TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida State had the nation's No. 1 pass defense last season. And the No. 2 defense overall.
So naturally when you see that seven starters are gone to the NFL, along with a defensive coordinator departing to take a head coaching job, it would make sense to expect a significant drop-off in 2013.
That's not exactly the way the math works at Florida State.
"I think we will be better," junior defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan said. "That's saying a lot because we had some great players the last two-three years, but I think we're going to take it to the next level this year. I really do."
Is it possible to see improvement? Sure. But it certainly won't be easy.
Florida State is replacing its entire starting front four after losing all of them to the NFL. Ends Bjoern Werner (first-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts) and Tank Carradine (second-round pick by the San Franciso 49ers) have moved on after recording a combined 24 sacks. Also gone are tackles Everett Dawkins (seventh-rounder) and Amp McCloud (free agent), both of whom are now with the Minnesota Vikings.
That's more than 1,100 pounds of muscle that ACC offensive linemen won't have to worry about this season. Florida State has had so much depth on the defensive line, however, that all of the backups have experience heading into the fall.
If there's one bit of uncertainty about the Florida State defense, it's up front. The linebackers return a pair of seniors in Christian Jones and Telvin Smith. And the secondary loses corner Xavier Rhodes (first-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings), but the Seminoles have six returning players with experience in the defensive backfield.
It's not exactly polite to call a group of men that weigh between 250-310 pounds question marks. Some fans and analysts will feel that the defensive line collectively is a question mark until they see the production in 2013.
But Florida State has seen results already from its projected starters on the line – tackles Demonte McAllister and Jernigan and ends Mario Edwards Jr. and Dan Hicks.
Jernigan started two games early in the 2012 season. He has 73 career tackles and four sacks and is the most experienced of the defensive linemen after playing in 26 games. He's an impossible one-on-one matchup, and Jernigan showed his potential in the ACC championship game win over Georgia Tech with nine tackles and a sack.
"Every year he's gotten a little better," defensive tackles coach Odell Haggins said. "When he first got here people saw the flashy plays, he made that off of shear ability. Now Timmy has his technique down, he understands the schemes. He's learning a lot, he's doing a good job."
McAllister is coming off a career season, recording 33 tackles. He's added 30 pounds in the past few seasons, putting him at 295 pounds, without losing any speed.
He improved as the 2012 season went on, making five tackles apiece in the loss to Florida and then the ACC championship game win over Georgia Tech. McAllister also had a sack in the Orange Bowl win over Northern Illinois.
"I like taking on double teams because that really tells you where you are," McAllister said. "When that guard comes down on you and the tackle hits you in the hip, you sling that guard off of you and go after the offensive tackle, if I was 270-275, they probably would have washed me out.
"But now I'm 295, almost 300 pounds. They don't stand a chance when I get my hands right and play the right technique."
Edwards Jr. was Scout.com's top defensive recruit from the class of 2012. He was the opposite of McAllister – Edwards arrived in Tallahassee last summer at 320 pounds, touching off widespread speculation that he would convert from end to tackle.
But Edwards dedicated himself to eating better and shed the pounds, dropping all the way to 280 pounds. He made his first start (in place of the injured Carradine) in the Georgia Tech game, recording seven tackles, and added three tackles and a pass break-up in the Orange Bowl win over Northern Illinois.
Edwards said he has followed the career path of South Carolina star pass rusher Jadeveon Clowney, who was also the top defensive player but a year earlier than Edwards.
"I look at stats but it's really all about going out there and playing," Edwards said. "If you're coachable and you're doing what they're asking you to do, you're going to make plays.
"Clowney is a great player. And I just feel like if I'm going to be in the same bracket as him, being No. 1 like he was, I'm definitely going to have to do my thing on the field."
Hicks began his career at defensive end, flipped to tight end in 2012 and then suffered a season-ending knee injury. He asked coaches to move back to defense in 2013, and Hicks has been impressive this spring and in preseason practice.
He had adjusted from the Mark Stoops schemes that he remembers of 2010 and '11 to the new style brought by coordinator Jeremy Pruitt.
"We pick up things quickly," Hicks said. "It all works together. I'm expecting really good things this year."
It's hard to imagine that Florida State could lose so much talent on defense and be just as good or, as Jernigan said, better in 2013. But players think they have the talent to replace the lost talent.
There's so much talent up front that Pruitt may often give offenses different looks by going with a five-man front. He's toyed with adding a third defensive tackle -- senior Jacobbi McDaniel -- and also used linebacker Christian Jones as a down lineman that rushes off the edge.
And Florida State players think that style plays toward their abilities and desire to be more assertive on defense.
While Stoops' defense was one of the nation's best in 2012, it has respectfully been called vanilla by returning Florida State players. It's not a knock, it's just that the 2012 defense was vastly different and more conservative.
"Last year, we were a lot of read-first defense," Edwards said. "This defense now is attack and go get it. We're very excited because we're not sitting on our heels waiting to see. As soon as the ball is snapped, we're going to make it happen."
Contact Bob Ferrante at bobferrante17@gmail.com
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