Auburn LB Cam Riley's visit to FSU ended on Saturday afternoon and we didn't get a chance to visit with him one-on-one. What we do know is that as of right now it is two-team race for Riley between FSU and NC State.

He did indicate that he plans to take the process day-by-day and would continue to evaluate his options. He will not enroll in school until after the spring semester so this could play out for a while, but the Seminoles are in a very good position with him right now and they could certainly use another proven and productive player in the LB corps.

FSU sports information:

Ta’Niya Latson’s 34 points were not enough as Florida State Women’s Basketball was outlasted in a double overtime thriller against No. 12 Notre Dame, falling 98-94 at the Tucker Center in Sunday’s Paint it Pink game.

Latson delivered her 13th career 30-point game, falling one shy of her career-high 35 points against Florida earlier this season. She was efficient all afternoon, going 14-of-25 from the floor, 4-of-5 from 3-point range, adding seven rebounds and dishing out eight assists in nearly 43 minutes played.

“It was an amazing basketball game today. Unfortunately we didn’t come out on the end we wanted to come out on,” FSU Coach Brooke Wyckoff said. “But I’m so proud of the effort and what we were able to accomplish this game. We would have liked to have won, but I’m proud of players like Ta’Niya, who battled for over 40 minutes and gave absolutely everything they had.”

From the outset and into double overtime, both teams traded shot for shot. The Seminoles were hurt by 24 turnovers despite shooting 50 percent (37-of-74) from the floor. In the second overtime, a huge 3-point field goal by Sara Bejedi put the Seminoles ahead 93-91 with four minutes left, but Notre Dame continued to capitalize down the stretch as Sonia Citron tied the game on a fast-break layup at 93-93. She then got a few more free throws after FSU accidentally fouled on the inbound with four seconds left to give the Irish a 96-94 lead.

The Seminoles called their final timeout and advanced the ball to the front court, but a turnover on the inbounds pass sealed the win for Notre Dame.

Junior forward Makayla Timpson had another double-double with 18 points and 15 rebounds. Junior guard O’Mariah Gordon went 7-of-10 from the floor for 18 points, hitting some huge buckets down the stretch. Bejedi added 16.

Notre Dame was led by freshman Hannah Hidalgo’s 27 points, including 13-of-14 from the free throw line. Anna DeWolfe drilled six 3’s and added 24 points.

The first quarter started out as a back-and-forth contest between the two teams, with the Seminoles (17-8, 8-5) down 21-20 to the visiting Irish (18-5, 8-4). Latson led the Noles’ offense in the first, scoring 13 points, going 5-for-8 on field goals, and being perfect from three-point range.

The second quarter was a similar battle to the first, but this time Florida State would outscore Notre Dame 28-21 in the quarter for a first half score of 48-42. Florida State was aided by Latson and Bejedi both scoring eight points during the quarter, bringing their in-game totals to 21 and 13 respectively.

Both teams kept their momentum going into the second half. The Irish outscored the Seminoles 17-16 in the third, but that would not be enough as the home team would stay ahead 64-59. Latson would add eight more points in the third to her total of 29.

Notre Dame took advantage in the fourth, out-scoring the Noles 20-15 to help send the game to overtime.

Sunday’s game marked FSU’s first double overtime performance since facing Texas at home on Feb. 3, 2017.

The Seminoles will be on the road for their next matchup, as they head to Winston-Salem, N.C., to take on Wake Forest on Thursday at 6 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.

Brooke Wyckoff shared an update on her battle with breast cancer, Sunday's Paint it Pink game against No. 12 Notre Dame (noon on ACC Network) and more:

"It means a lot. It always does. This is obviously a cause and a fight that so many people are affected by. It’s really very dear to the women’s basketball community and has been for years. But it is obviously a little more personal for me now. I’m just excited, not only for the game, but for the opportunity and to hopefully make an impact financially to support TMH and also just to show the support that this community has, our women’s basketball program has for people that are fighting this disease."

"I was diagnosed in September and had surgery to take out the tumor. I’m going through preventative treatment, intermittent chemo treatments in hopes to prevent it from reoccurring. But doing great. Feeling really good. Just thankful for all of the support both from everyone at TMH and here at work in the community."

"I think it’s just a privilege to have something like this, to get up and do every day. This is what we all do as humans. We keep putting one foot in front of the other, just fighting, do what you have to do. My strength comes from just the support around me, people that have encouraged me. They’re with me, they love me. No matter what I can or can’t do. And that comes from the administration at Florida State. That comes from the team, that comes from my staff, my family, the community. … What a blessing to be in the middle of a basketball season just having to think about preparing for an opponent, an exciting opponent like Notre Dame, just to keep you moving forward."

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FSU basketball gave Virginia everything it could handle Saturday night but a 2 for 16 three-point performance proved too much to overcome in a four-point loss.

TALLAHASSEE – Kalei Harding's record night of seven RBI helped the No. 4 Florida State softball team (1-1) to a convincing 11-0 win in five innings over Charlotte (1-1) on Friday night at JoAnne Graf Field.

The Seminoles opened up the scoring early at the bottom of the first inning. Jahni Kerr drew a leadoff walk to proceed to first. Michaela Edenfield drove one deep to center field for a single to move Kerr to third. Kalei Harding came to bat and smashed a three-run home run to center field to make the score 3-0.

After opening the second inning with a triple by error, Seminole pitcher Allison Royalty responded by throwing two strikeouts in a row, with the top half of the inning being closed out by a fly out to center field.

The Seminoles came in at the bottom of the second inning with Jaysoni Beachum hitting a single to center field, who advanced to second on a wild pitch. Beachum advanced to third on an Ashtyn Danley groundout, and Kerr came in and smacked a single RBI to right field to drive Beachum in, making the score 4-0 to close out the inning.

Amaya Ross drew a walk in the fourth inning and immediately stole second to put her in scoring position. Katie Dack continued her solid start to the season with a single to bring Ross home to make the score 5-0.

Isa Torres kicked the Seminoles off again in the fourth inning with a line drive single to left field. Kerr proceeded to draw the walk, moving Torres to second. Edenfield snuck a single toward third base to load the bases. Harding then came in and soared the ball over the fence for the first grand slam of the year and her second home run of the night, extending the lead to 9-0. Harding's seven RBI was tied for the most in school history joining Anna Shelnutt who hit seven RBI on May 11, 2017, against Virginia in the ACC Tournament. Harding had her sixth multi-home run game of her career and also surpassed 150 career RBI.

The Seminoles continued the scoring as Devyn Flaherty came in and was able to draw a walk. Amaya Ross hit a quick ground ball single toward third base, advancing Flaherty to second. Beachum hit a single RBI to center field to bring Flaherty home and advance Ross to third, putting the Noles up 10-0. Torres continued to onslaught as she hit a double RBI deep to centerfield, pushing the score to 11-0, to wrap up the fourth inning and the game. The freshman duo of Torres and Beachum are a combined 8-for-15 with three RBI in the Seminoles' first two games.

Royalty was phenomenal in the circle for the Noles going four innings and allowing just three hits while striking out five, her second-most strikeouts as a Seminole. Mimi Gooden made her first career appearance in the fifth inning and sat the 49ers down in order to end the game.

Florida State will return to The Plex tomorrow to take on Texas Tech and Florida A&M. The doubleheader is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. and both games can be seen on ACC Network Extra.

TALLAHASSEE – The No 4 Florida State softball team (3-1) used a walk-off single from freshman Isa Torres to take down Texas Tech (2-2), 9-8, then cruised past Florida A&M (0-3), 9-0 in five innings to finish Saturday 2-0 at the JoAnne Graf Classic.

Game One vs. Texas Tech
Texas Tech came out swinging and scored two runs in the first inning on three hits to take the early lead.

After a standstill for two-and-a-half innings, the Seminoles answered with two runs in the bottom of the third. Jaysoni Beachum singled, and Isa Torres walked put runners on first and second. Ashtyn Danley moved the runners to second and third on a groundout, and Jahni Kerr brought Beachum home on an infield single to cut the lead to one. The Seminoles then sent Kerr on the move to steal second, and Torres scampered home on the throw to tie the game.

Texas Tech answered with a home run in the top of the fourth, but the Seminoles answered right back as Amaya Ross hit just her second home run in the past two seasons to tie the game. The scoring continued for the Seminoles as Beachum drew a walk and Danley reached on an error putting two on for Kerr. Kerr crushed a home run to give the Seminoles a 6-3 lead.

The Red Raiders stormed back with five runs in the top of the fifth to take an 8-6 lead.

Ross continued her strong outing with a one-out triple, and Beachum earned the RBI on a groundout to cut the lead to one.

Allison Royalty kept the Red Raiders in check to give the Seminoles a shot in the bottom of the seventh inning. Walks by Beachum and Wacaser and a Devyn Flaherty single loaded the bases for Torres with two outs. The freshman delivered with a groundball that snuck past the shortstop to bring Flaherty and Wacaser home to give the Seminoles the win.

Game Two vs. Florida A&M
The Seminoles opened the scoring early in the bottom of the first inning. Kerr singled to right field and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Torres then singled to shortstop, which helped Kerr advance to third. Kalei Harding hit a single and advanced to second on the throw, allowing Kerr to add the first run to the board.
Michaela Edenfield followed that with a three-run home run on an 0-2 count to bring the score to 4-0 at the end of the first inning.

After a scoreless second inning, Ross drew a leadoff walk, and Beachum crushed her first collegiate home run to give the Noles a 6-0 lead. Wacaser kept the momentum going with a single, and after stealing second, Kerr picked up another RBI to make the score 7-0 after three innings.

Still in the third, Hallie Wacaser hit a single to right field and stole second. Wacaser then reached home off a Kerr single to center field bringing the score to 7-0 at the end of the third.

In the fourth inning, Angelee Bueno and Katie Dack drew back-to-back walks, and after Wacaser reached on a fielders choice, Kaley Mudge drove both runners home to give the Noles a 9-0 lead..

Freshman Mimi Gooden made her first career start in the circle and was terrific posting a complete game shutout. Gooden pitched all five innings while allowing just three hits and striking out four.

Florida State plays its final game in the JoAnne Graf Classic against Florida A&M on Sunday, February 11 at 12:30 p.m. on ACCNX.

As a Captain and then a coach under Woody. I remember Bobby being interviewed by KH at the beginning of his broadcasting career, Bobby said “ Your Dad was a great guy and I bet he’s proud of you” I have to wonder if his Dad is proud of him now?

FSU 76 UVa 80 The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly


The Good

An entertaining game to be sure even if the outcome was disappointing. This was not your usual slog fest that a Virginia game can often turn into.

A season high for Jamir Watkins with 21 points. A career high for Chandler Jackson with 17 points. I guess he was amped up after sitting the last two games.

How often do you see anybody shoot 51% like FSU did tonight against a UVa defense?

By my count, Florida State scored 32 points in the paint. Against a team that uses the Pack Line defense designed to keep the opponent out of the lane.

And by attacking the rim, FSU drew fouls because the Cavaliers don't mind contact on defense. They are downright annoying with their physical play. But FSU handled it pretty well and connected on 26 of 32 (78%) from the line. Amazingly, UVa fouled Tom House taking a three point with :04 left and trailing 79-75. House made the first but missed the second forcing him to intentionally miss the third attempt. FSU was unable to get the rebound and essentially ended the game save for one more Cavalier FT.

Just 9 turnovers for the Seminoles. Unfortunately just 8 assists.

When it looked like the game might be getting away from the 'Noles, FSU closed it to 54-52 at the 8:24 mark and 77-75 with 11 seconds left giving the Seminoles a chance at the W. Credit UVa for answering those charges by the 'Noles. It was not as if FSU played poor defense. UVa plays a patient offense and executed their offense very well by moving the ball around waiting for the defense to make a mistake. UVa is very good at running their offense.

Notable plays of the game: De'Ante Green with the out of nowhere block from behind of Reece Beekman's point blank lay up. The bounce pass by UVa to the right block caught by ......... by NO ONE!!! Love those plays. When it is the other team. Leonard Hamilton going to a zone on UVa's last possession of the half. It threw their offense offense so much that ball ended up in the hands of an 18% three point shooter. He of course missed. Miller's blocked shot that forced the shot clock violation. Jackson's gaining control of the ball off Miller's blocked shot, taking it coast to coast for the lay up to finish a 9-0 FSU run, 54-52.


The Bad

FSU falls to 13-10, 7-5 and misses another opportunity to put a quality win on its resume. UVa takes a 29-28 lead in the series (10-17 in Tallahassee) and Tony Bennett's record vs the 'Noles improves to 12-11 . Coming into the game, Virginia was 17-0 when leading at halftime. Make that 18-0 as the Cavs led 34-30 at the break. More disappointing is FSU's 7-6 record at home this season. The days of the 'Noles owning the home court have disappeared.

The Seminoles have no room for error now. My prediction weeks ago was FSU needed 15 ACC wins to reach 21 wins for the season in order to be considered for the NCAA tournament. With just eight games left in the regular season, the 'Noles cannot afford another loss. The schedule is not exactly conducive for running the table.

Blackman with the steal and coast to coast lay up that saw a less than energetic hustle back to defend on the play, 32-26.

After pulling to within two, 54-52, Virginia went off on a 15-5 run to lead 69-57 and make the Seminoles start all over again trying to catch up.

Watkins and his bullet pass to the lane. You could tell it was a bullet pass as it whizzed by his teammate's head at light speed. Better I suppose than the lazy pass by Tom House that was picked off and taken the other way for two points.


The Ugly

The arc. UVa 10-18 (56%) FSU 2-16 (13%) And therein lies the difference in the game. More specifically, Isaac McKneely who blistered the Seminoles for a career high 27 points (he averages 11.6 ppg) with 15 of those points coming from behind the arc. And when we say behind the arc, we mean BEHIND the arc as McKneely made most if not all those from miles in back of the line. It was his DEEP three from the left wing with :56 left that put FSU down 75-68 making it a difficult task to pull off the comeback. Meanwhile, that supposedly great shooting team according to Hamilton, was once again anything but. In their last three games, FSU has shot 10-54 from the arc. That's 18% for those keeping score at home. Darin Green was particularly horrid in this latest outing going 0-6 from distance. That ends a 14 game streak in which he scored multiple three pointers.

As soon as I saw Jamie Luckie was part of the officiating crew, I knew it was going to be "interesting". And it was and neither coach was pleased. I have no clue what he was seeing when he whistled Jalen Warley for the foul against Beekman. If anything it was Beekman's foreman pushing out (a foul not called btw) into Warley's chest. Then right after that, Warley gets bumped not once but twice on his lay up and no call. Same goes for Watkins with the body contact he took on a basket as well as Baba Miller also twice on a lay up, 54-43.

Invisible Man Award goes to Primo Spears. Believe it or not, he played 17 minutes but contributed very little tonight. Just 2 rebounds and 1 assist. His most memorable play of the game was Spears with the ball on a break and instead of driving to the rim, he pulled up at the left elbow and took the jumper that of course missed.


Up Next

FSU goes back on the road to Virginia Tech (13-10, 5-7). Earlier in the day, the Hokies lost to last place Notre Dame, 74-66. It's a late tip off scheduled at 9 PM on Tuesday and to be broadcast on The U. VT will be looking for payback after losing previously this season to FSU, 77-74, in which the 'Noles had to hang on to get the victory.

FSU sports information:

The first team tournament of the spring season begins on Thursday as No. 12 Florida State Men’s Golf joins a loaded field at the Amer Ari Invitational at Mauna Lani North Course in Waimea, Hawaii.

A 20-team field includes nine Top 25 teams. The ranked programs are No. 1 Auburn, No. 2 UNC, No. 4 Washington, No. 7 Arizona State, No. 11 Georgia Tech, No. 12 FSU, No. 16 Texas, No. 18 Oregon and No. 22 Texas Tech.

All three rounds on Thursday-Saturday will be shotgun starts beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET/7:30 a.m. HT.

Florida State’s lineup is freshman Tyler Weaver, redshirt senior Cole Anderson, sophomore Luke Clanton, senior Frederik Kjettrup and sophomore Jack Bigham. Junior Michael Mays will play as FSU’s individual.

Kjettrup led the Seminoles with a 68.75 scoring average in the fall season, garnering two Top 10 finishes in two tournaments played. Clanton played in all five of FSU’s fall tournaments and had a 70.92 scoring average, including two Top 10 finishes.

The Seminoles return all five All-Americans from a season ago in Anderson, Kjettrup, Brett Roberts, Bigham and Clanton.

FSU is making its first trip back to Hawaii since playing at the Amer Ari Invitational in the 2011 spring season.

Live scoring from each round in Hawaii can be followed on Golfstat.

FSU (13-9, 7-4 ACC) plays host to red-hot Virginia (18-5, 9-3 ACC) on Saturday at 8 p.m. in a matchup of two of the top four teams in the league's standings. The game will be broadcast on the CW Network. Tom Werme and Mike Gminski will be on the call.

The Seminoles are coming off a 63-62 win at Boston College, a fourth ACC road victory of the season. FSU has won seven of 10 games in 2024, which obviously looks great. The one big missed opportunity is the 101-92 defeat at Louisville last Saturday.

FSU and Virginia have faced off 56 ties with each team winning 28 times. The Cavaliers won 67-58 in Feb. 2023 and 62-57 in Dec. 2022.

The Seminoles have 209 steals and 90 blocks, and they would become the first ACC team with 200 steals and 100 blocks. Jamir Watkins and Darin Green Jr. lead FSU with 38 steals, while Baba Miller has 26 blocks.

Of note, Virginia comes in with 186 steals and 116 blocks. The Cavaliers are known for a pack-line defense that keeps scoring low and frustrates opponents into turnovers.

Chandler Jackson's status remains uncertain. He is practicing and traveled with the team but did not play in losses to Louisville and a win at BC.

Tonight's referee is ... Jamie Luckie.

Here's a look at the ACC standings:

The Florida State baseball team held a Friday night scrimmage at Dick Howser Stadium, one week away from Opening Day. Here are some notes from the scrimmage, which did not have official scoring.

We likely saw two of FSU's weekend starters with Cam Leiter and Jamie Arnold starting and going five innings apiece. Leiter has Friday night stuff. Arnold also looked really good. It could be Leiter on Fridays, Arnold on Saturday and Conner Whittaker or Yoel Tejeda on Sunday. Especially if you want to go righty-lefty-righty. (Purely speculation but also reading the tea leaves that FSU is trying to line up the rotation with a week out.)

Leiter will make hitters swing and miss. I had him for seven strikeouts. He also struggled with his control at times. His fastball in the first inning to DeAmez Ross ran 95-97, but Ross drew a walk. Ross swiped second (easily) and third (throw from home in dirt) on 2-2 and 3-2 pitches. Leiter then got Cam Smith swinging on strike 3, 96 mph. But a wild pitch scored Ross. James Tibbs struck out swinging on an 84 mph curveball.

Arnold did a good job of getting ground balls and strikeouts. The sophomore left-hander hit 94 mph on back-to-back pitches to get a strikeout swinging. He also pitched a 1-2-3 inning (ground out, strikeout of Titan Kamaka and flyout).

FSU has options at catcher between McGwire Holbrook, Jaxson West and Riley Jackson. In one inning, West singled and scored. He reached second on a wild pitch and then scored on a Brody Delamielleure double.

Jackson had a double as did outfielder Max Williams. Jaime Ferrer had an RBI single.

We did see a number of errors. One was ugly, with Tibbs in right field allowing the ball to go under his glove, toward the wall and allowing a run to score. Shortstop Adam Faurot had an error on a throw across his body to second.

But there was also some good defense as shortstop Cal Fisher and second baseman Alex Lodise turned a 6-4-3 double play. Lodise also showed good power in sending a deep fly ball to the track.

Cam Smith's arm is considered the best of any infielder in the ACC by Baseball America. Early on Friday, he bobbled a hard-hit ball by Lance Trippel, picked it up and fired to first for the out. Trippel might not be the quickest of runners, but still shows Smith's arm.

Smith smashed a rocket off the screen in right field but it was quickly fielded by Williams, who threw a dart to second base to get the out.

Daniel Cantu went opposite field with a three-run home run to left field off left-hander Brennen Oxford, although after the early innings the coaches went with some situations and started innings with runners on 2B and 1B.

Freshman LHP Brady Louck pitched two innings. He is about a year removed from Tommy John surgery. The coaching staff and players were excited watching Louck pitch. He got Ferrer swinging on a 93 mph fastball. Think his pitch count will be managed but encouraging.

RHP Joe Charles looked good in relief. He induced a double play and had a terrific pick-off move down to 2B. Looked like the runner was out but Link called the runner safe. (There was only a home plate umpire.)

I'm not sure how the middle infield shakes out but Smith at 3B and Cantu at 1B feel like locks right now. Definitely options up the middle, with Ross a certainty in CF. Williams and Tibbs could take corner OF spots.

Of note, there is now a 20-second pitch clock low on the scoreboard in left field. It didn't feel like any of the pitchers pushed the limit.

We'll have more stories next week leading up to Opening Day. FSU opens with Butler on Friday at 5 p.m. (live stream on ACC Network Extra).

Mike Norvell began his spring booster tour on Saturday night, speaking to a crowd of more than 350 fans. Prior to his speech, Norvell sat down with a few FSU beat writers to discuss signing Clemson/Oregon State transfer DJ Uiagalelei and Tour of Duty Workouts.

Norvell shared how he first met Uiagalelei years ago at an ACC Kickoff event and the quarterback, then at Clemson, inquired about the injury Winston Wright Jr. suffered as a passenger in a car accident. He also talked on sitting down with Uiagalelei and reviewing three games — Washington State, Oregon and Washington — that showed positives and areas for improvement from the quarterback.

Now going into his fifth season at FSU, the discussion began with the program's offseason Tour of Duty workouts and how he has seen growth in the Seminoles through the years.

FSU sports information:

Jeremiah Davis set a Clemson Indoor Track and Field Complex facility record in the men’s long jump at the Tiger Paw Invitational, winning with a season-best at 8.20m. His mark leads the ACC and ranks second nationally.

Jordan Turner followed Davis in second for the 12th-ranked Noles with a mark of 7.90m. His mark currently stands second in the ACC and eighth in the nation.

Neo Mosebi finished fourth in the semifinal round of the men’s 60-meter dash, matching his personal best at 6.66.

5-4 loss to Charlotte. Not much to say, just one of those games.

The potential the FSU coaching staff saw in QB prospect Luke Kromenhoek when they offered him a scholarship before he started a high school football game came to reality when he finished as a top-100 recruit in the 2024 class. Now, the loyal, finally-enrolled FSU QB is ready to work for the Seminoles.

Florida State has announced a date/time for the public memorial service for legendary baseball coach Mike Martin, who passed away on Thursday at 79. FSU will hold the ceremony on Saturday, Feb. 10th at noon on the field at Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium.

More details are expected to be shared in the coming days.


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For the first time in 10 years, FSU softball lost its season opener Thursday night to Charlotte in extra innings.

Marvin Jones Jr. grew up hearing stories of his father's FSU football greatness and idolizing legendary FSU running back Dalvin Cook. After watching FSU's climb back to relevance from afar, the Georgia defensive end transfer is excited to write his own chapter in FSU football lore.

Always look forward to softball season.

Guest column by John Nogowski Sr.: Fathers, sons, baseball. John covered FSU athletics in the 1990s at the Tallahassee Democrat and shares his memories of "11" as well as his son's, as John Jr. grew up at Dick Howser Stadium and played for FSU from 2012-14:

Claude Thigpen may have been the best-liked and best-dressed man at FSU Athletics and he did it for 55 years, longer than anyone ever has before hijm.
Claude was empathetic. He simply got FSU fans and knew how to serve them. In a time before Stubhub and on-line ordering and seat selection, there was Claude and his staff of a half dozen people who each had built personal relationships. FSU fans didn't buy "from the ticket office", they bought from Ol' Claude or Marian Lee or Jacky or one of the other indidviduals in a happy-to-hear-from-you ticket office.
And then automation arrived and took ticket offices across the country by storm, with customers being pushed toward the computer, or just plain pushed away. But it didn't take long for FSU to realize retention rates are better when there's a relationship between a Seminole fan and a ticket representative, which is exactly what Ol' Claude's office embodied and the current ticket office once again has employed re-establishing those sticky relationships between people.

Remembering Claude Thigpen