'Home-grown' stars Darius Washington, Patrick Payton, Josh Farmer tabbed for ACC Kickoff

For all the talk about the work Florida State has done in the transfer portal — and questions about whether the Seminoles are too reliant on it — their traveling party heading to next week’s ACC Kickoff is a strong indication of what they can do with high school signees.

All three players chosen to attend the Atlantic Coast Conference’s media days with head coach Mike Norvell are “home-grown” products: Offensive lineman Darius Washington, defensive end Patrick Payton and defensive tackle Joshua Farmer.

Washington was a three-star recruit when he signed with FSU in the class of 2019; he earned first-team All-ACC honors last season. Farmer was a three-star recruit in the 2021 class, and he received second-team All-ACC recognition in 2023. And Payton was a four-star recruit in 2021 who was named All-ACC honorable mention last fall.

Projected starting quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, who transferred in this offseason from Oregon State, announced last week that he had chosen not to attend ACC Kickoff because he wanted to save the spots for returning players from the 2023 conference championship team.

SIGN UP: Join Warchant’s FSU Community for $1 today

Here is the complete release from Florida State:

Florida State will be represented at next week’s ACC Kickoff event by returning all-conference players Joshua Farmer, Patrick Payton and Darius Washington, along with head coach Mike Norvell, it was announced Monday.

Farmer started 13 games last season at defensive tackle and recorded 32 tackles, including 7.0 for loss with 5.0 sacks, two quarterback hurries, two pass breakups and one forced fumble. He was a second-team All-ACC performer and also was recognized on the All-ACC Academic Team and the ACC Honor Roll. The Port St. Joe native had one of the best performances in his career during FSU’s exciting win at Clemson, registering a career-high five tackles, including a career-best 1.5 tackles for loss with 1.0 sack, and one quarterback hurry. He matched his career-high tackles total and registered 0.5 sack in Florida State’s victory at Florida.

Payton started all 14 games in 2023 and recorded 44 tackles, including a team-high 14.5 for loss with 7.0 sacks, 10 pass breakups, seven quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles. The 2022 ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year earned honorable mention all-conference recognition while playing opposite first-round NFL Draft selection Jared Verse. Payton’s pass breakups total was the highest by an ACC defensive lineman since 2016 and tied for fourth overall in the conference in 2023, while his 14.5 tackles for loss ranked sixth in the conference. The Miami native tied his career-high with seven tackles, including 2.0 for loss with 1.0 sack, and added two quarterback hurries and one pass breakup in the ACC Championship Game victory over No. 14 Louisville. He posted a career-best 2.0 sacks in wins over Florida and Wake Forest, and his 3.0 tackle for loss against the Demon Deacons was a career-high total. In the win at Clemson, he registered three solo tackles, including 1.0 sack and two pass breakups, the second which deflected a fourth-down pass in overtime to clinch the victory.

Washington enters the 2024 season as an anchor on FSU’s offensive line after appearing in 13 games with 10 starts, eight at left tackle and two at center, last season. He was a first-team All-ACC performer and earned All-America acclaim from multiple outlets. Washington helped block for an FSU offense that led the ACC in scoring, total touchdowns, rushing touchdowns, yards per completion, fewest interceptions thrown and fewest turnovers. The Pensacola native helped protect ACC Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year Jordan Travis as the quarterback led the ACC in passing efficiency, yards per pass attempts and fewest interceptions while breaking FSU career records for total offense and touchdown responsibility. Washington was named ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week after Florida State’s 39-17 win over Virginia Tech where he cleared holes for running back Trey Benson to rush for 200 yards on only 11 carries, breaking FSU’s single-game record with an average of 18.2 yards per rush, and protected Travis as he completed 75 percent of his passes and threw two touchdown passes.

Norvell earned the Dodd Trophy and Bryant Award in 2023, becoming the eighth coach and second since 2003 to win both national Coach of the Year recognitions in the same season. He also was named ACC Coach of the Year, joining the legendary Bobby Bowden as the only FSU coaches to earn the conference’s top coaching honor, and the AFCA Regional 1 Coach of the Year. He guided Florida State to an unbeaten, 13-0 regular season that included wins over eight P5 bowl-eligible teams and produced a program-record 25 selections to the All-ACC team as well as a program-high 26 members of the All-ACC Academic Team. His average of 37.0 points per game during his eight years as a head coach is the highest in the nation among head coaches active each year from 2016-24, and his fourth conference championship game appearances as a head coach are fifth among active coaches.

Florida State is scheduled to appear Monday, July 22, on the first day of the preseason media event. The Seminoles return nine all-conference players and the ACC Championship Game MVP after earning the program’s 16th ACC title with a perfect 13-0 regular season in 2023. FSU opens its 2024 season August 24 in Dublin, Ireland, against Georgia Tech in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic. The game is set for a noon Eastern Time kickoff and will be broadcast on ESPN.

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