sort out what its offense will look like as Ashton Daniels keeps settling in at quarterback, and Mike Norvell said after the second scrimmage that the progress is there even if the whole operation still needs more consistency. Around him, the program has had a little bit of everything lately, from Eric Luallen being named the new public address voice for FSU football to recruiting activity that included 2028 defensive lineman Prince Che visiting Tallahassee, all while the soccer team gets ready to open against Stetson.
One of the more intriguing subplots, though, is Micahi Danzy, whose development keeps turning heads for reasons that go well beyond the football field. He has added notable physical growth and paired it with a standout track resume, including an ACC and Florida State record in the 400-meter run, and his athletic profile is drawing real national attention as a player who may soon be viewed in a much different way by Seminoles fans. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Just Landed Two Huge Chances In A Key Recruiting Battle
Florida State has picked up a pair of important chances in the race for one of the nations most coveted young defenders. Prince Che, a highly regarded defensive lineman out of Thomasville, Georgia, is set to hit campus twice this fall, giving the Seminoles multiple opportunities to make their case to a recruit who already has 38 offers and plenty of attention from major programs.
For Florida State, the calendar matters almost as much as the player. The staff sees those visits as key moments in its push for the 2028 class, and Ches return trip later in the fall should only add to the intrigue surrounding a recruitment that is still very much taking shape. With so many programs in the mix, every visit counts, and the Seminoles have lined up two of the most meaningful ones they could ask for. [Read more 🡒]
FSU Faces A Hidden Offensive Question After Tommy Castellanos
Tommy Castellanos gave Florida State a steadier edge on passing downs than the overall record suggested, and that mattered in a 5-7 season that still had pockets of offensive competence. The Seminoles were fifth nationally in passing success rate on those snaps, a useful sign that when the playbook narrowed and the pressure rose, the passing game could still function well enough to keep drives alive.
Now the job shifts to Ashton Daniels, the Auburn transfer expected to take over, and the question is less about raw talent than fit. Daniels brings a different profile as both a passer and a runner, which makes Florida States late-down offense a moving target heading into the next chapter, especially if the Seminoles are trying to preserve the kind of efficiency they found before. [Read more 🡒]