Tag: Florida State Seminoles

Seminoles plummet in TCI’s latest ACC Power Rankings

After Pittsburgh defeated Tennessee at Neyland Stadium and Virginia rolled Illinois in Charlottesville, Va. it looked like a good day for the ACC last Saturday. But then Florida State lost its first ever game to an FCS opponent as Jacksonville State …

After Pittsburgh defeated Tennessee at Neyland Stadium and Virginia rolled Illinois in Charlottesville, Va. it looked like a good day for the ACC last Saturday.

But then Florida State lost its first ever game to an FCS opponent as Jacksonville State stunned the Seminoles 20-17 and N.C. State laid an egg at Mississippi State.

ACC teams went 11-3 against non-conference opponents over the weekend.

Each week The Clemson Insider ranks ACC teams 1-14 based on their performances in the 2021 season to date. Here are TCI’s ACC Power Rankings entering Week 3 of the new season.

  1. Clemson – While the Tigers played a far inferior opponent last week in a 49-3 win over South Carolina State in their return to Memorial Stadium, they still looked like the best team in the ACC by a wide margin. Clemson is still finding its rhythm on offense as it hosts Georgia Tech in its ACC opener Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
  2. Virginia Tech – The Hokies improved to 2-0 with a 35-14 win over Middle Tennessee State last Saturday. Virginia Tech faces a challenge as it travels to a hostile road environment against West Viriginia in Morgontown.
  3. Pitt – The Panthers had the best win of any ACC team last week as they held on for a 41-34 road win over Tennessee at Neyland Stadium. Pitt scored 27 points in the second quarter after falling behind 10-0 and quarterback Kenny Pickett looked outstanding completing 24-of-36 passes for 285 yards and two touchdowns. Pitt hosts Western Michigan on Saturday at 12:00 p.m.
  4. Virginia – The Cavaliers took care of business in Charlottesville last week as they rolled Illinois 42-14. Virginia moved up five spots in my power rankings behind the play of Brennan Armstrong in the win over the Illini. The Cavaliers face a huge test this week as they travel to Chapel Hill, North Carolina to face the No. 21 Tar Heels at 7:30 p.m.
  5. UNC – Sam Howell returned to his usual form in a 59-17 win over Georgia State. North Carolina has a big opportunity to bounce back from its season opening loss to Virginia Tech in a home game against Virginia.
  6. Miami – The Hurricanes skated by Appalachian State at home with a 25-23 win over the Mountaineers. Miami has looked inconsistent so far in 2021 and fell two spots in the power rankings. It hosts Michigan State at Hard Rock Stadium at noon on Saturday and hopes to live up to expectations.
  7. Boston College – The Eagles rolled UMass 45-28 on Saturday but tragedy struck in the first half. Quarterback Phil Jurkovec left the game and is doubtful for the rest of season with a wrist injury. So while the Eagles played well Saturday they have more questions than answers with Dennis Grosel back at the helm. BC travels to Temple with kickoff set for noon Saturday.
  8. NC State – Thankfully for N.C. State Florida State looked atrocious last week because it was a massive disappointment at Mississippi State. The Wolfpack got smacked 24-10 in Starkville, Mississippi and lost their two best defensive players in the process. NC State hopes to bounce back against as it hosts Furman at 7:30 on Saturday.
  9. Wake Forest – The Demon Deacons trounced Norfolk State 41-16 last weekend but have yet to face a true test. Wake Forest hosts the dejected Seminoles at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.
  10. Louisville – The Cardinals bested Eastern Kentucky 30-3 on Saturday. Louisville faces a test on Friday night against undefeated UCF at home at 7:30 p.m.
  11. Duke – The Blue Devils bounced back against North Carolina A&T with a 45-17 win. Duke hosts Northwestern in the battle of the academically elite at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday.
  12. Syracuse – The Orange looked helpless in the Carier Dome as they fell 17-7 to Rutgers last week. Syracuse showed a lack of physicality on offense and slipped at the end of the game.
  13. Georgia Tech – Georgia Tech rolled Kennesaw State 45-17 on Saturday. Expect a tough weekend for the Yellow Jackets as they play at Clemson at 3:30 p.m.
  14. Florida State – The biggest loser of the week in the ACC was Florida State by a long shot. The Seminoles lost their first game ever to an FCS opponent since the Division I split in 1978. Jacksonville State scored 13 unanswered points to beat Florida State on its home turf 20-17 on long touchdown pass by former Clemson backup quarterback Zerrick Cooper. Then after the game to add insult to injury an offensive lineman proposed to his girlfriend as the Gamecocks celebrated on Bobby Bowden Field. Florida State showed no fight, no will to win and no progress from year’s past.

 

WATCH: Florida State Seminoles at Wake Forest Demon Deacons – Key Facts, Stats

Key facts and stats on the Florida State Seminoles and Wake Forest Demon Deacons as FSU travels to Wake Forest in Week 3.

The Florida State Seminoles lost their last six road games, and 12 of their last 13. They are hitting the road this week, facing the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. Wake Forest hasn’t seen much success against teams from the Sunshine State recently, having lost eight of its last nine games against teams from Florida.

FSU is seeking its first win of the season, while the Demon Deacons look to remain undefeated heading into Week 4. Wake Forest is the favorite here. Go to Tipico Sportsbook for the most updated odds:

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Do ESPN analysts still think FSU can make noise in the ACC?

On College Football Live this week, ESPN college football analysts Greg McElroy and Joey Galloway discussed whether they still believe in the Florida State Seminoles following their gut-wrenching loss to FCS team Jacksonville State last Saturday in …

On College Football Live this week, ESPN college football analysts Greg McElroy and Joey Galloway discussed whether they still believe in the Florida State Seminoles following their gut-wrenching loss to FCS team Jacksonville State last Saturday in Tallahassee.

Former Clemson quarterback Zerrick Cooper threw a 59-yard touchdown pass as time expired to give the Jacksonville State Gamecocks a 20-17 victory over the Seminoles at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Despite the agonizing defeat, McElroy still believes FSU can make some noise in the ACC moving forward.

Up next for the Noles is a trip to Wake Forest for a 3:30 p.m. game against the Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem on Saturday.

“We’re going to learn a lot this week. But yes, I think there’s things to look at this team and feel somewhat positive about,” McElroy said. “Now, last week was an embarrassingly bad performance. They have to respect the opposition regardless of what level the opposition plays at. And granted, yes, FBS should never lose to an FCS team. You’re Florida State.

“However, in Week 1, I thought they did a pretty dang good job against a solid offensive and defensive line for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and I think that’s been the biggest point of concern, for me, is that line of scrimmage. So, I’m still cautiously optimistic, in a down ACC, Florida State can make a little bit of noise throughout the rest of the season.”

Galloway didn’t necessarily agree with McElroy.

“Very kind of you, Greg. I don’t know that I’m with you there,” Galloway said. “I don’t think they’re as bad as they played on Saturday to lose to Jacksonville State. I think if these two teams played 10 times, Florida State probably wins nine of them — and if they figure out how to play prevent defense at the end of a football game, they might win that one.

“But I don’t know if there’s enough there that I feel good about. They have to start finishing some of these games and find ways to win games. Because then that’s when your players start to feel better about what you’re doing, and until you do that, then you just have a nasty taste in your mouth, especially when you go and lose these kind of games.”

Clemson and FSU are scheduled to play on Saturday, Oct. 30 at Death Valley after not meeting in 2020 after FSU’s administration canceled the scheduled game in November three hours before kickoff.

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Jacksonville State floors Florida State on Hail Mary

Jacksonville State shocks Florida State on Hail Mary to end the game

Florida State football isn’t close to what it used to be. Still, there is no excuse for what happened Saturday against Jacksonville State in Tallahassee.

The Seminoles, who lost Sunday to Notre Dame in overtime, were up three points against the Gamecocks, who are based in Alabama not the Sunshine State.

The fact Florida State only had a three-point lead over Jacksonville State after 59 minutes and 54 seconds is troubling. The Seminoles came into their home game a 27-point favorite.

What happened next is stunning:

The final play of the game was good for 59 yards and it went from quarterback Zerrick Cooper to Damond Philyaw-Johnson to give the Gamecocks a 20-17 victory.

Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports

The Gamecocks were full of themselves after the upset, planting their flag on the Seminole logo at Doak Campbell Stadium.

The Seminoles led 17-7 in the fourth quarter only to see the Gamecocks score the game’s last 13 points.

(AP Photo/Phil Sears)

To give you an idea of how bad a loss this is, Jacksonville State came into the game 0-1, having lost its opener to UAB, 31-0.

UAB was shredded by Georgia 56-7 on Saturday in Athens.

Florida State had beaten Jacksonville State, 41-24, in its season opener in 2020. The Gamecocks led 24-21 in that one before the Seminoles scored the final 20 points.

Advanced Box Score shows where Notre Dame has issues against Florida State

Very telling

You have to love the fact that the Irish went out and scored 41 points, 38 in regulation, and still could be better. It seems pretty obvious what area where the improvement could come from, but a deep dive into statistics always is nice to reaffirm what we all believed we saw with our eyes on Sunday night.

SportSource Analytics tweeted out their advanced game information in the Irish’s game against Florida State and it confirmed some things that happened in Tallahassee. It was a very solid performance from the passing game, Jack Coan light up the Seminole defense setting a Notre Dame record for most passing yards in an a season opener.

When deep diving into the stats, you notice that the Irish had an average of 6.16 yards per play, which is excellent. A first down every two plays will win you a whole lot of games. This was heavy on the passing game, with 8.97 yards per pass attempt, obviously excellent there also.

The run game left more to be desired, averaging just 2.61 yards per play with almost half of them, 15 of 31, “stuffed” runs. That is well above the national average of 30.2%, the Irish were at 48.4%, which is not optimal. Yes, having 4 new offensive linemen could have played a part, but the unit is talented and should have gotten better results.

Defensively, there are some concerns as well. The Seminoles averaged 9.42 yards per play on 2nd down and 8.06 yards on 3rd down. Those averages need to drop. It is interesting that they averaged just 5.96 yards per play during the 4th quarter comeback, you’d expect that number to be higher.

The Irish held the Seminoles under the national average in the passing game, but were not nearly as effective in the run game. They allowed FSU to run for 6.93 yards per play, well above the national average of 5. They also gave up 7 rushing plays of over 12 yards and 3 over 20 yards. Marcus Freeman has to clean up the run defense.

Overall, it wasn’t the prettiest game from the Irish, but a win is a win. They battled against a much improved FSU team to get an opening win, on the road in a hostile environment.

Five Stars: The best and worst of Notre Dame’s win against FSU

There was some good and some bad tonight for Notre Dame

Football was finally back and although it started quick for the Irish, looked a bit unsettling, then the Irish took control of the game. Florida State didn’t give up, and continued to stay in the game, but the Irish had enough of a fight in them to battle all the way through overtime and return to South Bend with a 41-38. It’s always a crap shoot for openers, teams have the whole offseason to prepare, but the Irish fixed their issues and eventually gutted out tough victory in a difficult environment.

Watch: Tyree gets in on the fun as he scores for Notre Dame

Make that 3 third quarter scores for the Irish!

After a very confusing decision by Florida State to go for it on fourth down and Clarence Lewis picking off a pass, it game Notre Dame a very short field and an opportunity to extend the lead.

That’s exactly what happened as the Irish only needed to go 32 yards to add onto their lead. The drive finished with running back Chris Tyree Getting an opportunity close to the goal line and finished it off with a one-yard touchdown run to extend the Notre Dame lead to 38-20 over the Seminoles. It was an easy score that any team would take and it was the third score of the third quarter for the Irish.

Watch: Notre Dame’s Lewis gets the Irish’s third interception of the night

A trio of picks for the Irish tonight

It was an odd sequence for Florida State, as they went back-to-back plays in the wildcat formation and then unexpectedly on 4th down they went for it. In their own territory. It’s as if Mike Norvell was playing a game of Madden and was about to restart the game.

Well, there isn’t any restarting here as the errand pass from Jordan Travis on fourth down found the hands of Clarence Lewis and just like that the Irish were once again in a prosperous offensive position. It was very confusing as to why Florida State opted to go for it, but the Irish will take the mistake and run with it. Or better yet, intercept it.

Watch: Williams extends lead for Notre Dame on nifty TD reception

The Irish running back made something out of nothing

After Kyle Hamilton register his second interception of the evening, Notre Dame’s offense was given a short field once again. Well, the Irish cashed in again, this time quarterback Jack Coan swung a pass to his right to Kyren Williams, who then worked his magic and somehow found the endzone.

Take a look below as it seemed like Williams was bottled up, but then made a Florida State defender miss, lowered his shoulder and pounded his way into the endzone. It was one heck of an effort from the Irish running back, as he found the endzone for the first time this season and extended Notre Dame lead to 31-20 midway through the third quarter.