Former Alabama and LSU wide receivers set to star for Florida State Seminoles as explosive playmakers for Mike Norvell

Florida State released their depth chart for the Georgia Tech game against Ireland to kick off the 2024 college football season on Sunday. And while there were a few surprises on the defensive side of the ball, perhaps one of the most important positions with key new faces starting this year comes on offense.

The Seminoles are replacing their top three receiving weapons from a year ago in Keon Coleman, Johnny Wilson, and Jaheim Bell, so those positions will be huge if Florida State wants to find consistent success this season.

According to Ira Schoffel (who covers the team) the three starting wide receivers for the first game of 2024 will be Alabama transfer wide receiver Malik Benson, LSU transfer Jalen Brown, and returning pass catcher Ja'khi Douglas.

Ja'khi Douglas actually operated as the team's third wide receiver for much of 2023, but given Mike Norvell's atypical personnel groupings (often with two tight ends or even two running backs) he played less than 300 snaps on the year. When he did play it was quite often in the slot, and that likely remains the same this season.

That means that the two primary outside wide receivers who see significant target volume will (at least to start the year) be Malik Benson and Jalen Brown. While this surprised many on Sunday, it certainly shouldn't surprise fans who have been watching closely all off-season long. New quarterback DJ Uiagalelei had this exact trio brough out to California to work with him earlier this off-season.

These two former Alabama and LSU wide receivers set to star for Florida State have quite the difficult task following up Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson, both talented players selected in this spring's NFL Draft. However, they look and play completely different than that tandem. Coleman and Wilson were tall, long, lanky wide receivers who largely failed to create consistent separation on their own. Conversely, Benson and Brown are shifty speedsters who should have no problem creating some wide open targets for Uiagalelei to hit.

However, both have very limited bodies of work against top competition. Benson starred against community college competition two years ago before his transfer to Alabama. But then he only caught 13 receptions for the Crimson Tide last seson. Brown was a Top 100 recruit in the 2023 recruiting class, but only played a dozen snaps on the year last season.

There's been significant buzz surrounding both wide receivers this off-season, but can they step up and win consistently? Malik Benson has a bit of a known ceiling given his most recent production, but he profiles like a strong WR2 for most power conference team from an athletic and proven talent standpoint. Brown is the one who might present the highest upside.

Brown was considered a Top 100 recruit for quite seriously over three years before committing to LSU as one of the most impressive young stars in South Florida high school football. He not only dominated in the fall, but also on the recruiting circuit at special events and top tier flag football tournaments. No event was too much for Brown as he even scored the very first touchdown in the Army All-American Bowl against some of the most talented players in the nation.

Brown could very well have earned a starting role with LSU this off-season, but he transferred to Florida State to push for a greater role and ceiling with Mike Norvell's explosive offensive system. Expect Brown to be unlocked quickly and become the face of the offense for the Seminoles if he's given an adequate chance with decent play from DJ Uiagalelei.

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And if you want to check out a few Malik Benson highlights from last year you can find those in the video below!