Midway through preseason camp, Ron Dugans evaluates FSU receivers

With the Florida State football team at the halfway point of preseason camp, and with another big scrimmage coming up this morning, the depth charts for most positions appear to be coming into focus.

Can the same be said for wide receiver?

With the loss of Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson to the NFL, it was always known the Seminoles would have some big shoes to fill out wide. And as the season opener looms in two weeks, it’s fair to ask who on the current roster is taking on that challenge the best and is close to earning a starting spot on the FSU offense.

Florida State receivers coach Ron Dugans met with the media following the Seminoles’ practice in Jacksonville on Thursday, and while he didn’t break down the entire depth chart (other than saying Alabama transfer Malik Benson appears to the No. 1 option right now), he did give updates and opinions on how he thinks the receivers have played so far.

“He’s got some guys behind him,” Dugans said of Benson. “He’s got some guys pushing him, some guys that have been doing a good job. Jalen Brown is one of them that’s done a good job for us. He’s been stepping up. Not just catching the football, he’s shown some physicality.”

Brown, a transfer from LSU, has elite speed like Benson. But he’s a redshirt freshman who has barely played any college football. He’s like a lot of the players currently lining up at receiver for FSU: Talented but inexperienced.

Dugans knew that was going to be the case when the preseason started. He knew there weren’t any players in his room — with the exception of Ja’Khi Douglas and, to a lesser extent, fellow senior Kentron Poitier — that have produced in any real way at the college level.

And while the growing pains have been there, the Florida State assistant coach said he likes what he’s seeing from his young receivers as they enter scrimmage No. 2.

Two young receivers in particular, it seems.

“Elijah [Moore] and Lawayne [McCoy] have been pushing each other,” Dugans said. “They’ve been taking coaching. And it’s really been good to see those guys quizzing each other, trying to push each other, to get better. Lawayne’s done a really good job. Because obviously he’s been here a little longer than Elijah. But Elijah has embraced where he is right now. And he’s building off that. Really raw.

“But I’ve been pleased seeing what he’s done the past few days. … We’ve just got to continue with the details with him.”

McCoy enrolled at FSU in January and took part in spring practice, while Moore arrived in the summer after his high school graduation.

After the Seminoles’ first scrimmage last weekend, head coach Mike Norvell lamented certain plays in which he said the receivers didn’t “finish.” That typically means they got open but didn’t catch the ball. But as Dugans pointed out, it can also mean not getting as many yards as they could after a catch or holding a block long enough downfield to spring a big run.

So, as his inexperienced group goes into its second preseason scrimmage, he said that was absolutely going to be the point of emphasis for his receivers.

“Improving from the last scrimmage,” Dugans said, when asked what he wanted to see. “And that’s finishing plays. Run game, pass game, getting aligned, tempo, sense of urgency, getting lined up. We’ve got room for improvement, and that’s what will happen this next scrimmage.”

Florida State freshman WR Elijah Moore has impressed this preseason. (Ben Spicer/Warchant)

Talk about this story with other die-hard FSU football fans on the Tribal Council.

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