Florida State didn’t quite have a successful 2017 season, but what does the 2018 campaign look like? Here are our early game-by-game predictions.
It was a rough season for Florida State in 2017. The Seminoles lost Deondre Francois in the season-opening loss to Alabama and then proceeded to finish the regular season with a 6-6 record, barely squeaking into a bowl game — somewhat controversially.
The Seminoles were able to win their bowl game against Southern Miss and improve to 7-6 on the year, avoiding their first losing season in recent memory, but Jimbo Fisher was no longer in town. He left the program for Texas A&M and riled up Florida State fans in the process by the way he did it.
Willie Taggart, Oregon and South Florida’s former head coach, has since been hired to replace Fisher and the expectations for the new head man are sky-high. His first year will be important and he has plenty of returning talent to work with.
How will Florida State fare in 2018? Here are the Seminoles’ game-by-game predictions.
Willie Taggart’s first game as Florida State’s head coach promises to be a good one. It’ll likely be a matchup against a Top 25 foe and depending on how highly AP voters think of the Seminoles, it could be a ranked matchup.
Justin Fuentes and the Hokies return one of the best young quarterbacks in America, Josh Jackson, along with the No. 11 defense in the country from a season ago. Rising sophomore running back Deshawn McClease could also cause some problems for the Seminoles, but playing at home has its advantages.
The primetime matchup in Tallahassee will have the feeling of a big game late in the season and with a healthy Deondre Francois under center, not taking away from James Blackman’s growth, the Seminoles will be tough to beat.
Florida State will have an improved defense with former Michigan State defensive coordinator Harlon Barnett taking over that side of the ball and the offense will run smoother with Cam Akers and Jacques Patrick forming a dynamic backfield duo. This will still be a close game as Jackson will pass for over 200 yards and rush for another 50 but Florida State will get the last laugh.
Final Score: Virginia Tech 27, Florida State 34 (1-0, 1-0 ACC)