Freshman standout Jasen Lopez is turning heads in Jacksonville, challenging experienced sophomore Jayvan Boggs for a starting role as Mike Norvell’s explosive offense takes shape during fall camp.
As the Florida State football team practiced in Jacksonville, Florida over the past few sessions of fall camp, a battle was brewing on the perimeter to see who would take over the No. 3 receiver slot in Mike Norvell’s offense this season.
Over the summer, when college football analyst Phil Steele was talking to coaches and putting together his team pages for his blockbuster preview magazine, Steele listed sophomore receiver Jayvan Boggs as the No. 3 wideout for the Seminoles.
But so far in fall camp, freshman receiver Jasen Lopez has turned heads and caught the attention of the coaching staff with his steady play and highlight-reel catches.
Jayvan Boggs
Last season, Boggs saw action in eight games and caught nine passes for 103 yards and a touchdown, that lone score coming in a 74-point destruction of East Texas A&M. At 6-foot-1, 209 pounds, Boggs’ season-high was four catches for 56 yards in a loss to NC State.
As a high school senior at Cocoa High School in Cocoa, Florida, Boggs set himself apart from the rest of the crowd, earning a spot on the coveted ESPN300 list. In addition, he was rated as the No. 12 receiver nationally by Rivals.
Boggs caught 99 passes for 2,133 yards and 24 touchdowns on his way to earning Max Prep All-American honors. He set a single-season state record with 17 catches for 378 yards and three touchdowns in the state semifinals. Boggs chose the Seminoles over Florida, Ohio State and UCF. After a year in Norvell’s system, Boggs does have an advantage in experience.
Jasen Lopez
A 2-sport star for the Seminoles, Lopez also plays basketball for Florida State. Lopez prepped at Chaminade-Madonna High School in Hollywood, Florida, where he was a 2-sport star as well.
A Florida high school phenom, Lopez was a four-star standout ranked among the top 30 receivers nationally by 247 Sports. As a senior, Lopez hauled in 56 passes for 1,005 yards and 11 touchdowns. For his prep career, Lopez posted 313 catches for 5,211 yards and 59 touchdowns. He recorded four straight 1,000-yard seasons with 10+ touchdowns.
As a basketball player at Chaminade-Madonna Lopez averaged 24.3 points per game, along with 6.2 rebounds, four steals, and 3.6 assists in 96 games played. Lopez chose Florida State over Miami, Ohio State, and Florida.
In fall camp, Lopez has been nothing but consistent and has been a pleasant surprise so far. That is significant when you consider that Lopez missed a lot of spring practice because the college basketball season was still going on.
Fellow 2-sport and projected No, 2 receiver Micahi Danzy also missed a ton of football reps in the spring because he was running track for the Seminoles.
Lopez has shown Norvell and his coaching staff his value to the receiving corps and that he belongs on the field with No. 1 receiver Duce Robinson. He is a possession receiver that can make plays in space to extend drives and also to score touchdowns. As a result, Boggs might be out of a job this season as the No. 3 pass-catcher. The battle continues.
The Seminoles' receiving corps will be one of the most talented position groups on the team. Lopez and the rest of the receivers could be the catalyst for the Seminoles' first winning season since 2023. Just three more Saturdays until the season opener against New Mexico State.
