Florida State had enough chaos Monday night to keep SMU from turning Doak Campbell Stadium into a runaway, but the Seminoles also spent four quarters showing why this still feels like a team built on thin ice.
The Mustangs piled up 585 yards, with veteran quarterback Kevin Jennings throwing for 430 of them. They hit on 11 explosive plays for 364 yards and two touchdowns, and they punted only once.
On paper, that should have looked like a blowout. On the field, SMU’s four turnovers and missed field goal kept FSU hanging around long enough to make it feel like a game.
But Florida State did almost nothing with those breaks. The Seminoles turned the four takeaways and the missed kick into just seven points, and that only came after a short field created by a muffed punt. Even with 199 rushing yards, the offense never looked stable, and the passing game was barely there at all, finishing with 125 yards.
The clearest snapshot of the night came on third down, where the contrast was brutal.
SMU went 8-of-14 on third down, converted 57.1% of its chances, and did it while facing an average of 7.1 yards to go. The Mustangs also went 3-of-6 on third-and-long, averaged 13.3 yards per third-down play, and completed 6-of-10 passes on third down for 164 yards, six first downs and touchdowns of 10 and 79 yards. They added two more third-down conversions on the ground.
FSU, meanwhile, managed only 2-of-15 on third down, a 13.3% clip, while dealing with an average of 6.2 yards to go. The Seminoles did score once on third down when Ashton Daniels hit Samuel Singleton Jr. short, and Singleton turned it into a 39-yard touchdown by doing the rest himself.
That kind of failure has become hard to watch, because it keeps happening in the same places. On third down, the defense can’t get off the field.
On third down, the offense can’t consistently function. It has become a familiar low point for a program that no longer wins with any regularity.
The quarterback situation only sharpens that problem.
FSU’s handling of the position under Mike Norvell has become a recurring issue, and Monday night did nothing to change that. Ashton Daniels has plenty of college tape, and with that comes a clear track record of who he can be at his best and worst.
Through two games at FSU, he has looked slow to process and even slower to pull the trigger. The Seminoles also have not seemed to build the offense around what he does best, which is quick throws to the middle of the field with limited reads.
Against SMU, Daniels was used more as a runner, and there were moments where that helped. But the passing limitations were still obvious.
FSU has a receiver group that is supposed to be one of the better ones in college football, yet the passing game is held back by an inability to throw receivers open or consistently win in tight spaces down the field. The most effective pass play against SMU was a short shovel to Singleton in space, letting the back turn speed into a touchdown.
The bigger concern is that Daniels does not appear to be a temporary fix so much as the only real option. A junior college quarterback who got to campus late quickly moved into the backup mix over a second-year quarterback who played last season, and right now FSU does not look comfortable enough with the rest of its quarterback room to make a switch.
That leaves the Seminoles in the same place they have been for three straight seasons: choosing a quarterback who looks like the only valued option, even with major flaws attached. Those flaws are now dragging down the offense.
The defense has its own mess to clean up.
Through two weeks, FSU has not finished plays in the backfield and has also dealt with busted coverages and communication breakdowns in the secondary. The front has generated some pressure, but almost none of it has turned into real damage.
The Seminoles had two sacks in the opener and none Monday night. They have 15 quarterback hurries through two games, with Jack Jalen Anderson leading the way with four, while opponents have thrown nearly 80 passes against them and found plenty of success.
There has been pressure. There has been no finish. There has been no consistent havoc, and there have been no game-changing plays.
That puts even more strain on a secondary that is already struggling with coverage and communication. The front is not helping the back end, and the back end is not helping itself.
Better pressure would give the coverage more breathing room. Better coverage would buy the rush more time.
Right now, neither side is making the other better.
SMU exposed that combination in full, shredding FSU through the air and nearly reaching 600 total yards. The turnovers were the only thing that kept the night from becoming much worse. Maybe that is what this defense is: a group that has trouble getting stops but can still take the ball away.
If that doesn’t hold, and if the pass rush and pass coverage don’t improve, Florida State’s offense may not have nearly enough to keep pace.
In Other News...
FSU Fans Are Confronting One Brutal Mike Norvell Reality
Mike Norvells tenure at Florida State has reached the point where the frustration is no longer just about one bad stretch or one disappointing season. Seven years into the job, the Seminoles are staring at a 39-35 record under his watch, and the recent slide has made the conversation around the program feel heavier than it did even a year ago. What once looked like a long-term build now has fans weighing patience against the reality of how long the skid has lasted.
Money only makes that conversation harder to ignore. Norvells 2024 extension runs through 2031 and includes a modest base salary with supplemental income that rises each year, but the real issue is the buyout, which sits around $46.7 million. That kind of number puts Florida State in a familiar college football bind: even when a program starts asking tough questions about direction, the cost of making a change can be almost as daunting as standing pat. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Norvell's Future Just Became A Tough Florida State Debate
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Florida State Fans Have A Costly Portal Question After Week 1
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Mike Norvell is now dealing with the kind of scrutiny that comes when expectations and production drift apart early. High-value additions such as quarterback Ashton Daniels and running back Quintrevion Wisner have not matched the hope that came with their arrival, and the debate around which transfers were worth the spending is only getting louder. For a fan base already frustrated by the loss, the lingering portal question is no longer just about who came in, but whether the Seminoles spent in the right places at all. [Read more 🡒]