Which Florida State players are particularly essential to the Seminoles’ success this season? Weighing that question, Noles247 composes a list of FSU’s 30 Most Important Players for 2017 ahead of preseason camp.

We conclude our countdown with QB Deondre Francois.

First, here is how we assembled our list of FSU’s 30 Most Important Players: We tried to blend overall talent and projected contribution in 2017 with how vital a player’s success is to the team’s success. This list isn’t solely based on the mindset of “who is the best” talent. So a player at a position of more significance -- like quarterback -- will be given more consideration than a player at a less impactful position. Additionally, we focused on depth and stability at each position to determine just how “important” a player will be for FSU this season.

Francois’ Profile

Class: RS Soph.

Height: 6-1

Weight: 199

Hometown: Orlando, Fla.

High School: Bradenton IMG Academy

247Sports Composite ranking: four-star (2015)

-- No. 66 overall nationally

-- No. 3 pro-style QB

-- No. 11 in Florida

Stats

--2016: 235 of 400 (58.8%) for 3,350 passing yards, 20 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Sacked 34 times. Started 13 of 13 games for FSU.



2017 Outlook

Francois will be the focal point of FSU’s offense after a strong rookie campaign. As a freshman, Francois displayed toughness, poise and the athleticism needed to thrive at the college level. Teammates gravitated toward Francois as he demonstrated the ability to take one hit after another without wilting.

Now Francois must take his game to another level. Can he become more consistent as a passer and will he learn to get rid of the ball quickly in order to avoid taking so many hits? It’s essential that Francois improves in these areas if FSU is going to contend for a national title.



Why No. 1

No Dalvin Cook means there will be more pressure on Francois to carry FSU’s offense and generate big plays when things begin to stall. Francois loses a few reliable targets as well in WRs Travis Rudolph, Kermit Whitfield and Jesus Wilson, so he’ll need to be sharp in leading the offense and making sure receivers are on the same page.

Francois may not be the most talented player on FSU’s roster -- that distinction goes to Derwin James -- but he’s the most important because he’s simply the most irreplaceable piece. If Francois were to go down, FSU would be without an experienced backup. Last year the Seminoles had a steady option in Sean Maguire. This year, they have J.J. Cosentino (2.4 yards per attempt on 19 career passes) and two raw freshmen in Bailey Hockman and James Blackman. And that’s it.

FSU’s offense is dependent on Francois because there is a shortage of proven playmakers around him, and the lack of depth at quarterback further emphasizes Francois’ importance to the 2017 Seminoles. In short, losing Francois for any significant stretch would be borderline disastrous and that's why he's our No. 1 player.

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