There were a number of story lines that can and have been examined from Florida State’s thrilling 20-19 victory over Miami on Saturday. Whether it was FSU’s significant improvement on defense, the irony of a missed kick in the rivalry going against Miami or Dalvin Cook’s continued domination of his hometown school, it wasn’t hard an aspect of the game to focus on.
While bouncing back from a heartbreaking loss to get the hard-fought victory was the biggest takeaway for FSU, Ermon Lane’s move to safety was perhaps the biggest “feel good” aspect of a highly-entertaining football game.
Once a 5-star wide receiver recruit out of South Florida, Lane’s career began in 2014 with a lot of promise. As a freshman, Lane caught 13 passes for 267 yards — a 20.5 yards per catch average — and a touchdown. As a sophomore last year, his production was more than cut in half as he finished with just 50 yards receiving on six catches.
Through the first month of the 2016 season, Lane had yet to record a reception while being lapped on the depth chart by younger players like Nyqwan Murray and Auden Tate.
Rather than fade into irrelevancy or transfer, Lane has worked to find a way to help the program he committed to two years ago. He’s done so by being willing to adapt to a new position — strong safety.
In Saturday’s win over Miami, Lane was a key contributor for a Florida State defense that played by far its best game of the season. Lane finished with four tackles, including a beautiful stop at the line of scrimmage on a running play early on and seemed to do a good job when it came to knowing where he was supposed to be in pass coverage — something that was hardly a strength for FSU going in.
At 6-3 and about 210 pounds, Lane has a build made for the strong safety position. With Derwin James out, Nate Andrews hurt and A.J. Westbrook struggling, the Seminoles have had a real void to fill at safety. On Saturday night, Lane took a good first step in doing just that.
During his weekly Monday press conference, FSU head coach Jimbo Fisher said that Lane had asked to move to safety before Fisher went on to on praise his physicality and ability to pick up the schemes quickly. All four of Lane’s tackles Saturday night were solo stops.
“They trusted me enough to go out there and I gave them what they expected,” Lane said. “I’ve been playing well. They just gave me a chance to show it and I took full advantage.”
In a day and age where folks tend to gripe (often legitimately) about young athletes being narcissistic or entitled, it’s nice to see a former high school All-American willing to swallow his pride, step out of his comfort zone and adapt for the betterment of his team. The coming weeks will tell whether or not Lane can build on a solid first showing at safety, but if nothing else, he’ll always be able to say that he played a significant role in an FSU victory over Miami — its seventh straight in the series.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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