Before it was put into the oven, it was fed into the de-icer. Luke Kromenhoek’s initial start as a college student was marked by only moderate combat and nothing hellish.

Of course, FSU’s true freshman quarterback had made a few cameos and a few completions in the Seminoles’ first 10 games, but nothing substantial until he was named the starter for the home game against Charleston Southern last weekend. For a 19-year-old rookie, the Bucs — a Football Championship Subdivision team with a 1-10 record — were an off-Broadway debut, a smaller stage without bright lights.

Kromenhoek delivered an encouraging performance – if not an encore. The consensus four-star recruit led eight of his team’s 10 offensive possessions and completed 13 of 20 passes for 209 yards and three touchdowns in a 41-7 Noles game. Nine of his last 12 throws were completions, including a 71-yard touchdown pass to senior Ja’Khi Douglas.

“As the game went on you saw him really settle in and I think he did a good job – I say he relaxed – but in some ways he also let the game come to him,” said FSU coach Mike Norvell.

“To be able to have three touchdown passes, I made a lot of good decisions. There were some throws he missed, some bits of different reads and progressions that I think he’ll become much more efficient at. … But I thought he did a really good job as the game progressed.”

After we passed the first audition, now comes the callback. Kromenhoek, who joined the ‘Noles before his sophomore year of high school, is expected to start in Saturday night’s season finale against a resurgent Florida. With DJ Lagway as the Gators’ starter, the game will likely mark the first meeting of true freshman quarterbacks in the series’ 66-year history.

If Kromenhoek delivers, he will likely head into 2025 as the leading candidate for the starting spot next fall. While conventional logic suggests that Norvell will still explore the transfer portal to bolster depth at the position, Kromenhoek appears to have come out on top with a solid performance on Saturday night.

“He’s a great leader,” said ‘Noles redshirt senior tailback (and Pinellas Park alumnus) Lawrance Toafili.

“I feel like he handles the offense very well. He’s a young man, but he has a lot of energy and he handles himself very well, so I feel like he’ll be a good leader for the group.”

Raised in Savannah, Georgia, Kromenhoek rushed for nearly 7,000 yards and 73 touchdowns in three seasons at Benedictine Military School. Although he didn’t become the Cadets’ starting quarterback until his junior season, he impressed Norvell so much at an FSU camp that he was offered a scholarship in June 2021 – months before his sophomore year.

“We trained him here,” Gators coach Billy Napier added. “I was very impressed with him; We offered him a scholarship. Really spicy. He was actually a dual threat guy in high school, played safety, was very physical and was a good tackler. I mean, he’s one of the most respected quarterbacks in the country.”

Kromenhoek committed to the Noles nine months after receiving his offer – on March 26, 2022 – and never relented on that commitment despite a late charge from Georgia. Four days before the signing (on December 20, 2023) he issued one Post on X essentially reaffirming his loyalty to FSU.

“We kind of played phone tag for the longest time and (Georgia) took me there and they sent me home disappointed several times, which kind of made me think I was going to get an offer, but I just never did.” he said to The Osceola on signing day.

“The fact that they called at the 11th hour made me a little upset. … I got to the point in my attitude where I was like, “I’m not going anywhere else.” I don’t even want to listen to you, I don’t want to hear anything. “I know where I am, I know where I want to be. “I was 100% confident with Florida State.”

As FSU’s season went from mediocre to faltering, with opening starter DJ Uiagalelei out for the season due to injury, Kromenhoek appeared in four of the ‘Noles’ first 10 games. Before last weekend, his most extensive action came at Miami, where he completed six of 14 passes for 61 yards, but drew much more attention with his legs, rushing for 71 yards on 11 carries.

His consecutive runs of 42 and 12 yards provided FSU’s first touchdown in that 36-14 loss.

Against Charleston Southern, FSU fumbled on two of its first three possessions before Kromenhoek broke through and led four straight touchdown drives. As the game progressed, Norvell said, Kromenhoek began making checks at the line of scrimmage without having to look over at the coaches. Instead, he saw what the defense was showing and understood the formation his offense needed to get into.

“You’re a true freshman, your first time as a starter, so that brings with it some nerves,” Norvell said. “You want it to look a certain way, you want it to look a certain way, and… we missed a few things right at the beginning, just in different places, but I thought, “He handled that well and just kept playing and was able to get it going and build some of that positive momentum.”

If this momentum continues into Saturday, the Noles may – perhaps even – have found their quarterback of the future.

Specify the callback.

Contact Joey Knight at [email protected]. Follow @TBTimes_Bulls

• • •

Sign up for the Sports Today newsletter for daily coverage of the Bucs, Rays, Lightning and college football across Florida.

Never miss the latest on your favorite Tampa Bay sports teams. Follow our coverage on Instagram, X and Facebook.