Florida State Football: 5 Startling Statistics Through 5 Games

To no one's surprise, Florida State is 5-0 and ranked No. 1 in the country. But how the Seminoles have remained atop the college football world has been anything but expected.

A significant drop in third-down success rate from last season, strong play by an unexpected freshman, a less-than-stellar running game, Jameis Winston's passer rating and a defensive secondary that isn't intercepting the football are just a few of the startling statistics through a handful of FSU's games in 2014.

3rd-Down Conversion Percentage: 45.45

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Florida State made a habit of consistently avoiding fourth downs a season ago, finishing its national title run ranked third in the nation in third-down conversion percentage at 52.23. 

But so far in 2014, the Seminoles haven't been nearly as efficient. FSU heads into Saturday’s noon ET game at Syracuse with a third-down conversion success rate of 45.45, which ranks 33rd nationally.

In its first two games against FBS opponents, FSU was 4-of-14 and 4-of-15 on third downs against Oklahoma State and Clemson, respectively, for a combined percentage of 27.6. 

But for as surprising as the Seminoles’ dip in third-down efficiency has been, it’s worth noting Florida State’s steady improvement over the past two games. After converting eight of its 11 third downs against North Carolina State, FSU went 10-of-18 against a good Wake Forest defense.

Lorenzo Featherston's Tackles for Loss: 4.0

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Few could have predicted the impact Lorenzo Featherston would have this early in his collegiate career. The true freshman defensive end came into FSU this past summer with little hype but a great deal of high expectations for the future after he added some perceived much-needed mass to his 6’7”, 220-pound frame. 

But Featherston has been a revelation early, starting the last two games and using his 7’3” wingspan and impressive length to counteract his lack of strength and disrupt opposing quarterbacks and ball-carriers in the backfield. 

Featherston is currently tied with proven playmakers Mario Edwards, Jr. and Jalen Ramsey with 4.0 tackles for loss.

FSU's Yards-Per-Carry Average: 4.19

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Florida State currently ranks 75th in the nation with an average of 4.19 yards per carry. One season after finishing the 2013 season ranked 10th nationally with a yards-per-carry clip of 5.63, the drop in rushing production has been a significant area of concern for the Seminoles so far this season.

Despite losing Devonta Freeman and James Wilder, Jr. in the offseason, FSU returned potential star Karlos Williams and young players Mario Pender and Dalvin Cook. And while each has had their respective special moments through five games, there surprisingly has not been much consistency from the ‘Noles running game from snap to snap.

Jameis Winston's Passer Rating vs. Wake Forest: 126.3

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If there is any team that knows how to throw Jameis Winston off his game, it's Wake Forest—even if the final score doesn’t reflect such a notion.

During his Heisman Trophy campaign in 2013, Winston’s season-low passer rating occurred in FSU’s big win at Wake Forest. One year later, Winston nearly matched that number (124.8) with the second-lowest passer rating of his career (126.3) against the Demon Deacons last weekend.

Now if only Wake Forest could figure out a way to limit Winston and not get blown out in the process, the Demon Deacons would be on to something.

FSU's Total Interceptions: 2

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Florida State has just two interceptions this season despite boasting one of the best defensive secondaries in the entire nation. With standouts Jalen Ramsey, P.J. Williams and Ronald Darby leading the way entering the 2014 season, many expected the group to be quite opportunistic when it came to takeaways.

But through five games, having just two interceptions—one by Nate Andrews in the opener and another last weekend against Wake Forest by P.J. Williams—is certainly surprising, especially when you remember the 'Noles led the nation in interceptions last year.

Brandon Mellor is a Florida State writer for Bleacher Report. All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Statistics courtesy of Seminoles.com and cfbstats.com. All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.

Follow @BrandonMellor on Twitter.