Position-by-position grades for Florida State football coming out of Week 5 bye
Following a successful start to the season and a much-needed bye week, Florida State football returns to the field this week against Virginia Tech.
The Seminoles (4-0, 2-0 ACC) meets the Hokies (2-3, 1-0) at 3:30 p.m. Saturday on at Doak Campbell Stadium to begin a three-game homestand.
The game will be televised by ABC and FSU has opened as a 25.5-point favorite.
FSU is ranked No. 5 in both major polls after it slipped from No. 4 to No. 5 in the US LBM Coaches Poll Sunday. The Seminoles remained No. 5 in the Associated Press poll.
Here's a look at grades for each offensive and defensive position for FSU as it returns to practice Tuesday, as well as a look at how the team's remaining on the Seminoles' schedule in 2023 performed in Week 5.
More: Top five Florida State football offensive, defensive players per Pro Football Focus grades
Offense
Quarterback: B
Jordan Travis has had a strong start to the season with 1,028 passing yards, 10 touchdowns and one interception through four games. He has added 94 yards and two scores on the ground.
That has been good enough to lead FSU to a 4-0 start, including key wins over LSU and Clemson. But the numbers are not quite good enough to place him in the Heisman Trophy race at this point.
Part of that has been due to the team's lack of success in explosive plays, as Travis is 8 for 25 on passes of 20 yards or more this season.
Running back: C
The Seminoles are averaging 147.8 yards rushing per game, which ranks 79th in the nation.
Trey Benson leads the team with 40 carries for 189 yards and four scores through four games, good for an average of 4.7 yards per carry. Last season he averaged 6.4 yards per carry. He's forced eight missed tackles on 40 this season after having 79 on 154 attempts last season.
Rodney Hill is second on the team with 18 rushes for 103 yards (5.7 yards per carry) and Lawrance Toafili has 19 rushes for 85 yards (4.5). Neither has found a rhythm, receiving limited carries behind Benson.
Receivers: B+
The one-two punch of Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson has been as lethal as any combo in college football. Add in Jaheim Bell and the three leading receivers for FSU are strong.
Wilson leads the way with 16 receptions for 303 yards, while Coleman has added 17 catches for 256 yards and six touchdowns. Bell had 10 catches for 151 yards and two scores.
While Wilson leads the team in receiving, he has been inconsistent with drops with two drops in the opener and a zero-catch game against Southern Miss.
Beyond the top three, 12 other FSU receivers have at least one catch but no one else has eclipsed 100 yards for the season.
While the top three have stepped up in the first four games, the lack of anyone else stepping up dings the grade a little.
Offensive line: C+
Among FBS teams, the Seminoles sit 21st in Pro Football Focus pass blocking with a grade of 76.8, which has been solid and a reason for the strong passing attack. However, they sit 30th with a 67.8 run-blocking grade. struggling to open up holes in the running game.
Of the 591 yards FSU has on the ground this season, 306 came against Southern Miss, showing concerns for the rushing attack against upper-echelon teams.
FSU had 135 yards against LSU (4 yards per carry), 128 yards against Boston College (3.8 per carry) and 22 yards (1.1 per carry) versus Clemson.
Defense
Defensive line: B-
The Seminole's overall defense grades out with an 83.5 PFF grade, which sits 46th in college football. A big reason for the struggles has been a 75.2 rush defense grade, which ranks 72nd and the pass rush has a 77.6 grade, which sits 25th in the nation.
Defensive end Jared Verse has yet to record a sack this season, while Patrick Payton hasn't yet reached his potential, even facing single coverage with Verse getting double coverage.
With Fabien Lovett, Braden Fiske and Joshua Farmer on the interior DL, FSU sitting tied for 36th in the nation with 2.75 sacks per game seems a little disappointing.
Linebackers: B
This was the most talked about group for FSU ahead of the season, seen as the potential weakness of the Seminoles' defense.
The group has delivered a mixed bag of results so far. The linebackers had a strong performance against Southern Miss and Clemson but had real struggles against Boston College, especially with missed tackles and coverage.
However, Kalen DeLoach has emerged as one of the top playmakers on defense for the Seminoles. He made the game-changing sack and fumble recovery for a TD against Clemson which sparked the overtime win.
Defensive backs: B-
This cornerback corp has also had its share of ups and downs this season with the Seminoles sitting tied for 47th in the nation with FIU with a grade of 85.3 in coverage, per PFF.
That's despite Renardo Green being the only position player for FSU to rank within the top 10 at his position in overall grade.
Safety Akeem Dent has missed two straight games due to a hamstring injury and he has surely been missed. The Seminoles have been mixing in a group of freshmen players who are getting their first collegiate experience.
Special teams
Kicker: A
Ryan Fitzgerald has arguably been the most consistent player for the Seminoles this season. He is 4-for-4 on kicks this season, with a long of 48 yards. He is also 23-for-23 on his extra-point attempts.
This has been huge for FSU this season, as they have seen opponents lose games due to missed extra points and field goals against them this season.
After his struggles last season, it's been important for Fitzgerald to find his rhythm and beat out Tyler Keltner for the starting spot.
Punter: B
Alex Mastramanno has been called upon more than FSU fans would have expected this season with the expectations for the offense.
He has however been strong when he has had his number called with 15 punts and an average of 47.2 yards per boot. He has landed five punts inside the 20.
Mastramanno averaged 41.8 yards on 34 punts last season, with a long of 53.
Seminole Script Roundtable | Wrapping up Clemson, panic meter for Florida State football
Week 5 action of FSU opponents
Oct. 7 vs. Virginia Tech (2-3, 1-0 ACC): The Hokies travel to Tallahassee fresh off a 38-21 victory over ACC rival Pittsburgh in Blacksburg, Virginia. Quarterback Kyron Drones finished with five touchdowns (three throwing, two running) in the victory.
Oct. 14 vs. Syracuse (4-1, 0-1 ACC): The Orange struggled to gain any momentum in a home loss to Clemson 31-14. The Tigers sacked Syracuse quarterback Garrett Shrader five times, picked him off once and forced three fumbles in the victory.
Oct. 21 vs. No. 21 Duke (4-1, 1-0 ACC): The Blue Devils lost a last-second heartbreaker to Notre Dame 21-14, with the Irish scoring on a 30-yard TD run by Audric Estime with 31 seconds left. Adding insult to injury, QB Leonard Riley went down late with a high ankle sprain and could be out for this one.
Oct. 28 at Wake Forest (3-1, 0-1 ACC): Like the Seminoles, the Demon Deacons enjoyed a bye week during Week 5. They lost 30-16 at home to Georgia Tech to open their ACC slate on Sept. 23.
Nov. 4 at Pittsburgh (1-4, 0-2): Pitt’s losing skid hit three games, as it lost 38-21 to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. Starting QB Phil Jurkovec finished 11 for 22 passing for 235 yards. He was sacked four times.
Nov. 11 vs. Miami: (4-0, 0-0 ACC) The Hurricanes are off to a perfect start to the season, which includes an impressive victory over Texas A&M. Miami starts ACC play off the bye week, hosting Georgia Tech (8 p.m.) on Saturday.
Nov. 18 vs. North Alabama (2-3): The Lions fell 32-22 behind a 138-yard rushing effort from Eastern Kentucky running back Joshua Carter.
Nov. 25 at No. 22 Florida (3-1): Kentucky running back Ray Davis rushed for 280 yards to lead the Wildcats to a 33-14 victory over the Gators. Florida has lost three straight to Kentucky for the first time since Bear Bryant was the head coach at UK.
How the Top 5 in the US LBM Coaches Poll fared
No. 1 Georgia (5-0) escaped with a 24-17 victory over Auburn on the road to push their winning streak to 22 games.
No. 2 Michigan (5-0) easily handled Nebraska in a 45-7 in Lincoln, Nebraska.
No. 3 Ohio State (4-0) was on a bye week during Week 5 and remains unchanged from its top 3 positioning following the victory over Notre Dame in Week 4.
No. 4 Texas (5-0) defeated No. 24 Kansas 40-14 after outscoring the previously undefeated Jayhawks 27-7 in the second half.
No. 5 Florida State (4-0) fell in the Coaches Poll for the second straight week despite defeating Clemson in overtime the last time it played in Week 4. The Seminoles were on bye in Week 5.
GAME INFORMATION
Who: No. 5 FSU (4-0, 2-0 ACC) vs. Virginia Tech (2-3, 1-0)
When/where: Saturday, 3:30 p.m.; Doak Campbell Stadium
TV/Radio: ABC/94.9 FM
Live game updates: www.Tallahassee.com; @Ehsan_Kassim, @jackgwilliams and @JimHenryTALLY on X, formerly Twitter
Reach Ehsan Kassim at ekassim@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Ehsan_Kassim. You can also follow our coverage on Facebook (NoleSports) and Instagram (tlhnolesports).
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU football: Position-by-position grades for Seminoles coming off bye
