Florida State Seminoles fans should look forward to 2018

Florida State’s season is going down the tubes quick, but 2018 is another year for Seminoles fans.

Obviously not counting the Alabama Crimson Tide, a sexy pick for the College Football Playoff this year was the Florida State Seminoles. Here was a team coming off a pretty solid year in 2016 that culminated with a win over Michigan in the Orange Bowl, and they were returning a wealth of talent on both sides of the ball.

But, the harsh reality is that a lot of the time, things don’t work out the way they’re intended to in college football. This has certainly been the case for Jimbo Fisher and the Seminoles this season. It all started back in the much-anticipated opener against Alabama, where they not only lost the game but their starting quarterback in the process. Did things get better from there? Nope, not at all, as on Saturday Florida State was beaten by the rival Miami Hurricanes for the first time in seven meetings — a loss which dropped them to 1-3 on the year. Yeah, not exactly what people envisioned for this team in the preseason when they were imagining what slot they would take in the College Football Playoff.

So yes, Seminoles fans, given the expectations heading into the year, this season is pretty much over. You’re now looking ahead to 2018, and there are a few reasons to be optimistic that next year will be much better than this one.

Cam Akers is obviously the beast he was made out to be

The prized freshman on this team was without a doubt running back Cam Akers. The true freshman was expected to come to Tallahassee and make an immediate impact, and so far, we’re seeing the future is very bright for this young man.

He’s had to split time with Jacques Patrick in the games the Seminoles have played this year, but on Saturday when Patrick suffered an injury, Akers was given the load and boy did he ever deliver. The freshman from Mississippi finished the game with 20 carries for 121 yards, marking the first time in his young career he has surpassed the century mark. And believe me, it won’t be the last.

Akers also showed a penchant for violence in big games, which will endear him to every FSU fan imaginable.

Cam Akers is only a freshman, and no matter what he does the rest of the way here in this throwaway 2017 season, you have to take solace in knowing that he’ll be back there manning the backfield next year — and the year after because he can’t leave until then.

Recruiting

If there’s one thing that we’ve learned since Jimbo Fisher took over for Bobby Bowden, it’s that the man talks faster than that dude who used to do the Hot Wheels commercials, among other things.

Okay, okay … aside from that, we know Fisher can recruit at a high level in Tallahassee. He’s consistently finished with one of the top recruiting classes in the nation, and February of 2018 should be no different.

Now if you look at the 2018 rankings now on 247 Sports, it’ll show the Seminoles in the No. 12 spot, but that’ll change in time. Jimbo is a good closer when it comes to recruiting, and as February does approach, he’ll rack up some more incoming talent and they’ll move up the list.

With his back now firmly against the wall with the poor start to the 2017 season, Fisher will get out there with his coaches to bring in some of the top players in the country. Now they might not make an immediate impact on the 2018 season to the tune of someone like a Cam Akers, but it’s a good start to the year after what took place in 2017.

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Deondre Francois is back

I mean, this one pretty much goes without saying, right?

No, one man does not make a team, but simply put, Deondre Francois was a playmaker. In each of the last two seasons, it was evident that a weakness for Florida State was offensive line play, but Francois had the versatility to work around that a lot. You can see that his replacement, freshman James Blackman, does not possess that wizardry and it severely hampers what this offense can do.

Will the FSU offensive line be better next season? Eh, maybe, maybe not. But if it is the latter and they’re still one of the worst units in football, Francois will be back there under center willing this team to some more victories with his arm and his legs.

So cheer up, FSU fans. This season didn’t go nearly as planned, but 2018 — on paper — looks to bring some brighter days ahead.