The Daily Nole

Where Will Derwin James Rank All-Time at FSU?

Jeremy Esbrandt/FSU athletics

Florida State defensive back Derwin James recently announced that he would be skipping this year’s Independence Bowl in order to prepare for the upcoming NFL Draft. Almost no Seminole fan was surprised by his decision. James is a projected top 10 pick who has already experienced a serious injury in an unnecessary game — risking that for a meaningless game against Southern Mississippi would almost be reckless.

That will be all she wrote for James’ FSU career. After coming in as the highest rated safety recruit of all-time, James legitimately played for just two seasons — which was not unexpected considering his hype. From a pure results standpoint, it was a mixed bag.

FSU went 16-9 in the two years that he played with one major bowl appearance. It did go 2-0 against Florida and 1-1 against Miami at least, which is always a mark to be proud of.

Where James obviously shines is personal accolades. His true freshman season was absurd by all accounts with 91 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, and two forced fumbles. James established himself as a rising star in college football that was perfectly set to live up to his massive expectations.

Obviously, the unexpected happened in 2016 and he was injured two games in. It was deflating, but he still had 2017 to dominate on the field and help bring FSU what he sought when he first committed to the university.

His past season was not bad by any means. James actually finished the season as the highest rated safety by Pro Football Focus. What seems to have happened is a mix of both role change and decreased attention due to his team’s situation.

Defensive coordinator Charles Kelly was more hesitant on using James in the box like he did in 2015. This meant that James had more coverage responsibilities and therefore less opportunity to make “flashy” plays behind the line of scrimmage. When he did get the chance, he had promising results, with the link above detailing how he had the most quarterback pressures of any pure safety.

There’s also the plain fact that 6-6 teams do not get much media attention. James still had a great season, if not the immaculate season he was projected to have. But when your team misses a month of football due to a hurricane, and then struggles for bowl-eligibility, chances are your talent simply won’t receive the praise that it should.

That places James in a weird position. Let’s play the hypothetical game and say that James has the exact same season he did this year — but instead of 6-6, Florida State finishes at 10-2. The Seminoles go to another major bowl and James is still selected as an All-American. How much credit does he receive then?

Obviously the counter to that is “If he had made more plays, they wouldn’t be 6-6”, but James can only control so much of what the other 21 players on the field achieve. If you’re rated as the best safety in the country (or at least are top five at your position) then not much more can be asked of you. The point is that James would likely receive his rightful attention, and Seminole fans would be discussing where he places in the pantheon of FSU greats.

The title of “best FSU safety of all-time” is not too hard to receive — relatively speaking. Compared to other positions on defense, safety is surprisingly shallow when considering past greats. Most probably have a group of three that include Leroy Butler, Monk Bonasorte, and J.T. Thomas. Butler was the only player not from the 1970s to be in the discussion. James will finish his career with more honors than any of those before him.

Yet there’s still something holding him back. There’s still something that prevents us from claiming “James is a top 10 FSU defender of all-time” despite him likely being the best safety to ever come through the program.

Pretty much anyone in consideration for all-time status in FSU history has a moment (or moments) where they showcased their greatness in some special manner. It can be either signature wins or signature individual plays. Examples include Deion Sanders and his punt return against Clemson; or Marvin Jones and his absurd 1991 season. When we look back at James’ career up to this point, what are we going to remember?

There’s basically nothing that emphasizes what made Derwin James so amazing. There’s a cool play against Florida in 2015. His freshman season in general was pretty good and got a lot of fans excited for the future of the program. But how much can those actually boost his legacy?

Derwin James may have simply been a victim of when he came into the program. A declining Jimbo Fisher and maligned defensive coordinator meant that James could only accomplish a limited amount in his time at college. The school he loved since he was young was simply past its prime during the Fisher era.

Chances are that he will enter the NFL and immediately impress. Players with his physical tools and ability to impact a game come around just once in a blue moon. He will once again likely be held back due to his team (since they’ll be picking early in the draft), but it’s hard not to see him forcing his way into the spotlight.

So where does James fall? He fits squarely into the same spot that players like Lawrence Timmons and Antonio Cromartie fall into. If they had been at FSU during any other 4-year stretch, their legacy would be too good to deny. Instead, their talent was partially wasted on teams that could not live up to standards. We will always be left wondering what they could have done under a different regime.

In the end, Derwin James gave Florida State all he could. He never stopped caring, never became a locker room distraction, and kept his head up after wins and losses alike. He now has a chance to fully thrive in his professional career. Those are things that every Florida State fan can look back on and now, forward to.

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