ACC Spring Football: Florida State Update With Chop Chat

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Over the course of spring football, we’re going to look in on a few of our ACC foes as they work through spring football. It’s not like any of us have staff members sitting in on BC football practices, and even if we did, there probably wouldn’t be much to talk about, so why not have some substantive conference football discussion?

For this interview, we welcome Fansided’s newest ACC blog, Chop Chat, and its editor, Duke, as he discusses the current state of Florida State Seminoles football and what we might expect to see from the defending ACC champions.

STG: If my information is right, your Seminoles have their spring game next Saturday. At a football school with tradition like yours, I’d imagine it’s a big event. Just in general, what’s the day like and what kind of crowds do you expect?

CC: When I was a student, the spring games weren’t a big deal. We went to them, but they’d be lucky to hit around 20,000 people. Things are different now. Jimbo Fisher is equal parts coach and businessman. He understands that you have to drive up interest in Spring to get more season ticket holders in the Fall. Recently, we have been hitting 50,000 fans and I would expect slightly less than that this year. 50,000 still means lots of fun and tailgating, a primer for the Fall. Last year, expectations couldn’t have been higher for the 2012 squad. ESPN sent their army to televise the game. Ivan Maisel and Mark Schlabach were honorary coaches and even called a few series. This year, no one knows what to expect from FSU and while that makes this squad mysterious, it won’t have a lot of hype. This year’s game, though, is much more important than last year’s.

STG: Moving onto the actual football matters, EJ Manuel is on his way to the NFL. Who are the main contenders for the next starting quarterback and who do you expect to emerge in the spring game?

CC: If you listen to Jimbo Fisher, there are four candidates: Clint Trickett (the son of FSU’s OL coach), Jacob Coker (an underrated, big armed QB out of Alabama), Jameis Winston (a heralded two-sport star), and Sean Maguire (a solid prospect from New Jersey). So far, none of the QBs have been able to separate themselves and I don’t see Jimbo picking his guy until a few days before the opening game. I personally believe Trickett will win the job because he’s a coach’s son and understands the game, but Jameis Winston is the fan favorite. He exudes talent. He just might not be ready, however.

View the rest of the interview on the next page