ACC football season preview 2020: Can Notre Dame knock off Clemson?

ACC Defensive Player of the Year, Marvin Wilson, Florida State DT

Marvin Wilson is hungry and motivated to prove he is one of the best players in the ACC– and the best defender — in college football. Wilson likely would have been a first-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.

He decided to come back for his senior year because he wanted to leave the program better than it was when he arrived there. “I just want to lead this program back to what it used to be. Be one of the top dogs and be considered one of the national top five programs every year,” Wilson told the Tallahassee Democrat.

One of his motivating factors was the new head coach Mike Norvell’s passion and vision for the program. “He showed me his vision for Florida State, and he really caught my eyes and my attention and made me really want to come back,” Wilson said to Florida State beat writer Curt Weller.

No matter the reason, he’s shown that he has a large sphere of influence. Wide receiver Tamorrion Terry, fellow defensive lineman Cory Durden, safety Hamsah Nasirildeen, and defensive end Joshua Kaindoh, all players from the 2017 recruiting class –and projected top 100 draft picks — are coming back to FSU.

Wilson was the jewel of that class. The Bellaire, Texas native was the #1 player from the state of Texas and the 6th best player in the country when he committed to Florida State. Wilson has all of the tools to be great and can do it all.

Wilson is a disrupter against the run and is strong enough to split blockers and get to the running back or eat blockers and let his linebackers make plays behind him. Wilson is as good an interior pass rusher as there is in college football as well.

This young man is motivated to leave the Seminoles better than he found them; that might also mean taking home a lot of hardware before the NFL draft.