Tag: Florida State Seminoles

Paul Finebaum believes LSU will bounce back from opening loss

Game 1 did not go as planned for Brian Kelly and the LSU Tigers, but the season is not over.

Game 1 did not go as planned for [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] and the LSU Tigers, but the season is not over. We’re just getting started.

LSU lost the opener last year and still ended up one win away from being in the College Football Playoffs. So, the sky isn’t falling. LSU will get a chance to fix everything that went wrong over the course of this season. That will start at home against Grambling State this Saturday.

Paul Finebaum was asked his thoughts on LSU after their loss to Florida State. He still thinks the Tigers have a shot in the long run.

“LSU can come back. I’m not concerned,” Finebaum said on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning. “Brian Kelly is a superior, elite coach. (I’m not sure) whether he can completely fix all the problems, but he’s not going to see a team like (FSU) for a while. And I think that’s to his advantage.”

He makes a good point. LSU won’t play a team that is ranked as highly as Florida State was until the Tigers take on Alabama in November. A lot can change between now and then.

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Brian Kelly says Florida State game was a ‘total failure’

The Tigers will get a chance to right their wrongs this weekend against Grambling State.

LSU entered Sunday night’s game with a lot of high expectations.

The Tigers had hopes of an undefeated season and possibly a Heisman campaign for [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag]. While Daniels is still a possible Heisman winner, the dream of an undefeated season flew out the window when LSU was outscored 31-7 in the second half by Florida State.

LSU’s offense could not get anything going and the secondary got smoked by Jordan Travis, Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson. The LSU faithful was stunned. The only thing [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] can do now is learn from this week’s errors and fix the mistakes. He was asked what he thought about his team’s performance after the game and here’s what he had to say.

“But this is a total failure on a coaching standpoint and a player standpoint that we have to obviously address and we have to own,” Kelly said. “I know adversity is always going to strike at some time in this game and this is our first real piece of adversity, if you will, that we have to address. I’m confident our guys and our coaches will rally in the manner that they need to.”

The Tigers will get a chance to right their wrongs this weekend against Grambling State.

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College Football Power Rankings: Florida State makes a statement, Colorado announces arrival

Florida State and Colorado pick up big wins in week one, leading to big moves in this week’s College Football Power Rankings.

The first full week of college football didn’t disappoint. There were upsets, fantastic individual performances and some really good football games.

The Colorado Buffaloes put on a show in their first game under Deion Sanders, who, for at least one week, had his roster building approach validated.

Sanders took a great deal of criticism in the spring for the overhaul that occurred to Colorado’s one-win team in 2022. While there may still be room for criticism, he’s 1-0 as a Power Five head coach and picked up a big win in the process over a top-25 team.

Though TCU may have flaws, Sanders has legitimate star power on his roster. His son, Shedeur Sanders, carved up TCU’s defense for more than 500 passing yards and four touchdowns. Travis Hunter, who was the top prospect in the 2022 signing class, showed it with more than 100 receiving yards and an interception. Then there was Dylan Edwards, a player who was on the radar of numerous Power Five schools before making his way to Boulder. He was electric in his first collegiate game.

It’s unlikely they’ll win every game, but the signs are there that Deion Sanders has Colorado heading for “Prime Time.”

Let’s take a look at this week’s college football power rankings.

Dropped Out

  • TCU Horned Frogs lost to Colorado Buffaloes
  • Texas Tech lost to Wyoming
  • South Carolina lost to North Carolina

Brian Kelly explains Harold Perkins’ quiet night against Florida State

Perkins totaled five tackles but did little to impact the game while seeing mostly inside linebacker snaps on Sunday night.

When LSU’s defense took the field against a talented Florida State offense on Sunday night, all eyes were on No. 4.

[autotag]Harold Perkins[/autotag] enters his sophomore year with high expectations after becoming one of the SEC’s most impactful pass rushers as a true freshman, but Sunday night wasn’t the introduction many expected.

It was an overall quite game for Perkins, who totaled five tackles (two solo) but did little else to impact the stat-sheet or the game as he was largely anonymous, especially as Florida State’s offense started pulling away in the second half.

He primarily played off the ball at inside linebacker, and his edge rushing snaps came at a premium. After the game, [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] said he’s still facing a learning curve at linebacker.

“What was missing? Well, I mean, you know, he’s playing a position for the first time,” Kelly said. “So there’s a learning curve there. He’s learning. He’s learning how to play linebacker for the first time. You know, we put him in a position last year where he was see ball, get ball.

“Now he’s in a position where, you know, he’s got to get over the top. He’s got a back coming out of the backfield. He’s got to be disciplined and can’t lose his eyes on the quarterback mesh. Fourth down, there’s a lot going on there, and he’s trying to sort it out. You’re catching a young player early on in his career, and he’s going through some growing pains.”

Perkins could settle into his new role as the season goes on, but it seems fair to question if sacrificing his impact as a pass-rusher is worth the potential reward.

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Brian Kelly addresses Logan Diggs’ absence against Florida State

It seems Logan Diggs was not 100% as he was held out in what Brian Kelly called a “coach’s decision.”

Outside of Jayden Daniels’ solid production on the ground, LSU’s running backs failed to make much of an impact against a strong Florida State defensive front in Sunday night’s 45-24 loss to Florida State.

Disregarding a 35-yard run by [autotag]Josh Williams[/autotag] — the group’s only explosive carry of the night — LSU’s running back room totaled just 14 yards on 11 carries.

There were some key players missing, however. [autotag]Armoni Goodwin[/autotag] was out as he continues to work his way back from a hamstring injury, while [autotag]John Emery Jr.[/autotag] was unavailable for unspecified reasons.

However, one surprise was that [autotag]Logan Diggs[/autotag], a Notre Dame transfer and late addition to the roster, didn’t suit up. After the game, coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] addressed Diggs’ absence and the play of the group, in general.

“Well, I mean, everybody is searching for balance in the running game,” he said. “So we didn’t have the kind of balance that we needed. Logan Diggs was a coach’s decision. I don’t know quite whether he’s a hundred percent and able to practice at the level that we need him to quite yet.

Yeah, I mean, look, everybody is looking for that balance in the running game. You saw what we tried to do. We tried to run the football in those very important downs, and we weren’t as effective. And we are going to go back and we are going to work on it, and we are going to continue to be diligent in those areas because we’ve got to be better at it. So we’ve got a minimum of 11 more games, and I’m going to tell you now that we are going to be better and we are going to commit ourselves to that.”

Though he wasn’t listed on the injury report during the week, it seems the coaches saw something that caused them to scratch him from the active roster.

LSU will hope it can find more production from its run game beyond Daniels once the running back room is back closer to full strength in the coming weeks.

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Everything Brian Kelly said after LSU’s season-opening loss to Florida State

Brian Kelly took the podium on Sunday night following a disappointing 45-24 loss to the Seminoles to begin the season.

The LSU Tigers’ 2023 campaign began with high expectations, but one game into the season, we have more questions than answers.

LSU led by three against Florida State at halftime in a top-10 matchup on Sunday night, but the Tigers allowed FSU to score 31 unanswered points to wrest control of the game and ultimately win it 45-24.

It was a disappointing outing for a Tigers team that entered as a 2.5-point favorite, and now LSU has a lot to work on against Grambling in Week 2 before it begins SEC play with a road contest against Mississippi State.

Here’s how coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] addressed his team’s performances following the game.

2024 draft scouting first impression: Florida State QB Jordan Travis

Travis started out slow but then he and the Seminoles put on a show

Florida State quarterback Jordan Travis is one of the potential 2024 NFL draft QBs with a lot of seeming upward mobility. He proved that in the Seminoles’ opening weekend win over LSU in Orlando.

It didn’t look so promising early on. Travis misfired on a couple of early throws and then threw one of the worst interceptions of the season. Delayed timing on a screen pass turned into an easy gift to the Tigers defense, with Travis never seeing CB Duce Chestnut waiting for his short pass.

He nearly repeated that gaffe on the very next drive too with a panicked heave over the middle under pressure that should have been picked off by LSU.

The inability to handle pressure from LSU, particularly interior pressure from impressive DT Mekhi Wingo, stood out for Travis in the first few drives. Then the 6-foot-1 senior settled in and showed why he’s a darkhorse Heisman candidate and potential Day 2 draft pick.

After starting the game 9-for-16 with the INT, Travis was dialed in the rest of the way. He showcased the pinpoint ball placement and touch that excites NFL scouts, layering in passes between defenders and over feebly outstretched arms. Travis also appeared to have a better feeling for his escape routes when the pass rush got near.

He’s got clean footwork and a release that can shorten if needed. Travis showed the read-option ability on his rushing touchdown, a masterful read and fake that left the LSU defense dejectedly pointing fingers at one another. He accelerated away from the rush nicely on a couple of occasions while keeping his eyes down the field, more scouting catnip.

The ability to shake off a slow start is an important trait for quarterbacks. Instead of getting down or changing his approach, Travis settled in and trusted in himself and in spectacular transfer WR Keon Coleman (9 catches, 122 yards, 3 TDs). He completed 14 of his final 15 passes and could easily have been mistaken for Jalen Hurts or Deshaun Watson in doing so.

It was an overall impressive start on the path to the draft for Travis, who now draws Southern Miss on Saturday.

Five numbers that defined LSU’s loss to Florida State

Here are five stats that defined LSU’s season opening loss to FSU.

LSU took a drubbing from Florida State on Sunday night.

After leading 17-14 at the half, FSU opened the floodgates in the second half. Everything started to go wrong for LSU and missed chances from earlier in the night came back to haunt the Tigers.

Now, we’ll take a peak at the numbers to see exactly where it all went wrong. The answer: a little bit of everything.

LSU will look to right the ship next week in its home opener against in-state FCS opponent Grambling.

Here are five stats that defined LSU’s opening season loss to Florida State.

Photos from LSU’s season-opening 45-24 loss to Florida State in Orlando

The Tigers couldn’t keep pace in the second half against the Seminoles.

The Tigers entered the 2023 season with College Football Playoff hopes.

After an incredibly disappointing 45-24 loss to Florida State to kick off the year, perhaps it’s time to recalibrate those hopes.

Despite taking a 17-14 lead to the locker room against the Seminoles, LSU was dominated in the second half of what became a 45-24 loss. A costly interception from Jayden Daniels halted a comeback effort, and the Tigers couldn’t slow down Jordan Travis and the FSU passing attack.

LSU will have the chance to work on its issues when it hosts Grambling in its home opener next weekend. For now, here were the photos from Sunday night’s tough loss.

Five takeaways from LSU’s loss to Florida State

LSU entered the night with high hopes. It’s hard to imagine a more disappointing result.

LSU lost its fourth straight season opener on Sunday night.

Seeking revenge against Florida State from last year’s opening loss, LSU lost 45-24.

Despite the expectations, LSU came out flat.

[autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag] was 22/37 for 347 yards and led LSU with 90 yards rushing (not accounting for sack yardage).

[autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag] led all LSU receivers with seven catches for 142 yards.

The talk around this LSU team will be a lot different than it was entering the week. It’s hard to imagine a result worse than what LSU suffered here.

LSU will get a chance to reset next week against an FCS opponent, but until then, here are five takeaways.