Florida State football and Florida played close until the fourth quarter. Here’s what we learned as the Seminoles pulled away to win a fifth straight against the Gators.
It has been a trying year in both Tallahassee and Gainesville. Florida State and Florida watched as the balance of power in the state shifted southward in 2017. Miami, UCF and South Florida earned most of the accolades this season, as the trio kept the Sunshine State relevant on a national level after the Seminoles and Gators fell off the map.
Jimbo Fisher’s team opened the season ranked in the top five, but a season-opening loss to Alabama proved especially costly when starting quarterback Deondre Francois was injured for the year. Florida was also a top-20 team according to the preseason polls, but a streak of futility cost head coach Jim McElwain his job.
Instead of contending for conference titles, the two teams met on the Saturday after Thanksgiving both sporting 4-6 records. Florida had no chance of reaching a bowl game thanks to the cancellation of its game against FCS Northern Colorado. Florida State was still alive for a postseason berth coming into the game, thanks to a rescheduled game against Louisiana-Monroe on the first weekend of December that will give the Seminoles a 12th game.
Though the records left something to be desired, the showdown between the Seminoles and Gators is always a spirited affair. That was the case yet again this season, as Florida State held on for a 38-22 victory in the Swamp. Keep reading for three things we learned from the fifth straight win by the Seminoles in this series.
1. Defense wins the day for Florida State in Gainesville on Saturday
It wasn’t a pretty day for the Florida State offense in Week 13. The Seminoles running game failed to manage even three yards per carry against the Gators. James Blackman struggled passing the ball, finishing 10-of-21 for 128 yards. He did throw two touchdown passes in the victory, but he also coughed up an interception and endured a couple of costly sacks.
On the road, Florida State prevailed thanks in large part to a stingy defense that kept the Gators in check and snagged a slew of key turnovers. They did an especially great job keeping Florida quarterback Feleipe Franks uncomfortable. By the end of the game, Franks had thrown three interceptions and lost a fumble.
When Franks coughed up the football on a Brian Burns sack early in the first quarter, Jacob Pugh scooped up the fumble and returned it for the first points of the game. The Seminoles defense added another touchdown when Levonta Taylor returned one of his two interceptions for a touchdown.
Florida never could get comfortable or settle into a rhythm, thanks to the efforts of the Florida State defense. Franks completed fewer than half of his passes, while the Gators backfield averaged only 2.8 yards per carry. It was an ugly performance on offense in both directions, but the FSU defense was the difference maker that allowed the Seminoles to prevail on Saturday.
2. With the win, Florida State is still on path for bowl eligibility
The loss to Alabama was significant mostly because it knocked Deondre Francois out for the season. Otherwise, falling to the Crimson Tide was never going to hurt the Seminoles much in the standings. Then Hurricane Irma disrupted several straight weeks of play, forcing the Seminoles to reschedule games against rival Miami and Sun Belt opponent Louisiana-Monroe.
When they returned to the field, the Seminoles looked like a shell of themselves. Florida State lost two of its next three and four of its next six, hovering under .500 in the standings all season long. After falling to Clemson in early November, it appeared that FSU’s 35-game bowl streak was finally coming to an end.
But with the rescheduling of the game against the Warhawks for December 2, there was still a sliver of hope. The Seminoles took down FCS Delaware State to get to 4-6. And with their fifth straight win over the Gators, Florida State needs only to defeat ULM in Week 14 to secure a 36th straight trip to the postseason.
Jimbo Fisher has kept his team competitive week after week despite key injuries, with the Seminoles sporting a 3-3 record in one-score games. What has been a trying year in Tallahassee has turned into a tale of resilience.
3. Florida is increasingly becoming an unattractive rebuild job
Before they took the field against Florida State on Saturday, the Gators learned that Chip Kelly had chosen UCLA over Florida as his next head coaching gig. Another top pick to take over in Gainesville, UCF’s Scott Frost, appears to be headed on his way to take over at alma mater Nebraska. Then the Gators came out and suffered a fifth straight defeat to rival Florida State.
There are plenty of names that have been bandied about as viable prospects to head to the Swamp, and speculation has been high ever since McElwain parted ways with the Gators. But the rebuilding project that needs to take place in Gainesville is becoming less and less attractive for established coaches with each passing week.
Steve Spurrier turned the Gators into a national brand in the 1990s. Urban Meyer revived the program during his tenure at Florida, but heightened expectations and flagging health led him to walk away from the school. Given its position in fertile recruiting territory and institutional support, the Florida job should be a hot commodity in the coaching community.
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But things have taken such a nosedive in Gainesville that the Gators will likely have to take another chance on an unproven candidate. That’s what they did with McElwain, and the gamble backfired. Whoever comes in to take the job will have the pressure to win immediately or face a similar firing squad.