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Florida State Fall Camp Observations: Day Three

The shells came on for the first time on day three.

Florida State returned to the practice field on Friday afternoon for its third practice of fall camp. The competition is already getting fierce with players across the roster battling for starting jobs or a spot in the rotation.

NoleGameday was in attendance for the session and we've listed some observations from different position groups and players below.

READ MORE: First Day of Fall Camp Observations for Florida State

- Quarterback Jordan Travis and wide receiver Malik McClain connected on a deep ball on the first play of team drills early in practice.

- Offensive line coach Alex Atkins was not happy with the effort his unit was showing early on. Veteran center Maurice Smith stepped up as a vocal leader to help the offensive line turn things around by the end of the drill.

- Grad-transfer offensive tackle Jazston Turnetine showed up today. He struggled at points during team drills but stonewalled Derrick McClendon in one on ones.

- Malik McClain and Travis connected on a deep shot early in practice. Later on, he reeled in another deep ball, this time from Tate Rodemaker, before making a ridiculous catch on the sideline towards the end of the day. The rising sophomore has come on strong to begin camp.

- Mycah Pittman bounced back after a few balls bounced off his hands on Thursday. He didn't have trouble pulling it in today.

- Defensive tackle Joshua Farmer had a really nice rep in OL/DL battle drill. Mike Norvell loved what he saw along with Odell Haggins.

— Defensive end Pat Payton went against offensive lineman Julian Armella on the side. The true freshman Armella held his own.

— Tight end Markeston Douglas got a ton of love from the offensive side’s coaching staff after a great job in his blocking during a play to allow Treshaun Ward to find a hole. 

— Running back Trey Benson blasted through hole and went one on one with the safety but moved off the side so quickly the defensive back had no chance. It’s very impressive how fast Benson can move with his size being able to do that to a defensive back in movement. Benson later on in team drills broke one open on the side of the field to help end practice and Norvell gave applause to the transfer running back.

— Wide receiver Joshua Burrell had the catch of the day while in stride on the sideline going over the defender’s shoulder pads to grab the ball and stay running down the sideline. Ron Dugans loves it. 

— One wide receiver who had a nice day overall was Johnny Wilson. He made multiple one on one grabs for large gains along with a nice snag on the sideline in team drills. Wilson later in the practice had a great two handed grab in the end zone for six. A great consistent day for the Arizona State wide receiver transfer who had a bright spring.

— Defensive end Jared Verse has had his usual flashes but one thing that stands out since the beginning of camp is his leadership. He’s extremely vocal, going and talking to some of the younger players after reps, helping give tips, and during water breaks making sure everyone is feeling good ready to go back out. Verse is already a social player but you can start to see players listening to him as becoming a leader for this defensive side of the ball.

- More on Verse...he used his speed and hand placement to get the best of Robert Scott at one point. In one on ones, Verse exploded out of his stance to beat Bless Harris before he could set the corner.

- One of the impressive plays today; Jordan Travis corralled a bad snap with one hand before tossing it out to Trey Benson on a screen. The transfer running back cut up the sideline for a big gain.

- There were a few bad snaps towards the end of practice.

READ MORE: Florida State exploring leaving ACC for new conference

Stick with NoleGameday for more coverage of Florida State football throughout fall camp.

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