Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Seminoles staying optimistic, despite offensive woes
TALLAHASSEE — Florida State’s first offensive drive during its win at Duke last week was a thing of beauty.
The Seminoles ran 12 plays for 83 yards, weaving tight ends, running backs and receivers on and off the field in several different formations, culminating in the first touchdown during an opening drive for the team all season: a 20-yard touchdown pass from quarterback James Blackman to receiver Auden Tate.
“We just did everything right,” Tate said after the game. “The plays the coaches called, we just executed them. We weren’t mentally struggling. We just had a good opening drive, and it was a real good start.”
Added receiver Nyqwan Murray: “That was one of the best drives of the year it felt so easy. We were all like ‘man, I wish we could do this every drive.’”
The Seminoles had to wait until the start of the fourth quarter to score their second touchdown against the Blue Devils in the 17-10 victory, FSU’s second win of the season.
FSU (2-3, 2-2 ACC) faces Louisville (4-3, 1-3) with hopes of avenging last season’s 43-point loss while also trying to get back to .500 in a contest that will surely test significant weaknesses for both teams.
To grasp FSU’s historically poor start, consider these offensive statistics after five games:
FSU’s offense is the worst Power 5 unit in the country, averaging just 18.2 points per game — a far cry from the 51.6-point average during the Seminoles’ 2013 national championship season.
FSU’s eight touchdowns — six receiving, with five caught by receiver Auden Tate — and two rushing scores are tied with Kent State at the bottom of the Football Bowl Subdivision.
While converting on 15 of 17 red-zone opportunities (88 percent) is certainly a positive, FSU has relied heavily on nine field goals from kick Ricky Aguayo to put points on the scoreboard.
Despite their glaring offensive shortcomings, FSU coach Jimbo Fisher doubled down on his positive postgame comments after reviewing the Duke game film.
“We look at our team, starting to get closer to the team to which we thought we could be and getting better,” Fisher said before his team’s highly anticipated rematch against Louisville at noon Saturday in Doak Campbell Stadium.
The Seminoles will have a chance to showcase their offensive improvement against Louisville’s defense, which has given up 380.4 yards of total offense (63rd nationally) and 29.6 points per game (85th).
Fisher said his Seminoles started to discover their offensive identity at Duke, behind steady a rushing effort from Cam Akers and Jacques Patrick and an efficient performance from Blackman in his fourth career start.
FSU gained a seasonbest 425 yards and Fisher believes his team should have finished with upward of 37 points, nearly 20 more than the season average.
The Seminoles, however, were thwarted by an untimely penalty or tackle for loss in key situations that could have propelled them forward offensively.
“You watch the film, and it’s one thing here, one thing there, one guy maybe slips up one play,” offensive lineman Alex Eberle said. “But you see it, if that one thing didn’t happen, what kinda play could’ve broke out. As a team, we see these chances, and that’s our focus now.”
Fisher, who has been hailed as an offensive mastermind during his coaching career, also sees his team’s potential. He just hopes the Seminoles are able to put it all together.
“There's a few inches; we've got to keep fighting for them,” Fisher said. “But the things are there, and we've got to do a better job in coaching them and putting them in that position … You're starting to see them evolve, but you've got to put points on the board.”