Florida State, the defending BCS and ACC champions, is prepping for another championship run in 2014, but a couple of players were missing from an offseason conditioning drill open to the media Thursday. Linebacker Kain Daub and offensive lineman Ira Denson are each missing out on spring practices right now, according to head coach Jimbo Fisher.
Denson had a shoulder injury that kept him out of action for much of the 2013 season. Fisher said they are monitoring his status and hoping he will be able to rejoin the team.
“We’re going to evaluate how he does,” Fisher said, according to The Orlando Sentinel. “He’s got to continue to do well, we want him to do well academically. If he does, he does. If he doesn’t, we’ll have to adjust.”
It sounds like Fisher is giving the straight coach talk by suggesting the Seminoles will worry about the players they have on hand. Fortunately there is plenty of time before the start of the 2014 season so Denson has some time. Fisher certainly wants Denson to be at full strength though, and the sooner the better. Denson was a four-star recruit out of high school and has potential to be a key player on the line.
Daub’s situation is a bit different, and perhaps a bit more of a headache according to Fisher. As The Orlando Sentinel reports, Daub is working through eligibility problems related to his high school records.
“It’s not anything that he did academically, it’s a [NCAA] Clearinghouse issue that he’s having to clear up with a class,” Fisher said. “So he’s not eligible to be out here right now, but he’ll get through this and hopefully he’ll be here in the summer. He won’t be here in the spring, he’ll be in the fall.”
If nothing else, Daub has Fisher’'s support through what seems to be a bit of a messy situation.
“It had nothing to do with anything Kain has done,” Fisher said. “I don’t agree with it, but it’s crazy what they’re making him do.”