Meet James Blackman, Florida State’s new starting QB with Deondre Francois out for the year

The Florida State Seminoles received awful news that Deondre Francois is out for the year with a knee injury now it’s time for James Blackman to step up as the team’s starting quarterback.

Florida State lost to No. 1 Alabama 24-7 on Saturday night from Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, but the worst news from the night came on Sunday. Florida State quarterback Deondre Francois left in the fourth quarter of the season opener with an apparent knee injury. That knee injury was confirmed to be a patella tendon injury that will keep him out for the rest of the year.

This was the worst-case scenario for Florida State fans who knew a loss to Alabama meant the team had to go undefeated the rest of the way to get a shot at a College Football Playoff berth. That effort will be much more difficult without Francois under center.

With Francois out, freshman James Blackman at quarterback to finish the game. It’s expected that Jimbo Fisher will turn to the former three-star recruit to guide the Florida State offense. J.J. Cosentino and Bailey Hockman will also be in the running for the job, but Blackman will get the first opportunity.

Ideally, Blackman wouldn’t have played at all this season so he could learn from the sidelines and watch Francois lead the offense. Things can change in a hurry in football and now he’s thrust into the starting lineup for the preseason No. 3 team in the country who finds itself 0-1 and without a potential All-ACC performer.

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Blackman has upside and the tools necessary to be a starting quarterback at a program with the type of expectations that Florida State has each year. It’ll be important for Fisher and his staff to make sure they accelerate the learning curve for Blackman. He’s sure to go through some growing pains, which can be lessened if fellow freshman Cam Akers and Jacques Patrick can be a dynamic 1-2 punch at running back. Blackman won’t be asked to do everything that Francois was asked to do so it’s imperative for Akers and Patrick to step their game up.

Blackman should have a nice landing for his first start on in the team’s home opener against Louisiana Monroe. He’ll need to be a quick study because the ACC schedule lurks after that with dates with Clemson, Louisville, Miami and Florida on the horizon.