Mike Norvell praises returner Trey Benson after 93-yard kickoff return for touchdown

Florida State won big over Boston College this weekend in a 44-14 home victory, and they came out the gate swinging thanks to running back Trey Benson. Benson returned the opening kickoff of the game for the Seminoles 93-yards for a touchdown, in a play that made Doak Campbell Stadium erupt immediately. It was Benson’s first kickoff return attempt ever for the Seminoles, and head coach Mike Norvell spoke about Benson and the decision to put him back there.

“Trey he’s an explosive player, we lost a couple of backs there early in camp, so we were trying to maximize all those guys’ opportunities and Trey is so explosive,” Norvell explained. “And got a lot of confidence in Sam McCall, he’s gonna be remarkable, but wanted to get Trey off to a fast start tonight, and he definitely took advantage of the opportunity.”

McCall has been Florida State’s only return man all season, but the switch up to Benson definitely paid on this weekend’s matchup. Benson transferred to FSU this offseason from Oregon, where he missed his entire freshman season in 2020 with an injury. Benson saw very limited action in 2021, carrying the ball just six times for the Ducks, as Norvell spoke on the importance of getting him involved on Saturday.

CLICK HERE to subscribe to the On3 YouTube channel today for all of the latest news on college football, recruiting, NIL, more!

“And you just see his confidence growing with each week and you have to remember this is a young man that’s coming off of a very substantial and serious injury, and you just see him getting better with each carry, each game,” Norvell said.

Benson definitely looked confident on the Seminoles opening play of the game Saturday, but also throughout the entire game. Benson ended the game as FSU’s leading rusher, ending the game with 78 yards on the ground and two rushing touchdowns to go along with his kickoff return for a touchdown.

“He’s so very hard to tackle, but I wanted to see if we could help spark him and if he could spark us there in the return game,” Norvell said. “And there’s 10 other guys that did an absolutely great job in helping that, but boy when he got in the open field he knew what to do with it, so I was fired up for him.”

Benson gave a spark that lasted the entire night for the Seminoles, and as his confidence continues to keep growing, it’ll be exciting to see how he can continue to contribute to Florida State’s rushing and returning attack moving forward.