Florida State has two true freshman wide receivers who are already forcing their way into the conversation.
Mike Norvell made that clear Monday when he revisited the same question he got in the spring about Jasen Lopez and Devin Carter: could they make an immediate impact?
"It's a quick, immediate yes," Norvell recalled of his prior answer.
"It hasn't changed," he added.
That confidence starts with what each player brings to the table. Lopez is a 6-foot, 182-pound receiver from Hollywood, Fla., and a two-sport athlete at Chaminade-Madonna Prep, where he also played basketball.
Carter, a 6-foot-1, 176-pound receiver from Atlanta, Ga., attended Douglas County and comes in as a legacy with a father who played in the NFL. Both arrived with the kind of background that can help freshmen settle in faster, and both made enough of an impression in the spring to get meaningful first-team work.
Their opportunity opened up because some of the more established receivers were limited. Duce Robinson was limited as a veteran, Micahi Danzy was also balancing track, and Jayvan Boggs got banged up. That gave Lopez and Carter room to show what they could do.
Now comes the harder part: doing it again.
"They've got to go do it," Norvell added. "Where that role is, is definitely on them ... these are guys that have potential and ability.
They are steadily learning, continuing to to put in. They are on the fast track to be able to play.
Just how much that is comes down to their continued growth over the next month. I'm excited about what I've seen from them.
Definitely high expectations."
Tim Harris Jr., who serves as wide receivers coach and shares offensive coordinator duties with Norvell, echoed that same sense of cautious excitement. He said the staff wants to see the freshmen keep stacking good days and building confidence rep by rep.
"Just continued growth," offensive coordinator Tim Harris Jr. said on Monday. "They're going to build confidence every day.
I think with guys like that, all those young guys, those two, and we've got some other young guys at different positions that are in the same situation right now where we just want to see them grow every day. The confidence is going to grow with every rep.
"And as good as some of the things we've seen from Jasen, Devin throughout spring ball, they still have a lot to learn and training camp is going to be one of those situations that really push them and show them, show their teammates, show us as a staff if they are truly ready to make the impact that some of us believe they can," he added. "I'm excited to watch those guys. I have full confidence that they'll do this."
Lopez and Carter may also have a path on special teams. Adam Scheier brought both names up Monday while discussing punt return options, and Lopez appears to be the leading candidate at the moment.
"Jroc is a guy that we have our eyes on," Scheier said. "Obviously he is a true freshman, so his first time going back there would be the first time doing it in the college game, but he has maturity beyond his years at least from a confidence and savvy standpoint. His hands are outstanding.
"Devin Carter, another true freshman. Duce [Robinson] has been working back there. Ja'Bril Rawls, Gemari Sands, there are a lot of guys that are capable of catching punts," he added.
Scheier said the staff is still sorting through the options, with an emphasis on judgment first and explosiveness second.
"Our goal is to keep working them, keep developing them, and then ultimately deciding on who, number one who is the best decision-maker back there, because at the end of that play it has to be 1st and 10 Seminoles with as good of field position as we can have, so fair catching the short ball or getting on a ball that might be on the ground rolling and stopping its advancement is a big play. And the second piece is who can be explosive back there," Scheier shared. "Hopefully we can have a guy back there that can make great decisions and can make great returns and be explosive for when we do have return opportunities."
Lopez arrives with a high school résumé that jumps off the page: 313 catches, 5,211 yards and 59 touchdowns, including four straight seasons with 1,000 yards and at least 10 receiving touchdowns. Carter was productive throughout his prep career as well, finishing with 148 receptions for 2,413 yards and 29 touchdowns.
For Florida State, both freshmen are already in the mix - at receiver, on special teams, and maybe in more places before long.
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