Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Late fumble costs FSU a chance at win
TALLAHASSEE — The Florida State football team had a chance to improve to .500, take a big step on their daunting road to bowl eligibility, and show its pride after absorbing a 43-point beatdown by Louisville last season.
Instead, the Seminoles squandered all of those opportunities against the Cardinals on Saturday as their fourth-quarter comeback ultimately fell short at the most inopportune time with the most demoralizing turnover.
“We’ve been one inch away, one play away — you can’t quit fighting,” FSU coach Jimbo Fisher said after quarterback James Blackman’s late fumble led to a game-winning field goal and a disappointing 31-28 loss to Louisville in front of an announced crowd of 72,764 at Doak Campbell Stadium.
“Sometimes even when you fight for them, put your heart and soul, they don’t come. You have to continue to dig for them and that’s what we’re going to do.”
Florida State (2-4, 2-3 ACC) was minutes away from taking the lead on Louisville after Blackman led two touchdown drives scored by receiver Nyqwan Murray in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 28 after falling behind by 14 points in the second half.
But as FSU trekked into the red zone with hopes of scoring a field goal and escaping with the victory, Blackman fumbled a handoff intended for running back Jacques Patrick at the 20-yard line, allowing the Cardinals (5-3, 2-3) to take over.
Louisville Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Lamar Jackson led the Cardinals down the field, setting up a 34-yard field goal by Blanton Creque to hand FSU another crushing home loss this season.
The Seminoles fall to 2-4, needing wins in four of their final five games to extend their nation-leading 35-year bowl eligibility streak. They also lost their third consecutive game at Doak Campbell Stadium for the first time since 1974.
“Any time after you have your defense playing on all cylinders playing their guts out, and the offense is playing on all cylinders and playing their guts out trying to get a comeback, when something like that happens, of course, it’s demoralizing,” FSU offensive lineman Alec Eberle said after the loss.
“It really hurts. We were going at it as hard as we could. When something like that happens, it hurts a lot.”
Blackman completed 16 of 28 passes for 248 yards with touchdown passes to Murray and tight end Ryan Izzo, despite two interceptions and the fumble in his fifth start as a true freshman since assuming the starting job for injured quarterback Deondre Francois earlier this season.
Blackman continued to show signs of development, leading his fourth comeback in the fourth quarter in as many games. Murray recovered a fumble by Patrick in the end zone at the start of the fourth quarter, then Murray caught a 20-yard touchdown from Blackman to tie the game with five minutes remaining.
But after FSU’s defense forced a Louisville turnover on downs in the final minutes, Blackman’s final turnover soured the Seminoles’ attempt to avenge last season’s 63-20 blowout loss at Louisville last season.
“It’s demoralizing,” Patrick said. “At the end of the day, it’s not what you go through. It’s how you come through it. There’s a lot to be learned in these situations.”
FSU’s defense was able to corral Jackson and Louisville’s offense for most of the day, with seven players accounting for six tackles for loss, including two sacks. Freshman defensive end Joshua Kaindoh forced a fumble that senior linebacker Matthew Thomas scooped and scored for a 34-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
Now, the Seminoles hope to quickly regroup during a short week ahead ending with a Friday night tilt at Boston College (4-4, 2-3), a team that has scored more than 40 points during two consecutive victories.