There’s not much else to be said about how successful Florida State has been when it comes to putting players into the National Football League. Not only does FSU have 18 players selected over the past two years, but it now has a chance to break a record held by the legendary Miami Hurricane teams of 2002-2004 for players drafted over a 3-year span. Florida State’s recent draft successes can officially move from “great” to “legendary” if everything goes as planned in this year’s draft.
That wasn’t always the case over the last decade however. For a while it looked like the Seminoles may never revert to their once dominant form that controlled the 1990s and the first few years of the 2000s. Bobby Bowden was forced out and an up-and-coming Jimbo Fisher was next in line, but not many people knew what to expect from a guy with no prior head coaching experience. He has since put doubts to rest and then some.
One of Fisher’s biggest strengths is how well he develops talent which leads to his players seeing opportunities in the NFL. While the earlier drafts might not be indicative of his true ability, they still hold FSU players that can speak to the program’s success. Over the next few days, we’ll break each of the four drafts during Fisher’s tenure and see just how well his players have performed in the pros.
RALEIGH, NC – OCTOBER 28: Christian Ponder #7 of the Florida State Seminoles drops back to throw a pass against the North Carolina State Wolfpack during their game at Carter-Finley Stadium on October 28, 2010 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
Christian Ponder (QB) – 1st Round, 12th Pick, Minnesota Vikings
Ponder was yet another Fisher quarterback to get drafted into the league (seventh at the time to be exact) and the first of what will be three straight FSU quarterbacks. Originally a 3-star coming out of Texas, Ponder would be vital to Florida State’s return to prominence and hold a special place in many fan’s hearts. While he had trouble staying healthy, Ponder still had a good senior year with the team and was the first Seminole quarterback since Chris Weinke to beat both Florida and Miami in the same season.
Unfortunately, his professional career hasn’t gone as swimmingly. He had a bit of a rough rookie season, but that was to be expected. Ponder actually showed a lot of hope for the Minnesota Vikings in 2012 when he threw for 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while starting all 16 regular season games before missing the Wild Card game. Despite this, Ponder never separated himself from other candidates on the roster and a bad start in 2013 led to him being replaced by Matt Cassel. Suffice to say he never lived up to his top 15 status, though to be fair he was originally predicted as a late first round or early second round pick. At the time, very few Vikings fans were upset with the pick.
Some were maybe too optimistic. One user on the linked Vikings’ fan site writes: “Andy Dalton is not even close to being in the same class as Christian Ponder… I’ll give Leslie credit for this one, it was a great pick.” Ahhhh, hindsight.
Eventually, Ponder turned into an unrestricted free agent and recently signed with the Oakland Raiders.
KANSAS CITY, MO – AUGUST 10: Center Rodney Hudson #61 of the Kansas City Chiefs gets set at the line against the Arizona Cardinals during the first half on August 10, 2012 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
Rodney Hudson (C) – 2nd Round, 55th Pick, Kansas City Chiefs
The most decorated lineman in FSU history was a staple of the offense for four years, which included three All-ACC and two first team All-American selections. Offensive linemen usually don’t have the highlight tapes or the notoriety, but Hudson came close. He was an excellent guard for FSU and was picked in the second round only for his lack of size. He has since switched to center in the NFL.
Hudson is currently the highest paid center in the league after being signed by the Oakland Raiders. He finally came through for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013 when he had a breakout season and proved himself as a player with serious potential. ProFootballFocus ranked Hudson as the third best center in the NFL after the 2014 season and said that he has gotten better in each consecutive season. Should that trend continue, Hudson might have a legitimate claim to being the best center in the league. Cameron Erving certainly has big shoes to fill.
ATLANTA, GA – DECEMBER 31: Markus White #98 of the Florida State Seminoles against the South Carolina Gamecocks during the 2010 Chick-fil-A Bowl at Georgia Dome on December 31, 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Markus White (DE) – 7th Round, 224th Pick, Washington
White was a guy who many FSU fans were excited to have at the time, but he seems to have faded a bit from memory in recent years. This is a bit unfortunate, because he was a really valuable player during his time at FSU when he and Brandon Jenkins formed a monstrous duo at defensive end. He had over 8.5 sacks and 25 tackles for loss during his senior season.
White was forced to move to outside linebacker when he entered the draft, and the position switch proved to be more difficult than expected. After an injury occurred in the 2012 preseason, White was waived by the Washington Redskins only a year after his draft selection. From there on, White experienced a sort of back-and-forth with Washington and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as they both kept signing and releasing him from active roster to practice roster and back again. Eventually he signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League, where he plays currently.
