Seminoles back to normal as Wolfpack await
TALLAHASSEE — Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher insisted he did not watch much football during the last weekend of his team’s two-week layoff because of Hurricane Irma.
Instead, Fisher did something he prefers more than “anything in the world.”
He got to enjoy some quality time with his sons Trey, 16, and Ethan, 12.
Fisher said he watched Trey, a sophomore quarterback, lead Tallahassee North Florida Christian to a 46-18 win for over Foley (Ala.) Snook Christian Academy on Friday night before fishing in a jon boat with Ethan and watching game film with Trey on Saturday.
Fisher also tuned in just enough to get the gist of No. 2 Clemson’s blowout win over No. 19 Louisville, the first marquee ACC matchup of the season with FSU’s game against Miami postponed until Oct. 7.
“It’s just fun to be a dad,” Fisher said on Monday. “We don’t get to do that very often, and that’s a shame, getting to do it with these other kids and not your own.
“You got to do it and find as much time as you can.”
After two weeks off following a season-opening loss to Alabama, FSU returns to the action this week, hosting NC State (2-1) at noon Saturday in Doak Campbell Stadium.
The game will be the first start for true freshman quarterback James Blackman, who replaces Orlando native Deondre Francois in the starting lineup. Francois suffered a torn patellar tendon in his left knee that will sideline him for the rest of the season.
Blackman and the Seminoles are surely eager to get back on the football field against an opponent after the Miami postponement and the cancellation of their Sept. 9 game with Louisiana-Monroe.
“We all are. We all want to play,” Fisher said when asked about his team’s eagerness. “It feels weird to know that other people are playing and you’re not playing. There’s no doubt about that. But [there is] no sense to get upset about it. It is what it is, and you’ve got to play what you play.
“Like I said, it was for a reason. It was a lot bigger than football. And there’s still a lot of families that are still suffering and have things going on with them that we know they’re still trying to get helped out and throughout this state. To me, that’s the important thing. Now that we’re back in ball, maybe we can give some of those folks a few hours of pleasure when they get to watch us play, and sometimes that’s a good relief of coming back, that normality is coming back.”
The Seminoles have kept a relatively steady practice schedule during the layoff, with typical sessions on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays the last two weeks, with lighter sessions on Thursdays and/or Friday.
On Friday, the Seminoles started their day with an 8 a.m. breakfast and practiced at noon to replicate their game-day schedule when hosting NC State.
Practicing against each other for two consecutive weeks strained some of the players’ focus at times, Fisher said, but with an actual game to be played later this week, the Seminoles are enthused about returning to their normal routine.
“They’ve gotten after it really good,” Fisher said. “We’ve had really intense practices. I think both sides out there keep it competitive for each other. From what I’ve seen so far, we’ve done a pretty nice job.”