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Every week, we’re going to go through the ’Noles 2013 schedule and look at each opponent. : first up is ACC newcomer, the Pittsburgh Panthers
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.....item 1).... FSU Football 2013 Preview: Pittsburgh ...
... FSU News ... www.fsunews.com/ ...
Jun. 12, 2013 |
Written by
Perry Kostidakis
Sports Editor @perrykos
FILED UNDER
FSU News
FSU News Football
www.fsunews.com/article/20130613/FSVIEW0201/130612025/FSU...
Every week, we’re going to go through the ’Noles 2013 schedule and look at each opponent. : first up is ACC newcomer, the Pittsburgh Panthers
It’s about that time.
We’re about 11 weeks away, but the need for football talk remains as dire as ever, and we at the FSView have decided to take mercy on your gridiron-deficient lives, and run down and preview the schedule, week-by-week.
First up, the season opener against the Pittsburgh Panthers.
This game is going to be very significant for more than just the first game of the Seminoles season. It’ll serve as Pitt’s “Welcome to the ACC” party, as well as America’s first glimpse at the Jameis Winston show. It’s going to be Florida State’s first season opener outside of Tallahassee since 2007, when the ’Noles traveled to Clemson, as well as the first meeting between these two teams since 1981.
Basically, there is no solid way to predict this game, but we’ll try our best.
Looking back at last season, Pitt went 6-7 (3-4 in the conference formerly known as the Big East), playing in the BBVA Compass Bowl, where they fell to Ole Miss 38-17. Their schedule was actually ranked higher (57) than FSU’s (66), though it’s not that huge of a difference.
The only mutual opponent that the two teams shared was Virginia Tech, who was ranked 13th when the Panthers faced off against them. Pitt took down the Hokies 35-17, while Florida State escaped Blacksburg with a 28-22 win in the last minute.
Pittsburgh 2012 highlight, however, came in the form of a near-upset against future BCS runner-up, Notre Dame. The Panthers took the Golden Domers to triple-overtime, eventually losing 29-26.
From their 71st ranked-offense, they’ll be losing their quarterback, Tino Sunseri, who threw for 3,200 last year and 21 touchdowns, as well 983-yard receiver Mike Shanahan and Ray Graham, who ran for 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns.
As for defense, they look to be in better shape. They finished the season 17th in total defense, and they return nine starters, which includes defense tackle Aaron Donald (64 tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, and a forced fumble) and safety Jason Hendriks (90 tackles, six interceptions, 10 deflected passes).
Their defense will aim to jostle Winston, as their pass defense was amongst the top, only allowing 194 per fame through the air, good enough to be 21st in the nation.
Some FSU fans may point to this game as another easy season win, but this by no means is a gimme win. Pitt will be upset-minded, and ready to go at home, so expect this game to be closer than one would expect.
Next week: Bethune-Cookman
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.....item 2).... FSU Football 2013 Preview: Nevada ...
... FSU News ... www.fsunews.com/ ...
Going through 2013's schedule and previewing each game: now, the home opener
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img code photo ... The first home game in the 2013 season
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The first home game in the 2013 season comes in the form of a September date with the Nevada Wolf Pack. / Zachary Goldstein / FSView
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Written by
Drew McFarlane
Staff Writer @DrewMacFarlane
FILED UNDER
FSU News
FSU News Football
Jun. 20, 2013 7:20 AM |
www.fsunews.com/article/20130620/FSVIEW0201/130620009/FSU...
The game that we shift focus to in this week as we preview our upcoming 2013 Seminole football season isn’t the game everyone is most excited about, it isn’t the most anticipated game of our season, but it is the game everyone is ready for.
Nevada, the Seminoles first home game of the new season.
September 14th marks the day when all of Tallahassee can all break out their favorite game day shirts and fire up the grills in a weekly ritual before marching down to a packed, rocking Doak S. Campbell stadium. But before we get too pumped up and ahead of ourselves, let’s take a quick look at the team that the ’Noles will share the field with.
Nevada’s season last year was less than perfect and had an awfully miserable stretch at the end of the year. The Wolf Pack started their 2012-2013 campaign with a 6-1 record that led into mid-October, only to have their luck run dry. Starting with a home game against conference opponent San Diego State, the Wolf pack found themselves crashing and burning on a 1-6 skid to end the year. Truly a tale of two seasons.
Something that may seem like a deflating add-on is the fact that Nevada couldn’t make any progress on conference opponents, ending up .500 (4-4) in a dreary Mountain West Conference.
Though the Nevada season ended on such a poor streak, there are still some positives to be taken away from it. First off, the Wolf Pack offense was stellar. For a team that went 7-6, their offense did not disappoint at 7th in the nation in rushing yards per game and 18th in the nation in points for per game. In their 13-game season, the Wolf Pack failed to score thirty points in only one game, and that was against Boise State when they were ranked No. 25.
Something that may decide the outcome of Nevada’s 2013 season and success is the continuity of their team. A main concern for the coaching staff and offense will be the hole left by running back Stefphon Jefferson. Jefferson rushed for 1,883 yards, which mounted him second in the nation, only behind the University of Arizona’s Ka’Deem Carey. He was a huge part of that 7th ranked rushing game.
The second player to decide the success of the Wild Cat’s season will be sophomore quarterback Cody Fajardo. The California native accumulated 2,786 yards and 20 touchdowns in his 2012 season. In order for Nevada to start moving up in the rankings, Fajardo will have to be their number one guy to start the charge.
When Nevada comes to town, FSU will have to play a very solid game. With the fire power the Wolf Pack boasts, it would not be hard to find themselves behind quickly if they give them the opportunity. Unlike last year, the Seminoles will open up Doak against a FBS opponent, and it should pay off in the form of a more entertaining game than Murray State could ever provide.
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....item 3).... Football Schedule Preview: Bethune-Cookman ...
... FSU News ... www.fsunews.com/ ....
The Wildcats are comin' from Daytona for FSU's second home game
Jun. 26, 2013 |
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img code photo ... Bethune-Cookman comes to town in September
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Bethune-Cookman comes to town in September, but don’t overlook them because they’re an FCS school. / Zachary Goldstein / FSView
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Written by
Perry Kostidakis
Sports Editor @perrykos
FILED UNDER
FSU News
FSU News Football
www.fsunews.com/article/20130627/FSVIEW0201/130626024/Foo...
Two familiar baseball opponents will meet for the first time on the gridiron when Florida State takes on Bethune-Cookman in week three of the 2013 season.
It’s FSU’s first and only FCS opponent this season, one year removed from playing two of them which greatly damaged the Seminoles schedule strength. But rest easy, as the Wildcats aren’t nearly as pitiful as Murray State nor Savannah State ,the latter being their MEAC brethern.
Bethune and Florida State shared two mutual opponents last season, the afermentioned Savannah State and the swagger-filled team from Coral Gables. In fact, BCU has played Miami each of the last two seasons, scoring first on the Hurricanes each time before eventually succumbing to the talent difference and losing 45-14 in 2011 and in 2012.
Head coach Brian Jenkins was hired in 2010, and that season went 10-2 and won the MEAC title, falling in the first round of the FCS playoffs. His overall record is 27-8, winning another MEAC championship and clinching another playoff berth last year.
The Wildcats should be ranked in the FCS polls when the season starts, as several publications have had them in the top 25. Bethune will return eight offensive starters from last year, including running back Isidore Jackson (1192 rushing yards, 11 touchdowns), wide receiver Eddie Poole (439 receiving yards, five touchdowns) and All-American left tackle Terrance Hackney. Last year, Bethune lead the MEAC in total offense (4,665 yards), rushing offense (2,928 yards), and points per game (29.4).
As for quarterbacks, Bethune-Cookman returns sophomore quarterback Quentin Wilson, who in high school broke a multitude of records, which include season passing touchdowns (56), passing yardage (4,451) and career touchdown passes (109), in addition to career passing yardage record (10,38), originally owned by Tim Tebow. Last year, Williams threw for team-high 1,173 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also rushed for 635 yards and three touchdowns.
He’ll have some competition from senior Broderick Waters, who transferred to Bethune-Cookman from Louisiana Tech. Like Williams, Waters played in 10 games, starting against Tennessee State. On the year, he threw for 314 yards with four touchdowns while rushing for 574 yards and five touchdowns.
Defensively, the Wildcats return a stud in senior linebacker Jarkevis Fields, who last year led the team in tackles (103), and also return junior defensive end LeBrandon Richardson, who led the Wildcats in sacks (8.5), tackles for loss (13) and quarterback hurries (7). As a team, BCU caused an FCS-best 36 takeaways and ranked 7th nationally in total defense (301.42 yards per game).
When September 14th rolls around and Bethune-Cookman pops up on the schedule, don’t assume it’ll be a snoozefest because the Daytona Beach team plays in FCS. An upset is unlikely, but so is a snoozefest.
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.....item 4).... Football Schedule Preview: Boston College ...
... FSU News ... www.fsunews.com/ ...
Written by
Drew MacFarlane
Staff Writer @DrewMacFarlane
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img code photo ... FSU is set to head to Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
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In their second ACC road game, FSU is set to head to Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts to take on the Boston College Eagles. / Zachary Goldstein / FSView
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FILED UNDER
FSU News
FSU News Football
Jul. 2, 2013 |
www.fsunews.com/article/20130703/FSVIEW0201/130702026/Foo...
For the first time since playing Pitt in the Steel City, the ’Noles brigade will pack up and leave the familiar confines of Doak Campbell, heading up the Eastern coast toward Chestnut Hill, Mass. Their destination plays home to another ACC opponent that sport similar colors and continue to linger and nip at the heels of the Seminoles: the Boston College Eagles.
In recent years, Florida State has become familiar with playing multiple homes games to start each season (i.e. 2011 when they scheduled three straight home games to open the season, and 2012 when they started four straight in Tallahassee), so this 2013 schedule may throw a bit of a curveball at the team. While the Seminoles are likely favorites in every game scheduled up to the BC game, the same can be said about the game to be played in Chestnut Hill.
Over the past eight years, the Seminoles have defeated the BC Eagles five times, three having come on the road on BC’s campus, in Alumni Stadium. The most recent of those five came last year on Bobby Bowden field, however, by a score of 51-7, only adding to a nightmare season where the Eagles scraped to a 2-10 overall record under former 4th-year head coach Frank Spaziani, their worst record since 1978. Though Spaziani lead BC to a 15-7 record his first two seasons, he was fired after scrounging up only six wins over the next two.
If you’re an Eagle fan, you have to hope the hiring of new head coach Steve Addazio will spark some kind of motivation to pick up the pieces and puzzle together a successful 2013 season. However, this is much easier said than done, especially when your schedule contains a 4-game span that includes the likes of USC, the ’Noles and Clemson.
Despite their horrendous 2012 season, the ’Noles will have to contain BC’s stars, who found an impressive amount of success while winning only two games all season. First and foremost is quarterback Chase Rettig, who will be entering his fourth year at Boston College. Rettig started all 12 of their games and threw for a little over 3,000 yards with 17 touchdowns. Not the numbers you were expecting, eh?
Another impressive stat: Rettig’s passer rating fell out of triple digits three times all season long, and two of those games were above an 83. Two things that did transfer over from such a poor season were his 13 INT’s and being sacked 36 times.
The second player to watch out for is Rettig’s right-hand man, wide reciever Alex Amidon. The connection between Rettig and Amidon is very apparent as they hooked up 78 times last season for 1,210 yards and seven touchdowns. Amidon’s numbers smashed school records, and also brought him within second place in the ACC to former Clemson Tiger and current Houston Texan (27th pick overall in 2013), DeAndre Hopkins, which is some pretty sweet company.
For the ’Noles, the scouting report is clear about who are the game changers, but despite all the commotion these two have cause together, the Seminoles have seen and beat them before.
Florida State will have to be on their toes in Alumni Stadium in order to return home with another ACC win, but they will surely be up to the challenge.
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......item 5).... Football Schedule Preview: Maryland ...
... FSU News ... www.fsunews.com/ ...
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img code photo ... Maryland and FSU are set to face off on October 5th
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Maryland and FSU are set to face off on October 5th, when the Terripans travel to Tally in what will be the last ACC meeting between the schools. / Riley Shaaber / FSView
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One year after the strangest of quarterback situations. Maryland travels to Tallahassee
Jul. 10, 2013 |
Written by
Drew MacFarlane
Staff Writer @DrewMacFarlane
FILED UNDER
FSU News
FSU News Football
www.fsunews.com/article/20130711/FSVIEW0201/130710021/Foo...
Back to Tallahassee for week five of their schedule, the ’Noles will be in their second of seven straight ACC games. Near the very middle of their schedule, these important ACC games will have to be dealt with appropriately if somehow the Seminoles are in the position to be in the hunt for a national championship. With a trip to Boston College in the rearview mirror, Florida State will come back home and prepare for the Terrapins from the University of Maryland.
Much like many of their opponents on the 2013 schedule, the Seminoles face another team with a strangely enigmatic season the year before. Maryland was one of those bizarre stories told across the college football nation last year that almost sounds too strange to be true.
After former starter Danny O’Brien decided to transfer to Wisconsin, the Terrapins Starting job was handed down to C.J. Brown. Unfortunately for Brown, he sustained an ACL injury in fall camp, which sidelined him for the whole season. Brown’s absence left a void to be filled by freshman Perry Hills, who led Maryland to a 4-2 record through the first six games. However, Hills would be lost out of the lineup with an ACL tear. After Hills, reserve Devin Burns would be named unable to play with a foot injury. Now onto their fourth QB, Maryland turned to Caleb Rowe. Rowe played only a smidgen of the NC State game before starting and playing the whole Boston College game. Rowe and his teammates fell short, 20-17, but the bad news wasn’t losing the game, it was that Rowe’s ACL had been torn sometime in the fourth quarter against BC.
The injury to Caleb Rowe baffled Maryland’s staff. After running through all of their possible quarterbacks, it looked as if there was nowhere else to turn, until true-freshman linebacker Shawn Petty emerged. Playing both linebacker and quarterback in high school, Petty was the next best player to fill the spot.
Petty was thrown into action against Georgia Tech to start his college quarterback career, before taking on the Clemson Tigers (13th at the time), the No. 10 Seminoles, and the University of North Carolina. Unfortunately for Petty and his Maryland cronies, all four ended in losses.
In a new 2013 season, the Terrapins, like many others, have not decided their starting QB. One thing is for certain, it will not be Devin Burns, as he jumped ship and decided to transfer away from the cursed QB class at Maryland. Though the undecided quarterback will be a main target for the ’Noles defense, there is still one player who will have to be marked after having himself a fairly decent 2012, despite the conditions of it.
Wide receiver Stefon Diggs will have his fair share of ’Noles defensive backs watching over him when he takes the field in October. The Maryland native was the biggest helping hand to all four quarterbacks who saw playing time in 2012, accumulating 848 receiving yards and falling just 38 yards short of 1,000 all-purpose yards. Though those numbers were only good enough to place him 66th in 2012, the importance of his season shouldn’t be placed on his numbers, but more on his progress. As a first year guy, he made himself known as a go-to receiver.
Making things more interesting is the fact that this is Maryland’s final year in the ACC before heading to the Big Ten and being replaced by the Lousiville Cardinals.
Recent history has shown the ’Noles to victory over the Terrapins, as Florida State his won seven of their last eight over Maryland, the one loss coming back in 2006.
However, you can never be too prepared for a team, and there will be no games that the Seminoles will take lightly. If all goes well, then the ’Noles will be ready to make turtle soup of the Terripans come October 5.
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.....item 6).... Football Schedule Preview: Clemson ...
... FSU News ... www.fsunews.com/ ...
Tigers-'Noles will once again be a factor who plays for the ACC Championship
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img code photo ... Tahj Boyd and the Tigers
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Tahj Boyd and the Tigers will aim to take down the 'Noles in Death Valley / Riley Shaaber / FSView
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Jul. 15, 2013 |
Written by
Drew MacFarlane
Staff Writer @DrewMacFarlane
FILED UNDER
FSU News
FSU News Sports
www.fsunews.com/article/20130715/FSVIEW02/130715012/Footb...
The Clemson Tigers. Florida State’s first true test of the season.
For those fans who didn’t get to experience the electricity in Doak Campbell last year when the Seminoles scored four straight touchdowns to take down the other Tigers from Death Valley, they’ll have to wait until next year, because this year, the team with the best odds to take the ACC title away from FSU gets the chance to start that task in their home stadium.
Their third road game of the season, the ’Noles will travel to a place that wants nothing more than to see the team from Tallahassee fall, Memorial Stadium. Packed to the brim with 80,000 dressed in orange and regalia, this will undoubtedly be the first real test for the Seminoles.
Clemson, unlike most of the Seminoles’ prior 2013 opponents, had a very good season last year. An 11-2 record saw the Tigers to a 7-1 ACC record, a seven game winning streak, and a Chick-fil-A Bowl victory over their SEC alter egos, the eighth-ranked Tigers from Louisiana State University. All of these achievements were made possible with their insanely mobile offense, an offense that nearly took Florida State down a peg from their then No. 4 national ranking.
Behind the wheel of the Clemson offense that ranked sixth in points for per game and 13th in passing yards per game, is Virginia boy Tajh Boyd, a once 2012 Heisman dark horse choice and current 2013 Heisman hopeful. Boyd has claimed 39 school records and a plethora of ACC records to form an impressive college resume around, including the ACC record for most touchdowns in a game when he collected eight against NC State, along with a mind blowing 529 all-purpose yards. Despite the records and impressive overall record, Boyd gave both his team and personal performances a “B”.
If being tenth in the nation in passing yards, with 3,896, fourth in quarterback rating with a 165.6, and tied fifth in touchdowns, 36, with Georgia’s Aaron Murray and USC’s Matt Barkley is only good enough for a “B” rating, Coach Dabo Swinney must be watering at the mouth to get a peek at an “A”. But Florida State’s defense won’t let that happen on their watch.
Luckily for the FSU defense, Tajh’s number one receiver has gone off to the NFL, being drafted 27th overall by the Houston Texans, but this doesn’t mean they’re in the clear. Junior Sammy Watkins will finally have his chance to shine after sitting second to Hopkins last year. While Watkins did in fact top Hopkins in 2011 with 1219 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns, Watkins sophomore year was flipped upside down. In 2012, Hopkins just about doubled Watkins receiving yardage and had 15 more touchdowns caught. This will be the Seminoles’ third look at Watkins, the first time Watkins owned them, racking up 141 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while the second time he was blanketed by garnet and gold.
What the ’Noles coaching staff knows is that the Clemson defense has been their weak point. The Tigers defense ranked 64th in yards allowed per game in 2012 with an average of 396.5. EJ had 380 yards in the air alone in last year’s matchup, not counting the 102 he accumulated on his own two feet. Combine that with the rest of the team’s yardage and it reaches a sum of 667 yards against, and those yards turn into points quickly. At 24.8 points allowed per game, Clemson takes the No. 48 spot in that category.
This trip will be a test of Florida State’s character and will have a large say in where the team stands at the end of the season. Just as they did last year, Coach Jimbo and his helpers will have all his players prepped and ready to barge onto the field and get their hands on another win, this time it will just have to be at the location nicknamed Death Valley instead of under the comforting lights of Doak Campbell. No matter whose home field it is, the ’Noles plan on battling until the clock ticks down to zero.
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.....item 7).... Football Position Preview: Defensive Line ...
... FSU News ... www.fsunews.com/ ...
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img code photo ... The Florida State defensive line squares off against Savannah State last season
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The Florida State defensive line squares off against Savannah State last season. The Seminoles will look to replace key players with influx of new talent for the upcoming season. / Justin Alley / FSView
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A staple of Florida State defense, how will the defensive line fare this year?
Jul. 17, 2013 2:07 PM |
Written by
Mat Hooper
Staff Writer @HooperTV
FILED UNDER
FSU News
FSU News Sports
www.fsunews.com/article/20130717/FSVIEW02/130717011/Footb...
Since Jimbo Fisher became head coach, the defensive line has been the butter to the bread that is Florida State football.
Last year was no different, with defensive ends Tank Carradine and Bjeorn Werner anchoring a formidable defensive line that recorded 33 total sacks. The success was expected, though, as the entire unit came in loaded with experience.
So much so, that the squad didn’t miss a beat when two-time 1st Team All-ACC defensive end Brandon Jenkins went down in the first week.
With graduation and the lure of the draft swooping in though, FSU lost not just the aforementioned defensive ends, but as well as interior specialist Everett Dawkins and Anthony McCloud.
Of the 33 sacks recoded last year, only 6.5 are returning with the Seminoles this year.
While this year’s defensive line may lack in the experience department, it makes up for in upside. Nearly all on the roster were highly-touted prospects coming out of high school or at least have shown glimpses of keeping up with the defensive lines FSU have been turning out recently.
None more than Mario Edwards, Jr. who was ESPN’s No. 1 rated high school player of 2012 and a consensus top prospect on nearly every other media. Edwards had his redshirt taken off after Jenkins went down in the first game and was thrust into the starting roll when Carradine was injured in the Florida loss. In his first start against Georgia Tech in the ACC Championship, he recorded seven tackles and a tackle for loss, giving everyone a preview of what is hopefully to come.
South Carolina’s Jadaveon Clowney has set the bar for what a top-rated high school defensive end can do in their sophomore campaign, and FSU fans will be hoping for similar success.
While a lot of eyes will be on Mario Edwards Jr. to have a big season, Timmy Jernigan might turn out to be the star of the unit. The rising junior only started two games last year, but saw a lot of playing time coming off the bench, recording 46 total tackles with eight being for loss on the season. The defensive tackle is looking to improve on this numbers and have a huge season, as expected as he is already on many preseason watch lists.
While nothing is guaranteed, Edwards and Jernigan are close to the only given starters for this upcoming year. The other open spots on the defensive line will be sorted out this Fall as FSU has a log jam of possible starters.
Opposite Edwards, Giorgio Newberry, who never quite had an impact last year despite playing in 12 games, will be competing with Dan Hicks for playing time. Hicks spent last season on the other side of the ball as a tight end, but was moved back to defensive end before Spring ball to help out in the unit’s depth and experience.
Redshirt freshman Chris Casher and true freshman DeMarcus Walker also look to factor into the equation. Casher was beginning to earn playing last year before going down with a season ending injury, while Walker is a four-star recruit FSU stole from Alabama in the thirteenth hour.
In the interior part of the line, redshirt senior Demonte McAlister looks to hold it down next to Jernigan as he comes in with nearly the most experience. He actually was third on the team in sacks last year, recording 4.5. Sophomores Eddie Goldman and Nile Lawrence-Stample look to push McAllister for the starting role, though, as Lawrence-Stample had a game-leading 3.5 sacks in the spring game and could find his name being heard in Pittsburgh as the starter with a strong Fall camp.
What’s made the defensive line so strong the last couple years is the rotation of its players and that doesn’t look to change.
If these Seminoles can live up to the upside that they posses, then they’ll continue the recent tradition of strong defensive lines.
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