Season Preview: Florida State

The trip down to Tallahassee is another that was added due to the schedule shakeup. The Seminoles are looking for a resurgence this year and wish to answer several questions against UNC.

Opponent Rundown

Date: October 17 at Doak Campbell Stadium (Tallahassee, FL)

2019 Record: 6-7, 4-4 ACC (5 in Atlantic)

Coach: Mike Norvell, 1 year as coach.

Last Face-off: UNC won a thriller 37-35 in 2016 thanks to a 54-yard field goal from Nick Weiler. The Seminoles have dominated the all-time series 15-3-1, but the Tar Heels have won the last two matchups.

Summary

Mike Norvell comes in with a relatively short but impressive resumé. His only head coaching experience came in his last four years at the helm for Memphis. He had a winning record each of those four years. He hit double digits twice, with his best record being last season at 12-2. A major demerit on his time at Memphis was finishing the season. He was 0-4 in bowl games.

The offensive matchup for this game has the potential for being one of the fastest all season. The Tar Heels love to run at a ‘hair on fire’ pace, utilizing no-huddle and fast sub packages. Norvell will look to implement an equally fast offense. His teams at Memphis moved quickly and scored in bunches. The Tigers 40.4 points per game was 8th in the country last year. He had balanced offenses too, not relying too much of the pass or run games.

Where Florida State could run into trouble is experience. That’s not even to say that they don’t have some quality older players, but it’s the fact that this will be the fourth offense the Seminoles have seen in as many years. There has been a tremendous amount of inconsistency over the past several season, and that could lead to confusion. Patience will be integral to grow this unit to its full potential.

There are some specific worries for Florida State. Cam Akers was biggest name and the workhorse for the team last year, and he opted for the NFL Draft. The offensive line has also been in shambles for years now. There will be a need for people to step up in multiple position in order to have any cohesiveness in 2020.

UNC’s pass rush will be the focus in this game. If the Tar Heels’ talented edge rushers can cause some chaos, that could completely flip the gameplan in their favor.

The Seminole offense will most likely be what grabs headlines, but the team’s success as a whole will be dependent on the defense. There is plenty of room for improvement. FSU gave up almost 28 points per game last year and was a shell of what it has been in previous seasons. Norvell has brought in Adam Fuller, his defensive coordinator at Memphis, to help with the reconstruction of the defense.

The difficulty with rebuilding a squad like Florida State is that the expectations will be high right out of the gate. It will most likely be an up and down season for the Seminoles. They could pull off some big wins, but they could also slip against teams that they would expect to beat.

Key Returners

Marvin Wilson was a team captain last year and will be the most disruptive player on the FSU defense. The powerful defensive tackle has first round grades all over the place, and he will be looking to prove a point as a senior. If this defense is to improve, he will be at the center of it.

James Blackman has had a tumultuous time at FSU. He was forced into the starting role as a true freshman in 2017 after the an injury Deondre Francois in the season opener. He had a solid season, but had plenty to grow on. He followed that by only playing four games and redshirting in 2018. Last year was very up and down. He earned a role as a team captain and started 10 games, throwing for 2,339 yards and 17 touchdowns. Both he and the team will hope for consistency this year to prove himself as a redshirt junior.

Tamorrion Terry is a wide receiver with big-time potential. As a redshirt sophomore he was the only true receiving threat for the Seminoles. He led the team by a huge margin in both receptions and receiving yards and will be a name to watch in the conference. He has a tremendous catch radius, and standing at 6’4” with good athleticism makes him very hard to stop. He was second team All-ACC last season and will be looking to place himself among the ACC elite in 2020.

Key Losses

Cam Akers was one of the best running backs in the ACC. In 11 games, he rushed for 1,144 yards and 14 touchdowns. Akers was the motor for the FSU offense, and it is going to be very difficult to replace his productivity. The next closest was Khalan Laborn, who played in 10 games and received about a fourth as many carries.

Tre’ McKitty was starting tight end for the Seminoles that last two seasons but decided graduate early and transfer to Georgia for his final year of eligibility. FSU also loses its backup tight end Gabe Nabers to graduation. That leaves only one tight end left from last year’s roster, junior Cam McDonald. He enters 2020 with only six receptions in his career. They were supposed to benefit from grad-transfer Jordan Wilson, but he will miss the season due to injury.

The offensive line has lost several players to go with the lack of consistency and quality over the last few years. They will have their fourth coach in as many years and will be losing the services of Jauan Williams, Abdul Bello, Ryan Roberts, and Mike Arnold.