Stock Up for Florida State Running Backs Coach Kam Martin
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Four games into this season, the Florida State Seminoles are tied for fifth in the ACC in rushing touchdowns with 10, under the expert tutelage of running backs coach Kam Martin. In a season full of inconsistent performance in other areas through four games, it is a strong start for Martin and his running back room.
A former position coach at Tulsa and UCF, this is Martin’s first year as running backs coach for the Seminoles, Martin has hit the ground running (pun intended) with his unit being a position of strength for Florida State this season. A former running back at Auburn, Martin has had productive running backs at every coaching stop in his career.
Of the 10 rushing touchdowns so far this season, five have been scored by bell cow ball carrier Ousmane Kromah. Kromah has rushed for 397 yards and has averaged 6.20 yards per carry through the first month of the season.
This unit took a hit with the injury to Sam Singleton Jr. Singleton suffered a knee injury in the Alabama game, and will be out for an extended amount of time. Singleton had three touchdowns on the season, one rushing and two receiving. He averaged over 20 yards per catch out of the backfield. In addition, he also averaged 32 yards per kickoff return. Needless to say, Singleton’s versatility is sorely missed.
That injury has opened a spot for Quintrevion Wisner. Wisner carries eight times for 41 yards, his best game this season. However, he has not scored this season. Wisner’s shifty style of running is the perfect complement to Kromah’s 6-foot-1 frame running over defenders.
Against Virginia, Martin and his pupils will face a Cavaliers rushing defense that has been stingy against lesser competition such as Norfolk State and Delaware, where they allowed less than 100 yards rushing to both teams. But against a Power 4 team like West Virginia, they allowed 247 yards on the ground and three touchdowns in a 38-27 defeat.
So, Martin and head coach Mike Norvell need to come together at the whiteboard and figure out which plays to call to best take advantage of Kromah’s power running ability and Wisner’s shiftiness to wear down the Cavaliers defensive line and get to the second and third levels of Virginia’s defense on their way to the end zone.
Coach Martin has put his prints on the running game at Florida State, and Martin’s history bodes well for the Seminoles backfield. At each one of his coaching stops, Martin has coached a 1,000-yard rusher: at Tulsa last season, and at UCF coaching RJ Harvey to 2,993 rushing yards and 38 touchdowns combined in the 2023-2024 season. At Incarnate Word, Martin coached his unit to 3,011 rushing yards, setting a school record.
Make no mistake, Florida State will have to play a complete game on both sides of the ball for the entire 60 minutes on Saturday. The Seminoles can soften up the Virginia defense by running the ball, and then hit them with an effective passing game, for a more balanced attack.
Do that, and the Seminoles can win their first conference game of 2026. If they fail, it will be yet another nail in the coffin of the Florida State football program this season.
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