Florida State showed enough against Alabama to make you think the Seminoles had finally found their footing. For stretches at Bryant-Denny, they looked in control. Then the game flipped, and once Alabama grabbed the momentum back, Florida State never really got it again.
The Seminoles jumped out to a 21-6 lead early in the second quarter and held that advantage for a good chunk of the first half. Even after Alabama started clawing back late before halftime, Florida State answered again in the third quarter, moving back in front 28-26.
That edge didn’t last. Alabama settled in, started stacking touchdowns, and turned the game into a shootout Florida State couldn’t survive.
Ashton Daniels helped keep the Seminoles alive with a six-yard rushing touchdown, and Florida State added a 2-point conversion to pull within seven at 43-36. But the Crimson Tide answered once more and closed out a 50-36 win.
There were bright spots for Florida State. Ousmane Kromah finished with 80 rushing yards and a touchdown. But the same issues kept dragging the Seminoles down, especially turnovers and miscues at the worst possible moments.
That has been the story of their season so far. Florida State opened with a week one win over New Mexico State, then dropped the next game against SMU.
After a week off, the Seminoles had Alabama on the ropes, only to let it slip away again. Now they sit at 1-2.
The loss also lands in the middle of growing noise around the program, with coaching rumors swirling after the rough start. A close loss to Alabama did nothing to quiet any of that.
Florida State now turns to a stretch that could help steady things. Central Arkansas comes next, a game the Seminoles should feel good about. Virginia follows, and while that matchup is at least against a ranked team, the schedule gets much tougher after that with Louisville and Miami ahead.
In Other News...
Florida State Has A Realignment Concern As Senate Vote Nears
The latest college sports push in Washington has put Florida State in the middle of a debate with big implications for how the sport is organized. The Protect College Sports Act, bipartisan legislation from Sens. Maria Cantwell and Ted Cruz, is nearing approval in the U.S. Senate after drawing support from 77 senators, and it has backing from the Big Ten, SEC and NCAA.
For Florida State, though, the fine print matters. Florida senators Ashley Moody and Rick Scott are opposing the bill because of provisions that would limit conference realignment and cap conference membership, and Miami, Florida State and South Florida have all lined up behind that resistance. The schools want to preserve flexibility if the shifting landscape of league membership keeps moving, which leaves the Seminoles watching a Senate vote that could shape their options down the road. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Norvells Postgame Response Should Worry Florida State Fans
Florida State came out with enough punch to build an early lead against No. 10 Alabama, but the afternoon unraveled in the second half and left Mike Norvell explaining how the Seminoles went from control to damage limitation. In the postgame session, Norvell pointed to Ashton Daniels as a bright spot and said he was proud of the effort he saw from his team, even as the final result turned into a 50-36 loss.
The concern for Florida State is not hard to find in Norvells comments. He acknowledged the turnovers that swung momentum and the defensive problems that surfaced after halftime, the kind of issues that can erase a promising start in a hurry. For a team that wanted to prove it could handle a top-10 opponent, the response after the break may end up saying as much as the score did. [Read more 🡒]
Florida States QB Praise Suddenly Feels Like A Bigger Warning
Ashton Daniels gave Florida State a mix of the encouraging and the alarming in the Week 3 loss to Alabama, throwing for four touchdowns while also putting the ball in harm's way with three interceptions and taking three sacks. Even so, Mike Norvell made a point of praising the quarterback afterward, a sign the Seminoles are trying to steady Daniels as much as the offense after a 1-2 start.
The bigger issue now is whether that public confidence is mostly about keeping Daniels on track or a reflection of how thin Florida States options are behind him. Malachi Marshall, the Iowa Western transfer, is the likely backup and could be in line for work in Week 4 against Central Arkansas, which makes the coming game a chance to learn more about the Seminoles quarterback picture than the final score alone. [Read more 🡒]