Tag: FSU Seminoles

Florida embarrassed in Tally as FSU completes sweep

Florida baseball got embarrassed Tuesday night by in-state rival FSU in a run-rule victory to give the ‘Noles the season sweep.

Florida’s low point in 2024 just got a bit lower and there’s no sign of the freefall subsiding after a 19-4 run-rule loss to No. 10 Florida State on Tuesday night in Tallahassee.

Things looked good early on. The Gators wasted no time getting on the board. Cade Kurland and Jac Caglianone hit back-to-back homers off Florida State starter John Abraham to start the game, but it was all FSU from there.

That 2-0 lead evaporated immediately, and Florida State went up 5-2 on a fielding error that knocked starter Ryan Slater out of the game. Fisher Jameson was first out of the bullpen, followed by Alex Philpott in the second, Robert Satin and Grayson Smith in the fourth and Reilly Witmer in the sixth.

Philpott had the worst night, giving up five runs (all earned) on seven hits and a hit batter over 2 2/3 innings. Both Philpott and Smith gave up two a pair of homers. Florida State went deep five times in total. Witmer was the only Florida arm to end the night without giving up a run.

Florida State put up a crooked number in four of the first five innings, jumping out to a 19-3 lead. Florida tacked on a run in the second, but the bats went cold after that.

While it’s usually polite to call a game like this a “run-rule win,” this was truly a “mercy-rule” kind of game. Things aren’t looking good for the Gators, who fall to 17-15 overall.

A weekend series at home against South Carolina is the last chance for Kevin O’Sullivan to get the team right ahead of the toughest portion of the schedule.

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida drops midweek matchup with FSU in Jacksonville

Florida couldn’t tie up the season series against Florida State in Jacksonville Tuesday night, and it was an ugly one.

Florida might be one of the best weekend teams in the country, but the middle of the week continues to be a mystery for the Gators. On Tuesday, UF fell, 14-3, to Florida State in eight innings.

A run-rule loss is hard enough to swallow, but doing so to an in-state rival while both teams are ranked in the top 25 makes it even tougher.

Florida, which acted as the home team, kept pace with FSU through three innings, matching a three-run first with a Jac Caglianone home run that snuck over the wall in left field. But the ‘Noles came to hit and added runs in each of the final five innings.

More bullpen woes

Kevin O’Sullivan threw freshman right-hander Alex Philpott again to see Florida State for a second time. Philly went 3 1/3 innings and looked decent, but his final line of five earned runs on seven hits and just one strikeout isn’t ideal.

Ryan Slater took over in the fourth but couldn’t stop that fifth run from coming through. Sully went back to the bullpen in the fifth, using Blake Purnell for one batter and Frank Menendez to close out the frame. Menendez nearly made it through the sixth, but he gave up two runs with two outs, bringing in Fisher Jameson.

Grayson was the final arm out of the bullpen. He gave up five runs, including a grand slam, putting the run rule into effect.

No offense

Meanwhile, Florida couldn’t figure out any of the FSU arms. Caglianone’s homer and a double later on made up two of the three Gators hits, and Florida struck out 13 times on the night.

The series is lost, but Florida can make a statement in Tallahassee by avoiding the sweep on April 9. That game will air on ESPN 2.

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Braden Fiske turns heads with faster 40-yard dash than Patrick Mahomes

Braden Fiske’s stock is rising at the Combine.

Former FSU defensive lineman Braden Fiske was among those making noise at the 2024 NFL Combine on Thursday.

Fiske, among 12 different Seminoles present in Indianapolis for the Combine, turned heads in multiple ways at the event — especially on the 40-yard dash.

The 6-foot-3, 292-pounder ran an unofficial 4.78-second 40-yard dash, which is notable for a player of his size. It was also the fastest time recorded by any defensive tackle who chose to take part in the 40-yard dash.

But the impressiveness of that time expands far beyond those in his position group… and beyond the prospect at this year’s Combine. That 4.78-second 40-yard dash time was 0.02 seconds faster than that of Kansas City Chiefs standout Patrick Mahomes, largely considered by analysts to be the best active quarterback in the NFL.

The NFL took to X (formerly known as Twitter) with a video of Mahomes from the Combine when he was preparing for the 2017 NFL Draft, where he was ultimately selected by the Chiefs with the 10th overall pick.

It was a quote post of one of Mahomes’ posts that was clearly a joke.

“As the combine starts this week! All i ask is that [the NFL Network] doesn’t use my 40 overlay anymore,” Mahomes wrote.

Despite the fact it was all in good fun on Mahomes’ end, how well Fiske performed in this drill, among several others, should not be discounted. Especially with the difference in positions between him and Mahomes and the average 40-yard dash times recorded by defensive linemen.

Fiske also led his position group in the vertical jump and the broad jump, recording 33.50 inches in the vertical jump and 9’9″ in the broad jump.

He played five years of college football at  Western Michigan before transferring to Florida State for the last season of his career. He recorded 43 total tackles, 9 tackles for loss, and 6.0 sacks in his lone season with the Seminoles.

Expect him to go in the late first round or early second round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Georgia outscores opponents 128-10 in last 2 postseason games

Georgia crushed Florida State after destroying TCU in the CFP Championship Game last season

Call it Dawg Nation domination.

Georgia destroyed Florida State, 63-3, in the Orange Bowl on Saturday. The Seminoles, who finished 13-1 like the Bulldogs, were without 20 players due to the transfer portal and opt-outs.

Georgia was missing players, too, but it did not matter

The Bulldogs’ margin of victory was the largest in postseason history, topping the 58-point margin in a 65-7 victory over TCU in the most recent CFP Championship Game.

That’s right, folks: In the Bulldogs’ last two postseason games, they have outscored opponents 128-10.

  • In the routs, Georgia had 1,262 yards of total offense compared to 397 for the opponents.
  • The Dawgs had 69 first downs; TCU and FSU had a combined 20.
  • Rushing yardage: Georgia 626, Horned Frogs + Seminoles 99.
  • Passing yardage: Dawgs 636, foes 298
  • Touchdowns Georgia 18, TCU and FSU 1.
  • Turnovers: Horned Frogs + Seminoles 7, Dawgs 0
  • Field goals: Georgia 1, TCU and FSU 1.

The field goals are not a moral victory.

A Georgia player, um, went on Instagram live during the game.

Who’s most likely to survive latest round of conference realignment? Big 12, Pac-12 or ACC?

Of the Power Five conferences not named the Big Ten and SEC, which is most likely to survive realignment?

The Power Five conferences are looking more and more like a “Power Two” these days with the SEC getting Oklahoma and Texas and the Big Ten getting USC and UCLA.

For better or worse, this appears to be the new world order, and it begs the question: With the Big Ten and SEC the clear top dogs, who will be left to stand with them when this realignment craziness subsides?

If the ACC loses Miami and Clemson, that’s a massive problem. If Miami leaves, Florida State will likely follow, most likely to the SEC. Clemson is already considered an SEC program in all but name. If the conference holds on to North Carolina and Duke, it could be alright, but if it loses the Hurricanes, that’s a backbreaker.

The Pac-12 isn’t looking much better.

Let’s just say it: If Oregon leaves, the Pac-12 is as good as dead. According to Sports Illustrated, Oregon booster and Nike co-founder Phil Knight wants the Ducks in the Big Ten.

However, there’s another conference that wants Oregon.

According to Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports, the Big 12 is trying to bring six teams from the Pac-12 to the Big 12. Oregon is among those six, along with Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, Utah, and Washington.

After being viewed as unstable after the OU-Texas move was announced, the Big 12 appears to be the most ambitious of the three Power Five conferences hit by realignment in recent years. It already has four schools coming in 2023, and if it can get all of the six programs it wants from the Pac-12, the Big 12 would have 18 teams, spanning from coast to coast.

That would secure the future of the Big 12, leaving the Pac-12 on life support. Who does the Pac-12 get to replace those schools?

The Pac-12 is set to renegotiate its media rights deal, so we’ll see if it can get its schools to stay where they are.

This is an ever-changing situation that seems to be the new norm of collegiate athletics in 2022. The SEC and Big Ten have reshaped the college football landscape. The ACC will have to worry about the Big Ten and the SEC poaching teams. The Big 12 looks to be solidifying its future while the Pac-12 may not have much of a future left if the Big 12 successfully raids it.

A year ago, it looked like the Big 12 would be the Power Five conference to take a back seat, but with their additions of the BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF along with the reported attempted additions of the Pac-12 schools, the Big 12 looks to have a long, bright future ahead of itself.

[listicle id=66670]

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.