Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
’Noles persevere in rousing battle
Game MVP Cook declares for NFL draft
MIAMI GARDENS — Florida State’s Kermit Whitfield tried to tell fellow receiver Keith Gavin to stay in the end zone and not return Michigan’s kickoff.
But Gavin, a true freshman playing in his first meaningful game for the Seminoles, thought he already crossed the goal line and had to make the best of his first possession in a college football game.
Gavin broke free for a 66-yard return, just seconds after Michigan scored a go-ahead touchdown and 2-point conversion to take a lead late in the fourth quarter.
“It was just a big moment for me,” said Gavin, who grew up near Tallahassee in Wakulla. “I blacked out for a second. I felt like I couldn’t hear. I couldn’t hear nothing. It was just seeing the end zone. I just saw the end zone. That’s all it was.”
FSU quarterback Deondre Francois made the most of the field position, later tossing a 12-yard touchdown to fellow Orlando native Nyqwan Murray to seal a 33-32 victory for the No. 11 Seminoles (10-3) over the No. 6 Wolverines (10-3) in the Orange Bowl late Friday night.
The Seminoles were able to secure the victory in Hard Rock Stadium despite Michigan’s Josh Metellus returning a blocked extra point for 2 points on the ensuing play in one of the wildest and most memorable games of the college football sea-
son.
FSU true freshman defensive back Carlos Becker shut down the Wolverines’ shot at a rally with an interception of Michigan quarterback Wilton Speight in the final seconds, clinching the fifth consecutive 10-win season for the Seminoles.
“As we know, nothing comes easy,” coach Jimbo Fisher said as FSU won its first bowl game since the 2013 national championship. “Nothing comes easy in anything, and we can make it that way, I know that. Dadgum.”
Michigan’s ferocious fourth-quarter comeback nearly spoiled arguably the best performance of the season by Florida State’s defense and the homecoming of Seminoles star running back Dalvin Cook, who shined during the final game of his college career.
Cook. who said Saturday he would make himself eligible for the NFL draft, was named Orange Bowl most outstanding player after rushing for 145 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. He also had three receptions for 62 yards. He captivated the announced crowd of 67,432 when he broke free for a 71-yard run to set up a touchdown at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
Michigan showed the fight of a team that was on the cusp of the College Football Playoff semifinals, but until the fourth quar, the Wolverines struggled with stars Jabrill Peppers and Jake Butt sidelined due to injuries.
Outside of a 92-yard touchdown pass to Murray in the first quarter, Francois faced his own adversity, completing only 9 of 27 passes, although for 222 yards. Francois tossed an interception that Mike McCray returned for a 14-yard touchdown with a minute left in the third quarter to spark Michigan’s comeback.
Speight threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Khalid Hill, and Chris Evans scored on a 30-yard run for a 30-27 Michigan lead before Gavin’s seeming mistake turned into FSU’s fortune.
“As soon as that ball left my hand, I knew he was going to come down with it,” Francois said of Murray, his childhood friend. “I just knew in my heart he was going to come down with it.”
The Seminoles’ powerful defense, led by Miami native Matthew Thomas’ 15 total tackles and 3.5 tackles for a loss, limited Michigan to 3.2 yards per play.
Fisher and the Seminoles, who started the season 3-2, have their eyes set on a strong finish to the recruiting season and offseason workouts before opening 2017 against Alabama in Atlanta.
“Boy, the future looks good, and I can’t be more excited,” Fisher said. “We’ve got a chance to have a good football team for a while. I’m very proud of these guys, the character and quality they are, and I’m blessed to be their coach.”