Florida State football shows positive response in first full practice since loss to Wake Forest

The Florida State football practice coming to an end didn’t stop Alex Atkins from continuing to coach.

As the Seminole offensive coordinator/offensive line coach walked out of the Dunlap practice field gates, he had his arm around freshman offensive tackle Julian Armella while speaking to him emphatically.

Coming off FSU’s first loss of the season, head coach Mike Norvell has stressed the importance of how his team responds to its latest adversity. And not just to his players, but also to his assistant coaches like Atkins.

The energized coaching staff certainly seemed to answer that challenge Tuesday, which helped the Seminoles have a crisp, well-paced practice.

Mike Norvell's Monday press conference: Florida State coach Mike Norvell wants to see 'ownership' after sloppy Wake Forest game

Takeaways from FSU vs. Wake Forest: Seminoles come up short in comeback attempt vs Wake Forest

FSU vs. Wake Forest PFF grades: Stats, PFF grades that help explain Seminoles' loss to Wake Forest

“Our coaches need to be an example,” Norvell said. “It’s one thing to sit back, cross my arms and do nothing for the whole practice. But you want guys to bust their (expletive) for everything that they are doing? I would be cheating them.

“But if I’m going to come out and put everything into it, I’m dang sure going to make sure that they are too.”

On Tuesday and Wednesday last week, the FSU media watched this team have two fairly underwhelming practices. The Seminoles’ execution left more to be desired, which seemed to translate to their 31-21 loss to Wake Forest last Saturday.

So for an FSU team that tends to play like it practices, this week of preparation figures to be critical. The Seminoles losing the necessary focus and intensity could be costly as they finish the most difficult stretch of their schedule.

The three-game buzz saw for FSU (4-1, 2-1 ACC) continues when it hits the road to play No. 14 NC State (4-1, 0-1) at 8 p.m. Saturday (TV: ACC Network).

Then the Seminoles will complete their tough start to October with a home game against No. 5 Clemson at 7:30 p.m. next Saturday (TV: ABC).

“I’ve seen them respond the way I expected everybody to,” said a reassuring Robert Cooper, the defensive tackle who is one of FSU’s most veteran players. “Everybody is ready to get back to work. Everybody is ready to fix the mistakes that we made during the (Wake Forest) game and clean everything up.

“That has been the mindset for everybody getting ready for NC State. Big matchup.”

Starting quarterback Jordan Travis and backup Tate Rodemaker were not perfect in practice Tuesday. Both of them threw at least one interception on ill-advised passes. But Travis had plenty of encouraging moments.

Travis shedding the brace he had around his left knee was maybe the most positive development. His mobility appeared to be at the best it has been since he went down with an injury against Louisville on Sept. 16.

Left tackle Robert Scott Jr. and defensive end Jared Verse also inspired optimism with their participation in practice.

Scott (lower right leg) and Verse (left knee) both suffered injuries against Louisville. Scott has yet to play in a game since. Verse returned to action last Saturday but in a limited fashion, receiving just 23 snaps.

“We are all in this together,” Norvell said. “For players, it is hard playing college football. Nobody’s body is feeling good right now. You get into it. You get bumps. You get bruises. There are distractions all around the world with things going on. They get to make a choice. …

“Coaches are no different than players. And ultimately, it is our obligation and responsibility that our players need to see growth in us.”

FSU vs. Wake Forest stats: Wake Forest knocks off FSU at Doak Campbell Stadium

Ryan Fitzgerald connects on every live field goal

Norvell kept a close eye on his placekickers at practice Tuesday.

Really close.

When struggling starter Ryan Fitzgerald and walk-on Aidan Shahriari lined up for their field goal attempts, Norvell stood just a few feet to the side of them. And when both kickers booted the football, Norvell watched intensely.

It’s clear Norvell wanted to closely analyze their technique. Especially with Fitzgerald, who has missed four of his last five field goals and is 4 of 9 on the season. He also missed an extra point against Boston College.

“For me right now, is it fundamentally consistent? Sometimes, a guy can miss through a ball and it can go through the uprights,” said Norvell on how he evaluates kickers. “But are we striking the ball pure? Are we trusting our fundamentals? Are we staying true to who we are?

“It is very similar to me sometimes with the quarterback. There are times where you want a certain fundamental from a quarterback. He can throw a ball and it be on point but maybe not fundamentally right. The consistency over a long period of time, the ball will not be accurate as much as that.

“So I really carry the same elements into evaluating specialists in general. That is one of the things we are looking at and focused on.”

Fitzgerald connected on all three of his live field goals in practice Tuesday. It’s worth mentioning, though, that he looked solid in practice last week before missing field goals of 29 and 55 yards against Wake Forest.

“I thought we had a good day kicking the ball,” Norvell said. “There are still some things that we are pushing in that. But we made all of our kicks, it was good competition and Ryan responded the right way.”

More on Ryan Fitzgerald: Is kicker Ryan Fitzgerald in jeopardy of losing starting job?

Is Jordan Travis ready to run again?

Travis ditching his knee brace seems to suggest that he is back to 100% healthy.

Which could mean he will begin to run the ball more, and more effectively.

Since the Louisville game, the dual-threat Travis has not used his legs much. He turned just nine carries into eight yards. Travis accumulated 12 rushes for 42 yards and a touchdown through the first two games, and he ran for more than 500 yards in each of the last two seasons.

Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei found success running the ball in Clemson's 30-20 win over NC State last Saturday, rushing for 73 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries. So FSU could use Travis’ legs, especially against such a suffocating defense.

The Wolfpack feature a 3-3-5 scheme that ranks No. 9 in pass-efficiency defense (102.36 rating allowed on average), No. 15 in run defense (94.4 rushing yards allowed per game) and No. 19 in scoring defense (15.4 points allowed per game).

“The multiplicity. All of the different coverages and the different blitz packages coupled with the talented players,” said Norvell on what makes NC State’s defense so threatening.” This is one of the most talented defenses that we’ve played up to this point this year and is one of the most talented defenses in the country.

“Coupled with all of the things that they do. Your eyes will sometimes lead you in one direction, and you might get something totally different from the backside. It’s a good scheme. The pressure packages, they can get to a lot of different things.

“But they’ve also done a great job of taking away the explosive play with the different three-high safeties, rolling coverages, keeping offenses off-balance and them being able to create pressure with the pressure packages and things that they present.”

GAME INFORMATION

Who: FSU (4-1, 2-1 ACC) vs. No. 14 NC State (4-1, 0-1)

When/where: Saturday, 8 p.m.; Carter-Finley Stadium

TV/Radio: ACC Network/94.9 FM

Live game updates: www.Tallahassee.com; @CarterKarels on Twitter; @Ehsan_Kassim on Twitter; @JimHenryTALLY on Twitter

Reach Carter Karels at ckarels@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @CarterKarels. You can also follow our coverage on Facebook (NoleSports) and Instagram (tlhnolesports).

No one covers the ‘Noles like the Tallahassee Democrat. Subscribe using the link at the top of the page and never miss a moment.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU football: Seminoles have solid practice before playing NC State