Florida State football freshmen Jake Weinberg may be next great kicker

Freshman Jake Weinberg is aware of Florida State football' s reputation for producing kickers.

He even called it Kicker U at the podium on Thursday, the last day of incoming players' availability. For now, Weinberg will continue to develop his kicking game while sitting behind returning starter Ryan Fitzgerald.

“It was definitely a positive,”  Weinberg said. “I mean, not many freshman kickers are lucky to have a veteran kicker like Ryan.

He's been my guy that I've been going to for advice, kicking out there, he'll see something and tell me something about like what to change, what to do. I think I'm very lucky to have someone like him.”

He also mentioned how excited he is about working with All-American punter Alex Mastromanno .

Weinberg was a three-star prospect out of Delray Beach, Beach. He was ranked the 10th best kicker in the country according to 247 Sports.

Since last January, he has committed to FSU and remained loyal to the Seminoles throughout his recruiting. Weinberg believes his accuracy and leg power are his biggest strengths.

It also helps that he comes from a soccer background. Before he was introduced to being a placekicker at American Heritage High School, soccer was his first love.

"I played midfield, so I'd always hit like long balls and stuff like that," Weinberg said.

"I got used to, like, where it hit on the ball, and then when I switched over to kicking, it was not similar because it's different of the ball, but I feel like as I kept on kicking and getting used to it.

I definitely say over time, I've gotten better."

He once kicked a 70-yard field goal, and the video surfaced online and on social media. Weinberg talked about that day. It was a career-best unofficially for the former American Heritage kicker.

"I'd definitely say that was my best that day,” Weinberg said. “I kind of just woke up not expecting to hit a 70 that day.

My leg was feeling good. I was with my kicking coach, and I was like, all right, we'll just keep backing it up. I tried 71. I hit the crossbar, so definitely 70. But I mean, who knows?"

When Weinberg committed to FSU, one of the first people he told was former FSU great Roberto Aguayo , who lives in the same area as him.

Aguayo trained with Weinberg and stayed in contact with him throughout his football career. He also wants to train with another FSU great, Dustin Hopkins , who plays for the Cleveland Browns.

“It was kind of more of not just kicking," Weinberg said about training with Aguayo. "I was asking him questions on like his experiences, what to know and just advice as I go into my freshman year.”

D'Nas White looks to shed weight to play faster

Freshman defensive tackle D'Nas "Deebo" White weighs around 330 pounds, but he wasn't always this big.

White opened up about his earlier years of football when he played multiple positions, including quarterback, and then the impact of COVID-19 on the North Carolina native.

The weight gained from inactivity would lead him to focus on putting his hand to the dirt and playing defensive tackle.

"I wasn't really working out. So I got bigger," White said.

"I just been sitting in the house, and I got bigger and just turned into a d-lineman, but everybody told me when I got to high school that I was going to be a d-lineman so, it paid off."

White has been nationally ranked on different recruiting sites. ESPN ranked him No.13 in North Carolina.

Now he is enrolled, White is looking to shed weight so he can be agile and play faster on the line. White mentioned that he could play anywhere on the interior line.

So, he is more than willing to play either the nose tackle spot or the three-technique.

“I can play both,” White said. “I mean, I played both in high school, so I'm used to learning both positions of the defense.

D.D. Holmes looks forward to learning from veteran edge rushers

Freshman edge rusher D.D. Holmes is embracing the mental reps.

With FSU's depth on the defensive front, Holmes could sit back and learn from All-ACC rusher Patrick Payton and Georgia transfer Marvin Jones Jr.

“I like having an experienced group of guys in front of me, so I can really watch and learn,” Holmes said.

“Just follow what they do, take after what they are teaching me when they see I do something wrong.

So yeah, it's very helpful to have an experienced group of guys who want to help me and do the right things when they do what they need to do.”

Holmes also gained muscle weight after he enrolled at FSU. He now weighs around 255-260 pounds.

He was a four-star prospect and was rated as the No. 2 recruit in D.C. and the No. 38 defensive lineman nationally on 247Sports.

Holmes' mindset is to make strides in his position while playing the long game, hoping to see the field at a higher level on the defensive end.

"I want to look at guys like Marvin (Jones Jr.) and Pat (Payton) so I can see what they do in our defense, replicate that, and get on the field as soon as possible," Holmes said.

Florida State Seminoles 2024 Football Schedule

• Aug. 24 vs. Georgia Tech *Dublin, Ireland at 7:30 p.m., ESPN
• Sept. 2 vs. Boston College at 7:30 p.m., ESPN
• Sept. 14 vs. Memphis
• Sept. 21 vs. California
• Sept. 28 at SMU
• Oct. 5 vs. Clemson
• Oct. 18 at Duke
• Oct. 26 at (U) Miami
• Nov. 2 vs. North Carolina
• Nov. 9 at Notre Dame
• Nov. 23 vs. Charleston Southern
• Nov. 30: Florida
• Dec. 7: ACC Championship

BOLD = ACC

* = Neutral Site

Peter Holland Jr. covers Florida State athletics for Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at PHolland@Gannett.com or on X @_Da_pistol.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida State football freshmen Jake Weinberg may be next great kicker