Florida State Football: Top 5 Freshman Contributors This Season

While Florida State's season may not be playing out as they expected, head coach Jimbo Fisher can take solace in the fact that the young players that have been pressed into action have lived up to their lofty prep credentials.

The Seminoles signed a top-flight recruiting class in February, littered with high school All-Americans who were supposed to get acclimated as backups on a preseason top-five team who returned 18 starters. 

The injury bug struck the Seminoles like a plague in their loss to Oklahoma, and as a result, several true freshmen were getting their first taste of big time college football after only a couple of months on campus.  

After the 'Noles stumbled to a 2-3 start, they have rebounded to win three straight games in impressive fashion, with true freshmen leading the team in rushing yards and touchdowns via the ground and through the air.  

Here are FSU's top five freshman contributors this season. 

5. Nick O'Leary

Florida State has fielded its share of dynamic offenses through the years.  

However, one element they have always been missing is a pass-catching tight end who could stretch the middle of the field.  

Enter the 6'4", 240-pound O'Leary, who has taken over as the starter for senior Beau Reliford, and leads Seminole tight ends with nine catches for 77 yards and a touchdown this season.  

As he gets more familiar with the offense and learns the blocking schemes, expect O'Leary to become a major part of Jimbo Fisher's offense for years to come.  

4. Bobby Hart

When Bobby Hart first stepped foot on Florida State's practice fields this summer, he did so at the tender age of 16.  

So while most kids his age are learning how to drive, Hart was undergoing a baptism by fire playing for fiery FSU offensive line coach Rick Trickett.  

Hart has matured quickly, on and off the field.  

He turned 17 in August, and when starting left tackle Andrew Datko was shelved due to a shoulder injury, the 'Noles shuffled their lineup and inserted Hart as the starter at right tackle.  

Hart struggled in his first start against Wake Forest but has considerably improved since, helping the 'Noles ignite their once-anemic ground attack.   

3. Timmy Jernigan

Coming into the season, Florida State was loaded with talent and experience on a defensive line unit who helped tie for the national lead in sacks in 2010.  

After signing the highly touted U.S. Army All-American Jernigan, he wasted little time in establishing himself as a force to be reckoned with in the middle of the FSU defensive line.  

Jernigan is coming off of a breakout performance last week against N.C. State (five tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, one fumble recovery) that earned him ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week honors.

Jernigan has totalled 21 tackles, 2.5 sacks and four tackles for loss thus far, and he will see increased action with the loss of starter Jacobbi McDaniel to injury.

2. Devonta Freeman

Freeman got a jump on fellow star freshman running back James Wilder Jr. by enrolling early in January and going through spring practice.  

With starting running back Chris Thompson lost for the season after being injured against Wake Forest, Freeman responded with back-to-back games over 100 yards against Duke and Maryland.  

Despite veterans Jermaine Thomas and Ty Jones returning to the FSU backfield, the freshman from Miami has emerged as the new starter with Thompson out.

Freeman is the Seminoles leading rusher this season with 58 carries for 305 yards and four touchdowns.

Look for his role in the offense to expand in the final month of the season.   

1. Rashad Greene

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the 2011 recruiting class has been the rise of the 6'0", 175-pound Greene.  

He scored a touchdown on his first reception in the season opener against Louisiana-Monroe, and the only thing that has slowed him down since has been an ankle injury suffered in a career high 12-catch, 163-yard performance against Wake Forest on Oct. 8.  

In fact, Greene scored a touchdown in every game he has played in thus far, but he has missed the last three games nursing his injury.  

Still, the dynamic Greene is the team's second leading receiver with 26 catches for 457 yards and has found the end zone a team high six times this season.  

In a class loaded with stars, it has been the electric Greene who has shined the brightest thus far.