Florida State OL D'Mitri Emmanuel receives NCAA waiver, can play this fall

The Florida State football team received great news on Tuesday morning as senior offensive lineman D’Mitri Emmanuel has been cleared to play in 2023.

Emmanuel transferred to Florida State last season from Charlotte, where he was a multi-year starter, and quickly won a starting guard job on the Seminoles’ offensive line.

*ALSO SEE: Impact Analysis: What D’Mitri Emmanuel’s return means for Florida State offensive line

After receiving a waiver from the NCAA, Emmanuel now will be able to play for FSU again this fall. He gives the Seminoles four returning starters on the offensive line, along with tackles Robert Scott and Bless Harris, as well as center Maurice Smith.

The Seminoles also brought in three experienced transfers this offseason, including former UTEP star Jeremiah Byers, former Colorado starter Casey Roddick and part-time Auburn starter Keiondre Jones.

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Florida State is expected to be a top-10 team in preseason polls after winning 10 games in 2022.

*ALSO SEE: Warchant 3-2-1: Taking stock of Florida State Football entering final week of spring drills

RELEASE FROM FSU

Florida State offensive lineman D’Mitri Emmanuel has been granted an extra year of eligibility and will play his seventh collegiate season for the Seminoles in 2023, it was announced Tuesday.

“We are happy to have D’Mitri with our program for another year,” head coach Mike Norvell said. “Since he joined the Nole Family as a graduate transfer prior to last season, he has displayed tremendous leadership, effort and football knowledge. D’Mitri was a major contributor to our success as a team in 2022 and has been an outstanding leader for our younger offensive lineman. We’re excited for him that he will have another season to showcase his ability and continue to help the overall growth of our program.”

Emmanuel started all 13 games at right guard in 2022, his first season with the Seminoles, and earned third-team All-ACC honors. He also was named second-team All-ACC by Phil Steele and was a member of the All-ACC Academic Team. The Charlotte, North Carolina, native was named ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week after FSU’s 41-16 win over Georgia Tech when he did not allow a quarterback pressure on 80 snaps while blocking for an offense that rolled up 642 yards of total offense, the highest total in FBS that week and the third-highest yardage total by a Yellow Jackets opponent in records dating back to 2000.

He was a consistent presence blocking for an offense that led the country with an average of 7.46 plays per game of at least 20 yards and tied for the national lead with eight touchdown drives of at least 90 yards. Florida State also ranked second nationally with an explosive play differential of +7.41, bolstered by a 17.15 percent explosive play rate on offense that was the country’s third-best rate.

The Seminoles led the ACC in third-down offense, yards gained per pass, yards gained per play, yards gained per rush, total offense per game, yards per completion, rushing offense per game and scoring offense per game. FSU was one of two offenses nationally, and the only one in the ACC, to average at least 270 passing yards and at least 210 rushing yards per game. Emmanuel helped protect quarterback Jordan Travis, who was PFF’s highest-graded quarterback nationally and the ACC’s highest-graded offensive player. Travis, who enters 2023 as a Heisman Trophy contender, led the ACC in yards per play, yards per pass attempt, yards per completion and pass efficiency rating. Emmanuel also helped pave the way for running back Trey Benson to lead the ACC with an average of 6.43 yards per rush and opened lanes as FSU topped 200 rushing yards in seven straight games, tying the school record.

“I’m incredibly thankful to everyone who helped me with this waiver process, including my family, coaches, teammates and friends, and to the committee for recognizing my journey,” Emmanuel said. “I am honored to be part of the Florida State football program and can’t wait to be back on the field preparing for the 2023 season.”

Emmanuel was on the Charlotte football team for five seasons, redshirting in 2017 and missing the entire 2018 season. From 2019-21, he started 25 total games, including 24 consecutive, and recorded starts at left tackle, right tackle and left guard for 49ers. He was a third-team All-Conference USA performer in 2020 after starting all six games played as he helped block for an offense that ranked fifth in the NCAA in time of possession and converted 18 of 21 Red Zone possessions. Emmanuel also was a third-team All-Conference USA selection in his first season of action in 2019 when he started all 12 games and was coached by current FSU offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Alex Atkins, helping the 49ers lead C-USA in rushing offense with a school-record average of 203.0 yards per game.

Florida State is in the final week of spring practice and hosts the Garnet and Gold Spring Showcase on Saturday. The Garnet and Gold Spring Showcase begins at 4 p.m. inside Doak Campbell Stadium and will be shown live on ACC Network Extra.

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