Florida State, the Teflon Kings of College Football, Look Like Team of Destiny

Until you cut off Florida State’s head, it is not dead. And even if you managed to somehow pull off this enormous feat, holding actual physical proof to the sky for the college football world to see, it wouldn’t seem real. Given the state of this team and its knack for living, dying and then living all over again, no zombie scenario should go unexplored. 

They did it again. Looking lifeless, hopeless and utterly out of sync against Miami on Saturday night, the Seminoles’ inched past their in-state rival with a second-half surge, winning by the final score of 30-26.

It was a tale of two halves, which should be a familiar blueprint by this point in the year. It’s in this team’s nature to make something so remarkably difficult look somehow natural—like it had been planned all along—which is why the comeback against the Hurricanes really wasn’t all that shocking. 

Even in the second quarter, when sensational 'Canes freshman quarterback Brad Kaaya hit Clive Walford on a 61-yard touchdown pass to give Miami a 23-7 lead, you didn’t panic, or in the case of many fans outside the city of Tallahassee, celebrate the development.

You took note of the damage being done, but instead of crowning the Hurricanes victorious with so much game to be played, you watched and waited. After all, you had seen it before. 

You waited because recent history told you to wait. This is what Florida State has become this season, an imperfect team far different from last year’s installment, still capable of pulling off the extraordinary with the flip of a switch. 

The switch was flipped, and the surge came from familiar faces and emerging stars. Quarterback Jameis Winston was outplayed statistically by his counterpart in this matchup, although he was again surgical when he needed to be. After looking mortal throughout the first 30 minutes, Winston put together a fabulous second half as the offense settled in.

When he wasn't on the mark, the ball still bounced his way. His 11-yard touchdown pass to Karlos Williams was made possible only after Miami got a hand on it first. It was at this moment you started to understand (again) that this was meant to be.

True-freshman running back Dalvin Cook flashed moments of brilliance yet again, running for 92 yards and two touchdowns on only seven carries. His 26-yard touchdown run with just over three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter proved to be the winning score.

Roberto Aguayo, the most dependable special teams weapon in the country, also played a role in securing the win. Aguayo made all three of his field-goal tries on Saturday night, including a 53-yarder with less than eight minutes remaining. 

The defense also played a significant role, perhaps the most important of all. After giving up yards in bunches—especially in the middle of the field—the Seminoles’ defense allowed only three points after the intermission behind one of the more impressive individual performances of the season.

Jalen Ramsey was everywhere. The FSU defensive back blocked a PAT, broke up passes, forced a fumble and also delivered the clinching moment when he picked off Kaaya’s pass with less than a minute remaining.

Following the game, Ramsey made his stance on Florida State’s national standing clear as day.

"

FSU's Jalen Ramsey: “Until someone beats us, we’re the No. 1 team in America. We’re still the champs. And that's how it is.”

— Ira Schoffel (@IraSchoffel) November 16, 2014"

Most will gladly disagree with this statement and present legitimate arguments to state their case. With Notre Dame’s loss to Northwestern in Week 12, the Seminoles lack a statement win.

And yet, with Mississippi State’s perfect season no more thanks to Alabama, the Seminoles are now the nation’s lone power-five team without a loss. It hasn’t been easy or pretty—a far different product than last year’s dominating weekly performances—but the end result, at least until this point, is undeniable.

They have done it through extraordinary comebacks, moments that won’t possibly be justified through statistical analysis. Three times this season Florida State has looked dead in the water; three times this season the final scoreboard told a different story entirely. 

Date	Opponent	Halftime Score	Final Score
September 27	N.C. State	N.C. State 24, Florida State 21	Florida State 56, N.C. State 41
October 18	Notre Dame	Notre Dame 17, Florida State 10	Florida State 31, Notre Dame 27
October 30	Louisville	Louisville 21, Florida State 7	Florida State 42, Louisville 31
November 15	Miami	Miami 23, Florida State 10	Florida State 30, Miami 26

With so much negativity swarming around the program—the latest development centering on a report from The New York Times' Mike McIntire and Walt Bogdanich regarding an alleged hit and run from staring cornerback P.J. Williams on Oct. 5—it’s easy to see why Florida State has become enemy No. 1. Per the report, "Williams left his wrecked vehicle in the street and fled into the darkness along with his two passengers, including Ronald Darby, the team’s other starting cornerback."

Each time Florida State has fallen behind, the nation has rooted for the underdog seemingly in control. Each time, they have left disappointed, a little less surprised with every act of this football Houdini.

Regardless of where your rooting interests lie—or if you believe the Seminoles are as good as Ramsey proclaims—there’s something to be said about the way they have magically walked the tightrope late in games.

It is a beautiful brand of football in a sense that the unexpected has become the norm. Instead of simply bashing the defending champions for barely overcoming teams it is supposed to beat, we should be celebrating the incredible display of week-to-week survival.

It doesn’t mean they are the nation’s No. 1 team or that they’ll be able to sustain this uncomfortable pace when asked to step up and play elite competition. But in a year when dominant teams are absent from the conversation, Florida State—watered down product and all—is still in the driver’s seat for a College Football Playoff appearance. They have earned that, not through just a chain of good fortune but a slew of outstanding and meaningful performances in moments that matter.

As a result, the head is still intact and the body parts are fully functional. The Seminoles, having toyed with death time and time again, are looking more immortal each and every week.