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Jared Shanker 10y

Coach Jimbo Fisher: 'We move on'

College Football, Florida State Seminoles

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida State defensive back Jalen Ramsey didn't miss a day of practice after being ejected from Sunday's session, and Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher said the team has no ill feelings toward the sophomore.

"We had a great talk," Fisher said following Monday's practice. "I get upset and get emotional, and Jalen does, too. ... He's a great kid. He's intelligent, he's smart. He got upset. I got upset. That's ball. We move on. The kid is a great kid, and he's a leader on our team."

Toward the end of practice Sunday, Ramsey traded blows with senior running back Karlos Williams. Fisher warned Ramsey to tone the aggression down, but over the course of the next two plays, Ramsey baited a receiver and then knocked down a tight end during a noncontact passing drill. Fisher had seen enough when, on what would be the star sophomore's final play, Ramsey blitzed and drove Williams into the ground, sending Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston tumbling in the process. As Ramsey jogged leisurely off the field, he and Fisher continued to exchanged words.

When Fisher met with the media Sunday, he questioned Ramsey's leadership and character.

"He'll decide if he wants to play at Florida State," Fisher said Sunday. "You're going to do things my way or they're not going to play here."

After a 24-hour cooling-off period, though, Fisher backed off those statements, defending Ramsey's integrity.

"We know we leave everything on the field, and sometimes you got to prove a point. Sometimes I'm an emotional guy, too. Maybe I shouldn't have walked over and said anything to y'all but I was honest and was trying to send him a point, but at the same time he's a great human being," Fisher said.

"I love his competitiveness. Sometimes you got to harness it. I'd rather say 'whoa' than 'giddy up.'"

As a true freshman, Ramsey was named to the freshman All-America team after starting all 14 games for the Seminoles. He was the first freshman to start at cornerback for the Seminoles since Deion Sanders in 1985.

Throughout the spring and summer, Fisher heaped praise on Ramsey and stressed the leadership qualities he has shown since the end of last season. With Timmy Jernigan, Lamarcus Joyner and Telvin Smith, the leaders of last year's defense, playing in the NFL, Ramsey has accepted the role of commanding the defense.

"He's one of the only two sophomores on our unity council as a leader of our team," Fisher said. "When you lose him, you change the team, and I want him to understand that, too."

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