Oklahoma Sooners vs. Florida State Seminoles: 5 Reasons the Noles Will Roll

Florida State hosts Oklahoma tonight in their first big-time game since the Rix Dynasty, and I am about to pass out[1].

The Sooners bear the bulls-eye of the No. 1 ranking, only the second time Doak-Campbell Stadium has ever hosted the top-ranked team. ESPN’s GameDay is on hand. Chris Rix, Drew Weatherford, Xavier Lee, Wyatt Sexton and Fabian Walker have been locked in a dark, windowless room. A win before a raucous crowd could vault the Noles into pole position in the—dare I say it?—national title race.

I’m about to hyperventilate because I’ve seen it all before. The media has overshot Florida State’s national ranking by 733 combined spots over the last ten years.

In 2002, I was forced to sit in a hurricane and watch Louisville tear down the goalposts after a win over the fourth ranked Seminoles. In 2003, another Rixian team brought a top-five ranking to Clemson, and lost. The same thing happened in 2004 at Maryland, and again the next year at Virginia.

The Seminoles stand at No. 5  today, a ranking that, after so many years of their supposed renaissance, finally feels right. Against my better judgment, I believe in these Noles—I’m buying the hype. And even though I’m buying it, my buddy Adam is bringing over pizza and an emergency defibrillator. Before I go unconscious, here are five reasons why Florida State will beat Oklahoma tonight.

---

[1] The Chris Rix reference certainly didn’t help. I have ‘Nam-like flashbacks any time a quarterback quadruple gainers over three linebackers for a first down.

1. EJ Manuel

The Seminoles are finally his team. After two years of admirable pinch-hitting (5-1), Manuel has looked the part of a dominant quarterback. He stands tall and calm in the pocket, willing to step into the teeth of a pass rush. Manuel won’t fear any of the Sooners’ relentless blitzes, and he won’t shy away from the prime-time moment. The redshirt junior has played in two bowl games, an ACC Championship game and at Florida. He won’t have Landry Jones’ numbers, but he’ll have the win.

2. Oklahoma's Secret Road Sucking

Big Game Bob’s got some ‘splaining to do. The Sooners, winners of seven Big 12 titles under Stoops, can’t seem to win a road game. In the last two years, Stoops’ teams have played .500 football away from Norman (7-7), while posting a losing record (4-5) in true road games (this, admittedly, coincides with the graduation of Sam Bradford).

The only remotely impressive road win that Stoops has registered with Landry Jones under center was last year at Oklahoma State. Jones has thrown at least one pick in each road game he’s played.

3. FSU's Defensive Playmakers

There are a few guys with spears on their helmets who would like to keep that Jones interception streak alive.

For the first time since the golden years (“the first time since” should have been a song by My Chemical Romance and the title of this post) Florida State has elite talent on defense, particularly in the secondary. Greg Reid is the best player on the team. Xavier Rhodes was a Freshman All-American (and he doesn’t even start). Lamarcus Joyner is always around the ball. With DE Brandon Jenkins and LB Nigel Bradham pressuring Jones, we will see some plays made in the secondary.

4. Dustin Hopkins

The kid with golden shoes and a 55-yard game-winner to his resume gives Florida State a massive special teams advantage. While the Noles are set with Hopkins, the Sooners will utilize three different guys in the kicking game. Florida State wants to neutralize Sooner return man Trey Franks, and seven of Hopkins’ kickoffs this year have resulted in touchbacks. The game won’t come down to a field goal—FSU got all those out of their system during the Bowden years—but Hopkins will make some big kicks.

The Atmosphere

Excuse my sportswriter hyperbole: this is Florida State’s biggest game since I could drive a car.

I was a sophomore in high school the last time a game of national significance was played in Tallahassee (the Rain Game against No. 2 Miami). The fans have been waiting for a long time (and I’ve been driving around aimlessly for eight years) for a game like this.

I was in the house for two mid-2000s Miami battles, when both teams were clearly not very good, and the fans were still completely insane. Excluding games against Miami, the last time Florida State played a game this big was against the Sooners (the 2000 National Championship Game). The rowdy crowd will give the Noles an edge. And after the game, the Noles will get to make like Jay-Z—I guess they got their swagger back!