Highlights from Jimbo Fisher’s First Press Conference of Fall Camp

Florida State head football coach Jimbo Fisher addressed the media for the first time as the Seminoles got set to open fall camp on Tuesday. Fisher spoke on a wide range of issues from the quarterback competition to being featured on Showtime’s “A Season With”.

ON THE PROGRAM

During Tuesday’s press conference, Fisher talked about Florida State evolving from just a team to a program. In Fisher’s first six years, the Seminoles have managed to go 68-14 with four ACC Atlantic titles, three ACC championships, four major bowl appearances and the 2013 national championship.

“I’m very proud of the guys who have played here the last six years and what they brought the program to,” Fisher said Tuesday. “I think it’s very important to understand the seats you’re sitting in and who sat in them before you and what you’re leaving behind for other players.”

ON THE 2016 TEAM

Fisher said he likes where the 2016 team is at after finishing 10-3 a season ago. The Seminoles return 17 total starters, including all 11 on offense.

“We’re putting ourselves in a position to have a chance to be successful,” Fisher said. “I’m very excited about this team. I thought we had a tremendous, tremendous spring. It’s been a very good summer. I like the attitude, I like where our guys are right now. We still have a lot of work to do, we still have a lot of questions.”

ON INTERNAL COMPETITION

The most scrutinized competition for FSU will obviously be the battle between redshirt senior Sean Maguire and redshirt freshman Deondre Francois. Fisher said there will be competition throughout the roster.

“There are no starters in place,” Fisher said. “There will be a battle everywhere. Competition from within is what makes great teams.”

​QUARTERBACK COMPETITION

Fisher said Maguire and Francois were might not “hold hands and sing Kumbaya” outside of practice, but said the competition was friendly.

“They appreciate good competition,” he said. “They know we’re going to pick the best guy. I think they genuinely like each other.”

At the end of the day, Fisher said, playing quarterback is about decision-making and accuracy and that all the other intangibles can be thrown out the window. Fisher acknowledged that the position gets the most credit when things are going good and the most flack when they’re not.

“The hardest thing to manage as a quarterback is not what you do, it’s what everyone else around you does,” Fisher said. “(Quarterbacks) either get all the credit or take all the blame.”

ON THE SCHEDULE

The slate for Florida State in 2016 is more beefed up. The Seminoles open with Ole Miss in Orlando, but also visit South Florida and Miami. FSU faces last season’s ACC Coastal division champion North Carolina, last year’s national runner-up in Clemson and rival Florida at home.

“We have a lot of challenges ahead of us, but saying that, we’re looking forward to it,” Fisher said. “That’s what competitors do. Competitors look forward to the challenge. Everyone is going to be shooting at us.”

ON CHAD MAVETY

Florida State senior offensive lineman Chad Mavety announced Tuesday that the cardiac issue that forced him to miss the spring will in fact be career-ending. Mavety started eight games for FSU last season at guard and tackle.

“Chad was a great young man,” Fisher said Tuesday. “If that was one of my two sons…what would I have his coach do with him? That’s how I make 99.9 percent of my decisions is how I would treat him if he was my son. I’m sad we don’t have him – one for his dreams and two, because he was a heck of a football player. He’s a great kid.”

ON SOCIAL MEDIA BAN

Florida State football players said goodbye to social media on Monday night. Fisher said Tuesday that social media can become a distraction from what’s important on the field, at practice and in the classroom.

“There’s not enough time in the day to do all that stuff,” he said. “What it’s about is making a commitment to something.”

ON BEING FEATURED ON SHOWTIME

Florida State will be the featured program this season on the Showtime documentary, “A Season With”. Fisher said he spoke with Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly, whose program was featured last year, and learned that it wasn’t a distraction. The new season debuts on Sept. 6.

“There’s a lot of stuff we get mic’d for; cameras, it happens all the time,” Fisher said. “We got nothing to hide; come out and see us.”

PRACTICE

Florida State will kick off fall camp with its first practice Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. The Seminoles open the 2016 season against Ole Miss on Sept. 5 in Orlando.