Ty Simpson threw three touchdown passes and ran for another score as No. 10 Alabama shook off two lightning delays and an uneven start to beat Florida State 50-36 on Saturday in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Simpson finished 23 of 30 for 320 yards and added 56 yards on three carries. Lotzeir Brooks was his favorite target, hauling in eight passes for a career-high 101 yards. Alabama (3-0) averaged 8.6 yards per play and scored on nine straight possessions once it got rolling.
Florida State (1-2) had plenty of offense too, with Ashton Daniels throwing for 343 yards and two touchdowns while also running for two scores. But Daniels also threw three interceptions. Duce Robinson caught six passes for 135 yards and a touchdown, and Ousmane Kromah ran 17 times for 80 yards.
The Seminoles came out sharp after a nearly two-hour delay because of lightning, stunning Alabama by building a 21-6 lead with 9:42 left before halftime. Daniels opened the scoring with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Robinson. After Alabama kicked a pair of field goals, Florida State answered with back-to-back touchdowns, a 12-yard run by Kromah and a 3-yard Daniels keeper.
Alabama finally reached the end zone with 2:36 left in the half when Simpson hit Cederian Morgan on a 21-yard touchdown. Then came another lightning delay, which doubled as halftime.
When play resumed, Alabama flipped the game fast. Over the final 2:36 of the second quarter, the Crimson Tide ripped off 13 points to take a 26-21 lead into the break. Simpson connected with Ryan Coleman-Williams for a 46-yard touchdown, then found Kaleb Edwards from 16 yards out for Alabama’s first lead.
Florida State answered again early in the third. Daniels capped the Seminoles’ next drive with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Landen Thomas at the 9:58 mark, pushing them back in front 28-26.
That was as good as it got for the Seminoles. Alabama seized control with a 4-yard touchdown run by EJ Crowell, then Simpson broke loose for a 57-yard run untouched late in the third quarter to make it 40-28. Conor Talty added his third field goal of the night to stretch the margin to 43-28 with 9:53 remaining.
Florida State kept hanging around, cutting it to one possession again on Daniels’ second rushing touchdown. But Alabama closed it out with Trae’Shawn Brown’s 20-yard touchdown run.
In Other News...
Mike Norvell's Future Suddenly Carries A Price FSU Fans Will Hate
Mike Norvells tenure at Florida State has reached a place nobody in Tallahassee expected when he signed that massive extension last year. He is in his seventh season with the Seminoles and carries a 39-35 record, while the deal he put pen to paper on runs through 2031 and pays in the neighborhood of $10 million to $11 million annually. The timing of the conversation around his future is made even trickier by the fact that Florida State has already moved on from athletic director Michael Alford, the man who signed off on the extension.
Now the noise around Norvell has only gotten louder, fueled in part by recent on-field frustration and even a viral photo of a moving truck at his home. If Florida State were to pull the plug after the upcoming game against Alabama, the financial hit would be staggering, with a buyout around $48 million, among the largest in college football history. That figure could drop if Norvell lands another job, but for a fan base already uneasy, the size of the bill is exactly the kind of detail that makes this situation feel more complicated by the day. [Read more 🡒]
FSUs Comeback Just Took A Brutal Turn In The Backfield
Florida States offense got a major jolt in its game against Alabama when Samuel Singleton Jr. went down after a 65-yard catch and later was seen leaving the field with crutches. Before the exit, Singleton had been a meaningful part of the Seminoles attack, helping the comeback effort and giving the backfield a needed spark.
Now the focus shifts to how Florida State fills the void if he has to miss time. The Seminoles have not yet issued an official update on Singletons status, and in the meantime the burden will fall on other running backs to pick up the workload in a game that already took a brutal turn. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Showed Promise But One Problem Ruined A Real Opportunity
Florida States latest test offered plenty of reasons to believe the Seminoles can still be dangerous, even in a loss to Alabama. Daniels moved the ball well enough to keep the offense in striking distance, throwing for 377 yards and two touchdowns, and there were stretches when Florida State looked capable of turning the game into something much tighter than the final score suggested.
But the 50-36 defeat also laid bare the problem that kept the Seminoles from turning promise into a real opportunity. Alabama rolled past 500 total yards, and Florida States defense never found a reliable answer for the Crimson Tides offense, even with a few strong individual efforts along the way. The result left Florida State with more evidence of upside, but also a clear reminder of how much work still needs to be done. [Read more 🡒]