The 22-point comeback over the Rebels, ranked No. 19 in Tuesday’s Top 25, is the largest in school history.
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Logan Tyler averaged 44 yards a punt and notched five touchbacks on kickoffs, while the MVP for the Seminoles may have been true freshman kicker Ricky Aguayo.
Florida State also got a huge lift from its special teams – which were a huge question mark coming into the season.
“There were a couple times that he got a little shook on the sidelines”. The new head man at Georgia, Kirby Smart, was Saban’s defensive coordinator and he’ll likely follow his mentor’s thought process in this regard, particularly because the ‘Dawgs for now, can survive on the strength of their running game. That’s what a game manager does; they’re playmakers.
Francois finished 33 of 52 through the air. “Our motto is to keep chopping”.
“We did not deserve to win the game the way we played the second half”, Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze said. The second half, we didn’t win any of those. For a half he looked like one of the nation’s top quarterbacks as he did at the close of previous year.
The Seminoles certainly looked like it when the clock struck zero.
Florida State scored on a goal-line dive from fullback Freddie Stevenson three plays later to pull within 28-23 – and just like that, the comeback was on. “SEC!” Winston said to the locker room.
“Things weren’t going right, but I couldn’t panic because my team needed me behind the wheel”, said Francois, just the fourth freshman to start the season as the Seminoles’ quarterback. Ole Miss did so three times, with a pair of interceptions thrown by Kelly among them. Kelly threw a bomb to Engram for 42 yards to get the Rebels into Seminole territory, and a 20-yard pass to Van Jefferson resulted in a touchdown. His three long runs were like hitting the release valve on the pressure cooker, and his willingness to check down to the running back helped, too.
However, credit the Florida State defense for slowing the Rebels the rest of the way.
Walker was honored as the conference’s Defensive Lineman of the Week after recording a career-high 4.5 sacks and a forced fumble on Monday night.
A 32-6 second half blitz can have that kind of effect. He was held to 2.8 yards per carry in the first half.
MS wide receiver D.K. Metcalf, right, catches a pass over Florida State defensive back Tarvarus McFadden for a 3-yard touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Monday, Sept. 5, 2016, in Orlando, Fla. “We did not deserve to win the game the way we played the second half”. The Seminoles host Charleston Southern on Saturday and then face another tough test on September 17 at No. 13 Louisville.
His answer? Watch the show. I know nobody from MS is getting [in] your ass like Coach Trickett!
The clear advantages and disadvantages created a game of wild runs – 21-3 Ole Miss, then 33-0 FSU, and finally 45-34. Ken Webster is out for the season with a knee injury, Eric Swinney appears to be out for an extended period of time with a knee injury as well. He was carted off the field early in the first quarter.
Swinney left the game in second quarter. The Rebels should be able to overwhelm a majority with dominant line play and aggression.
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No. 1 – On offense, much of the attention was paid to how Deondre Francois was going to do in his first game as FSU football’s starting quarterback.
