Tag: Tallahassee

Notre Dame misses opportunities in loss to Florida State

Not how the Irish wanted their last true road game of the year to go.

If anyone thought Notre Dame’s remaining opponents would just let it have the second seed in the ACC Tournament, they were wrong. Even with Florida State decimated by injuries to its top players, it had every intention of making a statement when the Irish came to Tallahassee. That’s exactly what happened in a 74-70 Seminoles win. Consequently, Duke has won the outright ACC regular-season championship.

The Irish (21-9, 14-5) bounced back from the Seminoles (16-13, 9-10) making their first five 3-point attempts to take a five-point halftime lead. The second half saw the Irish lose that lead early and never get it back despite plenty of chances to do so. They both missed shots and coughed up loose balls at inopportune times. Perhaps most damning of all, they missed all 10 shots from 3-point range in the second half while the Seminoles equaled the six 3s they made in the first half.

John Butler, who could make the jump to the NBA in the distant future, was the man for the Seminoles. He led them with 16 points, eight rebounds and four blocks. Three of his four 3-pointers came during the Seminoles’ shooting barrage out of the gate. Helping him out were fellow starters Anthony Polite, RayQuan Evans and Tanor Ngom, all of whom scored 12 points.

Blake Wesley scored two of his game-high 21 points on a thunderous first-half dunk, which proved to be the highlight for the Irish in this one. Paul Atkinson Jr. achieved a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds. Prentiss Hubb had a 10-point, seven-board game, but he shot only 4 of 12 from the field, including 1 of 6 from beyond the arc.

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Former Notre Dame O-lineman Dillan Gibbons transfers to Florida State

The Irish will see an old friend to begin the season.

Four days after Notre Dame offensive lineman Dillan Gibbons entered the transfer portal, he has made his decision. Gibbons, a native of Clearwater, Florida, will be headed close to home as he suits up for Florida State as a graduate student:

This makes Notre Dame’s 2021 season opener all the more intriguing as it’s slated to happen against the Seminoles on Sept. 5 in Tallahassee. On top of that, Gibbons and the rest of the Irish’s offensive line played a key role when these teams met in 2020. The unit didn’t allow any sacks and made 554 yards of total offense, including 353 on the ground, possible. That rushing total was more than double what the Seminoles’ defense allowed on average going into the game.

It will be interesting to see whether Gibbons can provide the Seminoles with Irish’s defensive line’s Achilles’ heel during their game plan or if that D-line knows exactly what to expect from him and uses that to its advantage. Of course, it will be more interesting if that particular aspect determines the outcome.

Tale of the Tape: Top Receivers – Tommy Tremble vs. Tamorrion Terry

It’s hard to determine who the top receivers are in a game between one struggling team and one that’s played only twice.

It’s hard to determine who the top receivers are in a game between one struggling team and one that’s played only twice. It says a lot about Notre Dame’s young corps when Tommy Tremble leads the Irish with only 104 receiving yards and no touchdowns. If Ian Book doesn’t find a regular target soon, we’re looking at a season in which the Irish player in this post could change every week. Still, Tremble’s numbers are decent given what we’ve seen when the Irish haven’t run the ball.

Florida State goes into South Bend with Tamorrion Terry as its top target, and the numbers here aren’t much better, albeit for different reasons. There’s a quarterback carousel happening in Tallahassee as the Seminoles will send their third starter under center in four games into battle. Different quarterbacks will have different tendencies and different favorite targets, so it’s almost impossible to tell if Terry is the Seminoles’ go-to. Regardless, he’ll have a tough time getting open against the Irish’s defense.

 

Legendary Florida State Coach Bobby Bowden Tests Positive for COVID-19

This is not the news we wanted to start Florida State week with, but that’s 2020 for ya.

This is not the news we wanted to start Florida State week with, but that’s 2020 for ya. On Monday, legendary Seminoles coach Bobby Bowden told the Tallahassee Democrat that he has tested positive for COVID-19. Despite this, Bowden, who turns 91 in a month, says he feels fine. He learned of his positive test Saturday.

It appears Bowden is not letting this get him down. Here’s what he told the Democrat:

“I don’t feel bad, yet. I guess I can loaf around the rest of the week. I just have to keep an eye out for (symptoms).”

It goes without saying, but Bowden’s age puts him at high risk for this virus. That he seems to be joking about his situation should not divert us from that scientific fact. Notre Dame fans join Florida State fans in praying this terrific coach and all-around great guy overcomes this challenge. Saturday’s game between the schools will be played with him on everyone’s mind.