Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

After years of pressure from FSU faithful, Jeff Bowden finally announced that he was resigning as offensive coordinator of the Seminoles on Tuesday. The resignation is effective at the end of the season (the official end of the season).

It took nearly 6 years of an underachieving offense for this to happen, but not a moment too soon. It is painfully obvious week-after-week that our offense is not prepared going into every game. 90% of the time our running game is nonexistent, even though we have 2 running backs that were ranked #1 in the nation coming out of high school. Just think about how pathetic that is.

Baby Bowden leaving Tallahassee is just the first step to a return to glory. There are more changes that must be made. Next up: QB coach Daryl Dickey. With him teaching our signal-callers, the position will never improve to be at the level it should. Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke would not have ever made even all-conference learning the position from this clown. Like I've said before, FSU QBs have only gotten worse the longer they are tutored under him.

I could go on about the things that need to be done in this program, but we'll take things one step at a time. This is truly a great day for Florida State fans, players, and their families. There will be much rejoicing tonight throughout Seminole Nation. However, there is one member that might not do too much celebrating. After the announcement, Bobby Bowden had this to say, "I am disappointed in Jeff's decision. This is a big loss to me personally. His decision is an emotional one for me." Sorry Bobby, but at least one Bowden was willing to do what it took to get this program headed back in the right direction.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

FSU lost 30-0 at home Saturday night to Wake Forest. That's right, 30-zero. As in not one single frickin point. I don't even want to talk about the actual game itself. The score says it all: We are terrible. Things need to be done. QB changes are not the answer. We have the players most coaches would give their first born for (insert Bobby-Jeff joke here). Both QBs were less than unproductive in this game, but I've seen enough FSU football to know why that is. They both have the goods to be great college QBs. They were both top QB recruits coming out of high school. The problem lies in that no QB here since Mark Richt and Chuck Amato left have improved even one little bit from the time they step on campus to when they leave. Chris Rix? He looked pretty good his freshman year. . . never improved. Fabian Walker? Never improved. Wyatt Sexton? Well I'm not even going to go there. Drew Weatherford looked good for a freshman last year. While his numbers haven't been all that poor, his play seems more disappointing than that of a year ago. Like with Rix, he may actually be getting WORSE with FSU coaching. I wish I was joking. Lee seems like he has only learned one thing since he arrived on campus as well. That he made a mistake. These players and their families have trusted their futures with the coaches. It is their job to develop their outstanding talent and get them to be the best football players they can be. That just is not happening. Hasn't been since 2000.

We know that changes need to be made. Everybody in the country can see that. However, Bobby Bowden has insisted that he will not fire Jeff. When asked this week about the situation, he responded that he does not believe in firing people. This is honest to God the first thing that came to my head: What he just said was the most stupid statement I have ever heard in my life. Well what the hell do you do when someone can't do something right? If they can't perform the job that they get paid to do then what do you do Bobby? We just got shut out at home while compiling a total of 139 yards with a bunch of 5 and 4 star recruits. If you get paid to do something and don't do it, well that's as good as stealing. And it's not just Jeff. He doesn't deserve all the blame. Daryl Dickey has not done his job as QBs coach. He simply can't develop talent. Billy Sexton (RBs) hasn't seemed to have done too great of a job either. Some of that is probably due to other factors on offense, but we have to clean house and only a select few should stay in my book. But of course this all falls from the top. Bobby, if you don't believe in firing people, you will get fired. Here's why. If changes are not made VERY soon, boosters will stop giving their money (they've already said so), obviously we will not be getting the $14 million each year for making a BCS bowl game, and oh yeah, the top recruits will no longer come here. This wouldn't be as much of a problem if we had good coaching (see Wake Forest), but then again that's why I'm writing this. And if we have only mediocre talent with this horrible coaching staff then 1-11 and 2-10 seasons would not be out of the question. Our stadium will only be half full each home game. The money FSU football generates for the university each year would take an incredible hit from a number of areas. And we all know that money is power so if you are holding the school back from receiving tens of millions of dollars each year while you are making over $2 mil a year yourself. . . well, I think you know what happens then.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

Xavier Lee didn't look quite as good as he did last week against Maryland, but he did enough to get the job done. He had a 37-yard TD toss to Chris Davis in the 3rd quarter and accounted for a team-leading 48 yards on the ground. Drew Weatherford saw a little time at the end of the game as well.

But this game was all about the defense for the Noles. On the first drive of the game, Tony Carter stepped in front of a Jameel Sewell pass and took it 35 yards for a score. Carter was on top of his game all day long. He is really stepping up as one of the elite shutdown corners in the country. LBs Buster Davis and Lawrence Timmons were making their presence felt all afternoon as well. Buster had 9 tackles and a sack for a safety. LT also finished with 9 stops and a sack of his own. Freshmen DE Kevin McNeil and S Myron Rolle had big days. McNeil had his breakout game with 2 sacks. Rolle joined Buster and the Law with 9 tackles, including 2 in the backfield. 2nd year CB Michael Ray Garvin played tough with 9 tackles and a sack.

Walk-on DE Eli Charles was a nice surprise, getting 2 tackles and blocking a punt in the 1st quarter which gave FSU the ball on the 1-yard line. Lorenzo Booker made it a 1-play drive as he jumped over the line for a TD. Antone Smith finished the game's scoring with a 3-yard run in the 4th.

I was very happy to see the cut back on the amount of penalties we commited. Only 4 flags for 35 against us on the day. I almost mistaked us for a disciplined team.

FSU plays a very tough Wake Forest team next week in Tallahassee. If the defense shows up like they did today, there's a good chance we can put a dent in Wake's dream season.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

FSU lost yet another conference game this week against Maryland's football - not basketball - team 27-24. Even though the loss is very disappointing to see, there were a lot of positive things to take from it.

Former 5-star QB Xavier Lee found out he was going to make his first collegiate start about an hour before game time because Drew Weatherford had tendinitis in his ankle (or so they say). The sophomore made the most of his opportunity as he looked great all night. Lee threw for 286 yards with 2 TDs and no interceptions. He made all the throws and played well enough to win, but numerous drops by his receivers hurt the Seminoles again. Lee also contributed 50 yards on the ground and used his mobility to move around until a teammate would break open somewhere. His performance was very encouraging and definitely has opened up a true QB controversy. I would like to see him start again next week against Virginia.

This is very rare, but I really liked the play-calling by whoever that was in the booth. ESPN kept saying that it was Jeff Bowden when they showed FSU's box, but honest to God I didn't see him in there. And from seeing the plays we were running throughout the night, especially in the ground game, I really do question who was calling the shots. In the past, we would abandon the running game as soon as we fell behind. And when I say abandon, I mean absolutely zero running. However, last night we fell behind very early and still ran the ball the entire game and with success. As a team, we had 34 carries for 172 yards. That is over 5 yards a carry. The type of running plays we ran is also what surprised me. There was a lot more misdirection and plays that allow the line time to move guys out of the way. This balance allowed us to rack up 458 yards of total offense. Let's see more of this in the future.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

Saturday's 51-24 thumping of Duke was not anything shocking. FSU's offense will rarely be confused for potent but Duke is, well, Duke and even Mom knows, that's not very good. Even with the handicap, here are some thoughts on what took place on Tobacco Road this past weekend.

Drew Weatherford was money. Simple as that. He only played in the 1st and 3rd quarters and threw for 231 yards with 4 TDs and 0 INTs. Those numbers could have been even more gaudy had it not been for a case of the dropsies by his receivers. . . again.

On the other side of the spectrum, Xavier Lee struggled mightily. Trying to state a case for more playing time, Lee led 4 drives in the 2nd quarter. These drives resulted in 3 INTs and a 3-and-out. His first INT was returned for 6. Considering this lack of production was coming against such inferior competition, this was not a very promising performance. He did have one bright moment in the game, throwing a 14-yard TD to Damon McDaniel in the 4th quarter.

Antone Smith showed the type of explosion we all know he possesses, but rarely is able to display. He only carried the ball 4 times, but his 80-yard TD run to open the 2nd half was the offensive play of the game.

Greg Carr once again showed up big against the Dookies. After a 6 catch, 95 yard, 3 TD day last year, the 6'6" sophomore grabbed 4 passes for 100 yards and 3 more TDs on Saturday. Now who thinks he'll even get 50 yards with 1 score this upcoming weekend against BC? As much as I hope I'm wrong, my money is with no.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

For the second consecutive year, NC State has beaten the once-dominant FSU Seminoles. This 24-20 home win marks the 4th time Chuck Amato has beat his old team since he left Tallahassee in 2000. This one is pretty easy to sum up. We got out-coached. We got out-played. NC State made plays when they had to make plays. We did not. They were more disciplined than us. They wanted it more.

Wolfpack quarterback Daniel Evans played a hell of a game. He was cool in the clutch. His receivers made plays. Evans finished the game with 3 TD passes and 0 interceptions. He brought his team back from a 20-10 2nd half deficit. I was really impressed with how he performed in such a spotlight.

The Seminoles were not horrible in any one area, but were not particularly good in any area either. Drew Weatherford had an up and down game. He looked very good at times, then had some plays that I'm sure he wishes he had back. His lone turnover came on FSU's final drive when a pass intended for freshman TE Brandon Warren was deflected and intercepted. The running game got off to a good start on the opening drive, then didn't do much after that.

The defense gave up 340 yards to an offense that has struggled this year. They also let the Wolfpack do whatever they wanted to with the ball over the final quarter and a half. The NC State running back tandem of Andre Brown and Toney Baker was able to gain first down after first down in the 2nd half. Brown finished with 113 yards on only 18 carries, his second straight game against FSU with over 100 yards. I've already mentioned what Evans was able to do through the air. Our defense was not able to create one single turnover the entire game. I hear those usually help.

NC State easily won in the intangibles department. They played with more passion. There was a different look in their eyes than in our players. I actually believed they were the team with something to prove and not FSU. The Seminoles were once again undisciplined, collecting 10 penalties (that were accepted). Oh yeah, we also again used up all of our timeouts with plenty of time left in the game. That predictably came back to bite us, as we could not stop the clock once NC State took the ball with just over 2:00 to play.

This may sound strange, but I don't want to complain about coaching. About how we continuously lose to supposedly less talented teams. I'm over it. I have accepted the fact that we are a mediocre team playing in a mediocre conference. And that is how I will (try to) look at things from now on. NC State deserved to win this game. The better team prevailed.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

The Seminoles ride into Raleigh tomorrow night for a Thursday night showdown with the always dangerous (at least to FSU) NC State Wolfpack. The Noles must avenge last season's 20-15 loss in Tallahassee, when future 1st round D-linemen Mario Williams, Manny Lawson and John McCargo dominated the FSU offensive line ala Mike Tyson vs. anybody in his younger years.

This brings me to the first key to this week's game. This could probably go first every week. FSU has got to win the battle in the trenches. The Seminole big uglies must create holes for the backs and keep the quarterbacks off theirs. The line has had to deal with some minor injuries lately but that should not hold them back Thursday night. Luckily, NC State lost those three first round defensive linemen. However, there is still more than enough talent with DeMario Pressley and Tank Tyler to think it's going to be an easy task. Besides, with us it never is. It would be nice to see Booker and Smith run for at least 150 yards in the game.

The next focus is the big boys on the other side of the ball. We have to be able to put pressure on their quarterback and limit their talented runners. NC State QB Daniel Evans is very inexperienced and has never seen a defense like the one he will see this game in his life. He will make his fair share of bad decisions if we can get to him consistently. FSU's defensive line has managed only 1 sack on the year and that was last game by freshman Dekoda Watson, who is really a LB lined up at the end position. Explosive freshman Everette Brown will be making his first start in garnet and gold at defensive end. It will be a homecoming for Brown, who is from North Carolina. Brown has all the tools to be the pass rusher the Noles have been looking for.

Another key point for this game is letting our wide receivers make plays. NC State's starting corners stand just 5'10" and 5'11". It would be wise to throw the ball to 6'3" DeCody Fagg and 6'6" Greg Carr early and often Thursday night. While they haven't produced as much as I'd like to this point, their ability to create big plays is undeniable. The Wolfpack should not have the luxury of rushing only 3 players effectively and dropping 8 into coverage like they did most of last year's game. This will allow the wideouts much more space to make things happen. Let's also not forget the emerging weapon that is freshman TE Brandon Warren.

Florida State cannot overlook what NC State is capable of. They're an inconsistent team, having lost to Akron and Southern Miss (by 20) but are coming off a big win over Boston College last week. Here's guessing that the Pack come ready to play during primetime against Chuck Amato's former family. They always do.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

It became official today: FSU freshman LB Marcus Ball will miss the rest of this season after tearing his left ACL against Rice on Saturday. The injury happened in the 3rd quarter while covering a kickoff. The tear was not caused by any contact. His knee simply gave out when attempting to make a cut to make a tackle.

Ball has been nothing short of excellent in his playing time this season. He has been one of the most surprising players on the team as a true freshman. We all thought that #1 recruit Myron Rolle was going to make the biggest impact of the freshmen this year. That still may prove to be true, but Ball was well on track to take that honor until this unfortunate injury. Before getting hurt, Marcus intercepted a Rice pass and returned it 54 yards. Ball was all over the field against Troy, recording a team high 10 tackles and 3 pass break-ups. He combined great speed with an instinct that can't be taught.

Ball almost didn't make it to Florida State. Most schools gave up on him in the recruiting process thinking that he would not qualify. Even when he signed with the Noles, it was still considered a long shot for him to suit up this year. After an incredible effort in his last semester of high school in the classroom and on the standardized tests, Ball was cleared to enroll at the beginning of the summer.

Although we won't have the privilege of watching Marcus shatter ball carriers the rest of this season, his work ethic will have him back and even better in 2007. That is something to really look forward to.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

Florida State did exactly what they were supposed to do on Saturday - destroy a bad team. They established a running game, got Xavier Lee a bunch of playing time, and were able to play a lot of their new, young players. I would have to say they accomplished everything they set out to do. In the end, it equaled a 55-7 pounding of Rice. However, it still doesn't prove a thing as far as winning games against real teams.

The offense got the job done. . . finally. They compiled 500 yards. Lorenzo and Antone each went over 100 yards on the day. Surratt scored 2 more TDs, bring his season total to 5 in 4 games. There were some Greg Carr sightings. The offense took care of the ball. Mainly, it was just really good to see how well the running backs are capable of playing, regardless of the competition.

On defense, we looked good for the most part after the Owls effortlessly scored a TD on their first drive of the game on a wide open 32-yard pass. I didn't like seeing their running back gain over 100 yards on us, but that's about all they had going for them. We gave up 241 yards for the game.

We got to play a lot of our younger players in this game. True frosh Dekoda Watson is one player that really stood out to me. He recorded a first half sack. Fellow rookie Myron Rolle finished with 8 tackles, which led the team.

Undoubtedly the best looking freshman for the Noles this season has been LB Marcus Ball. His season looks to be over after injuring his knee on a special teams play. It sounds like an ACL tear. This is really a shame. He was as good looking a freshman as I've seen in Tallahassee in a while. Let's just hope he can fully recover and be back at full strength for next season. Tony Carter also missed the second half with a knee injury but he says it's just a bruise so there's a good chance he won't miss much time.

Gary Cismesia was on his game today. He nailed a career long 53-yard FG in the second quarter. He also added a 32-yarder later in the half.

The Tribe did about as good a job today as we could've hoped. But like I said, this does not answer any questions. Bobby put it best, "It's not like it was Notre Dame out there. They did what you hoped they would do." Basically, this game was just a confidence builder. Rice has now lost 20 of their last 21 games.

Now let's see them take some of this performance and show it in conference play.

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Filed under: Florida State Football, ACC

It was nice to see that offense is still possible for Florida State. Joe Surratt's TD run on the opening drive was the first time we have scored a touchdown in the first half all year. Even crazier is that this is the first time in the last 10 games that we have had a lead at halftime. No, that is not a typo. Things have been that bad lately.

The J-Train's 1 yard plunge was his 4th score in 4 games this year. What a weapon. The running game has piled up 150 yards. Booker looked good with 90 yards on 10 carries. He still had a couple runs that could have been nice gains had he not shown off what dance moves he'll be using in the club tonight.

Drew also had an effective first half. I believe they put points on the board on all of the drives he led. Xavier Lee got his first real playing time of the year. He did nothing to suggest he should be playing more than DW. I'm not saying he's not a productive player. He still has to play with what Baby Bowden deals him just like Drew, but I didn't see anything that should create a QB controversy.

We did our first non-conventional offensive pay of the year on a reverse to freshman WR Preston Parker.

The defense played well after a horrible start. Rice made it look easy on their first drive finishing it with a wide open TD pass. Marcus Ball looked great. Fellow true frosh Dekoda Watson looked pretty good as well.

The commentators are lousy. They definitely are not very familiar with FSU football. They were surprised after we passed the ball on 2 of our first 3 plays, stating "This is not very characteristic of Florida State, not trying to establish the run to start the game." Where have they been the last few years?

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