Mike Norvell on Ricky Knight: 'I like what I see from him'

Now into Fall Camp, Florida State head coach Mike Norvell is watching his team come together, blending incoming and returning players, as the Seminoles look to put together another strong regular season.

One player, in particular, who Norvell has been pleased with is freshman defensive back Ricky Knight, as Norvell explained following a recent practice.

“I like what I see from him,” Mike Norvell said. “He had a couple of really good plays today.”

In 2023, Florida State was ranked 11th in the country in passing defense, giving up just 179.7 yards per game through the air. The Seminoles also forced 10 interceptions, which was a key piece of why Florida State was able to go unbeaten in the regular season.

With roster turnover, including a pair of corners who were taken in the 2024 NFL Draft, Norvell is going to be turning to young players like Knight to come in and fill the gaps in the secondary this season.

“I think that young DB group is growing in their confidence,” Norvell said. “Obviously Ricky coming in, got here in the summer, I’ve seen some great flashes and there are still a lot of areas he can continue to grow. Understanding some of the things physically, but I like what I’ve seen from him and he’s definitely on the right path.”

Ricky Knight came to Florida State in the Class of 2024. According to the On3 Industry Ranking, Knight was a four-star recruit and the 344th-ranked player nationally. He chose to go to Florida State over schools like Miami and Illinois among others. However, his recruiting took a while to get going and it was Norvell and Florida State who offered him first after he began to transition from wide receiver to defensive back.

Mike Norvell praises freshman Amaree Williams for how he bounced back from tough scrimmage

Another Florida State freshman who has caught Mike Norvell’s attention is Amaree Williams. In particular, for how Williams bounced back from a tough scrimmage.

“Amaree had a good day today. Saturday and for the scrimmage was probably his toughest day. That’s the thing that you remind him about, you remind coaches, everybody, that he should be going into his senior year of high school and he was in Doak Campbell Stadium. We try to put as much emphasis on that. There were probably nerves and all the things like that to go through,” Norvell said.

“There were some areas that he knows, just from seeing the scrimmage and living it in the moment when coaches aren’t there on the field. Having to go out there and the communication, the alignment, the execution, the finer details, and then just the speed that accelerates in those type of live opportunities. It was something that I think was a learning process and experience for him, and he came back today and I thought he had a really good day. So, I’m definitely excited. And he has to understand that – we all want to just look and see that he’s big and he can catch and he can run and all these things, and he has to trust the process of growth just as we have to as well.”