The Florida State Seminoles Will Raise Eyebrows, Sooner or Later

In Jimbo Fisher’s head coaching debut, the Florida State Seminoles kicked off the 2010 football season with a commanding rout of the Samford Bulldogs 59-6.  The game was highlighted by one of the most offensively productive quarters in recent FSU history, a highlight-reel-worthy punt return for a touchdown, suffocating defense, and a total team effort.

When the Seminoles took the field for the second half leading 42-3, the coaching staff emptied the benches, and gave numerous inexperienced players some early-season playing time.  That was a sight Seminole alumni, Boosters, and fans haven’t seen in a decade.

There is no single stat line that necessarily stands out.  The big story Saturday was the total domination on the scoreboard, specifically the 35-point eruption in the second quarter, and the number of players who made the stat sheet for Florida State.

Christian Ponder’s passing numbers were pedestrian by his own standards due to his short cameo-style appearance.  Aside from an early interception, though, he was very efficient, completing all but two passes and throwing four touchdowns in two quarters of play.  Backup QB E.J. Manuel played the entire second half.

The running backs raised eyebrows in many ways. 

Eight Seminoles ran with the ball Saturday, including five players who carried the ball multiple times.  Jermaine Thomas started the game and carried the ball eight times for 31 yards.  Carlton “Ty” Jones, who did most of his damage in the second half, also carried the ball eight times for 107 yards, largely due to a breakout 57 yard scamper for a touchdown.  Seven Seminoles averaged better than 3.5 yards per carry against Samford.

Nine Seminoles caught passes in Saturday’s debacle. 

Bert Reed hauled in five passes while Chris Thompson and Taiwan Easterling both tallied four catches, all of whom netted 50+ yards on the day.  A bevy of receivers had one or two grabs on the day; most notably, Willie Haulstead (2-for-40) and preseason sensation Rodney Smith, whose lone 42-yard catch and run was a thing of beauty.

The real story Saturday was how the Seminoles much-maligned, often-burned defense fared.  The biggest surprise of the day, the defense came to play, and brought with them an intelligent, cohesive, complex scheme that stifled Samford for much of the day.

The final stat line doesn’t tell the whole story, since the coaching staff used so many players over the course of the 60-minute game, but the starting unit (including the starting 11 plus the regular rotational players), which played from the opening play from scrimmage until the 2:23 mark of the second quarter, allowed only 18 yards of total offense.  The Samford Bulldogs had the ball seven times during that stretch.

The FSU defense allowed three first downs, forced six punts, and grabbed an interception.

It’s important to note the as soon as the defensive coaching staff started substituting liberally, the Bulldogs were able to move the ball with relative ease.  It’s safe to say that the top 15-18 players on the defensive depth chart are going to be solid contributors, but the names on that list from 19 down need work. 

Once the starters were pulled, FSU’s reserves surrendered 282 yards of offense to the Bulldogs in a little over two quarters of play, most of which came through the air.

Another impressive number from Saturday’s win was the penalty tally: four penalties for 40 yards. 

Can anyone remember a game in the past decade where FSU had less than 10 penalties?  More important, can anyone remember a game where FSU didn’t shoot itself in the foot with huge penalties, both on Offense and Defense?

The four penalties is an all-time low, then take into account that two of the penalties (bad helmet to helmet calls which, in both cases, were erroneous) shouldn’t have been called at all, the Seminoles committed only two legitimate penalties all day.  That’s an amazing number. 

This team played smart, controlled football Saturday.  This team seemed years removed from the penalty-prone, berserk, blitz-happy, easily outsmarted, unorganized team that wore the garnet and gold the past few seasons.

Let’s be realistic: this was a mid-level FBS school in Samford.  It’s safe to say that the result witnessed on Saturday was expected, to say the least. 

But let’s also not forget: this Seminole football team has rarely—if ever—done what it was expected to do in games like these in recent years. 

The Seminoles struggled mightily in “cupcake” games last year, edging out FBS school Jacksonville State 19-9 with a late fourth-quarter surge, and narrowly defeating Maryland 29-26 thanks to a late fourth-quarter score. 

Many who follow the program closely will unanimously blame the lackluster defense, which allowed an average of 400 yards and 30 points per game.  Last season, it seemed FSU’s opponents held the ball way too much, keeping the Seminoles’ outstanding offense on the sideline.  The Jacksonville State and South Florida games were great indicators of that.  You can’t score points if your offense isn’t on the field.

All signs, stats, and indicators point to a terrific total team effort. Nineteen players had significant stats on the offense.  Certain individuals, however, had moments worth noting.

Greg Reid turned up on offense early in the game, lining up at quarterback in the wildcat formation.  Reid took the snap and ran a sweep off the left side, gaining eight yards down to the Samford two-yard line, setting up a Seminole touchdown.  Reid also had a 74-yard punt return for a touchdown, and had an important pass breakup in the endzone on defense.

Bert Reed and Taiwan Easterling seem like the go-to receivers right now.  Ponder appears to be very comfortable with the two of them, especially underneath coverage and along the sidelines, as they combined for nine catches, 106 yards, and two touchdowns.

Chris Thompson and Jermaine Thomas (both running backs), and Willie Haulstead and Rodney Smith all had big receptions of 20 yards or more.  Rodney Smith’s lone catch showed everyone a flash of his potential greatness, as he turned a simple out route into a huge gain up the sideline, leaving defenders in his dust.  Lonnie Pryor, FSU’s utility, do-all fullback, caught two touchdown passes as well.

The Seminoles must now turn their attention to Oklahoma.  The Sooners won their matchup against mediocre Utah State, but OU didn’t exactly cruise the way the Seminoles did.

Oklahoma jumped out to an early 21-0 lead, but the Utah State Aggies stayed in the game with a stunning 421 yards of offense (OU had 422)—341 through the air—and a defensive scheme that had Sooners QB Landry Jones shaking his head.  It took an interception with under two minutes to play to seal the win, as Oklahoma edged Utah State 31-24.

But 70 yards in penalties, 19 incomplete passes, a horrendous 5-17 on third down efficiency and two interceptions marred the Sooners’ game stats.  Landry Jones was a paltry 17-for-36, but he did manage two touchdowns through the air.

Two Sooners dominated the game.  DeMarco Murray carried the ball a whopping 35 times for 218 yards, including a blazing 63-yard TD run, tallying two total touchdowns.  Ryan Broyles grabbed nine receptions for 142 yards, and also had two touchdowns. These two players shredded the Aggies’ defense routinely, but no one else on the Oklahoma roster really did anything outstanding.

The Seminoles and Sooners both come into next week’s game 1-0, but are polar opposites according to their numbers.  The Seminoles did well at spreading the ball around, and after one game look like a deep, complete team in all three phases.  The Sooners had trouble with a very mediocre opponent on both sides of the ball, and leaned heavily on two superstars to carry them to a victory. 

Saturday’s matchup in Norman will be determined by a number of factors.  A handful of questions can be focused on, though.  The answers will dictate the game’s outcome. 

For FSU, how well will the Seminoles’ defense play against a legitimate FCS opponent, can they contain Broyles and Murray, and can Ponder continue to spread the ball around the Offense? 

For Oklahoma, can the Sooners get any help on offense from players not named Murray and Broyles, can they cut down the penalties, and can the secondary tighten up after this weekend’s track meet, when they let a bottom-feeder put up nearly 350 yards through the air?

Jimbo Fisher has his team riding high, and there’s no reason for the Seminoles not to believe they can go into Norman and end Oklahoma’s long-standing home-winning streak. 

If the Sooners don’t make some serious progress in this week’s practice, that confident Seminole attitude will become reality in a big way—on the scoreboard.  Regardless of the outcome, there shouldn’t be any shortage of points scored next Saturday, and one team will leave the field with instant poll credibility and an inside track to a BCS bowl game.  Don’t be surprised if it’s the Seminoles.