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They don’t call Mike Norvell the portal king for no reason! The Noles have been loading up on some quality transfers, but this a HUGE commitment from Alabama transfer wide receiver Malik Benson.
Benson is a gifted route runner and has the speed to take the top off of defenses. He was clocked in the 10.4s in the 100-meter dash. According to the 247 database, Benson was an unranked prospect coming out of high school. From there, he attended JUCO powerhouse Hutchinson Community College and worked his way to being a 4-star and the top-ranked JUCO player in the nation! On3 even had Benson listed as a 5-star.
While at Hutchinson, Benson caught over 100 passes and put up an astounding 2,206 yards with 21 touchdowns in two seasons. He led the team in receiving yards both of his years there and averaged a whopping 111.7 yards per game his freshman year. You’re probably thinking, but it was JUCO… You’re not wrong, but Hutchinson is no slouch at producing talent. They currently have 17 players who have passed through that are currently active on NFL rosters. They have had names like Alvin Kamara and Cordarrelle Patterson spend time there. In Benson’s final season, they finished 11-1. Keep in mind the last FSU player to come out of JUCO, Jermaine Johnson II, ended up being a first-round NFL draft pick…
After putting himself on the map at the JUCO level, Benson earned 25 division one offers which included schools like Alabama, Georgia, LSU, and Oregon. Malik chose Alabama where he spent one season (2023) with the Tide. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound receiver started six games and appeared in all fourteen. While he only put up 162 yards and 1 touchdown, that had a lot to do with a lack of targets in a Bama passing offense that finished 70th. Benson was targeted just 21 times all season and only targeted more than twice in a game once. Benson was only credited with one dropped pass all season.
Here’s Tom Luginbill with some praise for Benson after watching him practice at Alabama.
High praise for Alabama WR signee Malik Benson (@Leek_leek5) from @TomLuginbill. #RTR 🐘
— GoatHouseBama (@GoatHouseBama) January 6, 2023
🎥: @NextRoundLive pic.twitter.com/l7MWUzuksQ
Florida State has to replace both of its leading receivers from last season and Benson will go a long way in accomplishing that. FSU has a loaded receiver room, but it lacks experience. Benson may not have a lot of production to rely on at the Power 5 level, but he was insanely productive in JUCO and played 350 snaps at Bama last season.
Malik Benson will join fellow blue-chip receiver Jalen Brown from LSU, who became part of Tribe 24 a few days earlier. Incoming veteran quarterback DJ Uiagalelei has to be excited about the addition of a few extra talented targets to throw to this upcoming season on top of what FSU already has. I can’t wait to see how a talented player like Benson will perform in Mike Norvell’s offense. Thanks for reading and Go Noles!
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