I would really like to know what the percentage is of each team who goes for it on 4th down. Last night Texas State was up 21-7. They were starting to take control of their game vs. Arizona State. They give up a touchdown and now are up 21-14 with about 3 minutes left in the half. They have a 4th and six from ASU 40. Instead of punting after ASU scored on their last drive their coach goes for it. Less than a minute later ASU scores and makes it 21-21. WHY.....WHY.....WHY....Not just punt it. You are doing well. Maybe just maybe you get another stop and get the ball back but going into the half with the lead and not tied at 21 when you were up five minutes earlier by two scores means something.

The Dolphins game....Dolphins HC who I actually really like and think is a very good play caller. Bills are up 17-7. You are still in the game. NO....Gotta go for it on 4th down from the Bills 40. They get the stop and the Bills score to go up 24-7 and basically the game is over. These coaches treat 4th down now like it is just another call. I get it...Play the percentages but some teams are just not good at converting 4th down. Punt the gosh damn ball and live another down. These caoches basically take away chances at winning games. I am against the 4th down calls in the 1st and early 2nd quarters.

Construction crews worked day and night on Doak Campbell Stadium ahead of the football team’s opener last week. There’s also a crane and work crews nearby as the early stages of the football operations building are taking shape.

With all of the activity and more than $400 million being spent on the two football projects, as well as requests from all of the coaches on Florida State’s campus, why would the athletics department launch another sport? The Seminoles will add women’s lacrosse, which is set to play in the spring of 2026, and have already hired coach Sara Tisdale.

The answer is Title IX, a law that requires universities that receive federal dollars to make strides in its offerings of women’s athletics and expand the number of scholarships or opportunities for women to compete in athletics.

“We did a comprehensive Title IX review of where we were when I became athletic director, working with (FSU general counsel) Carolyn Egan,” FSU athletics director Michael Alford told the Osceola. “And just looking at what our numbers were, what our facilities are, the opportunities we provide our student-athletes, so it was a comprehensive Title IX review. After that review, it was obvious we needed to add a sport because we want to always make sure we’re in compliance with Title IX.”

This is a big deal. The motion was filed Tuesday but just listed and uploaded this am (I was looking to see the ACC appealed the jurisdiction order).

This is what I have been calling for for months. This is a legal process based purely on legal argument. It is NOT a time to dispute facts, so it's not limited by speed of discovery. On summary judgment the parties list what they claim are "undisputed facts" and anything actually undisputed can be relied on by the court. I am sure you won't be surprised that parties disagree all the time on what's undisputed and we should expect to see that. If a fact is not totally undisputed the court is to assume the facts claimed by the non party (ACC) is true (just for this proceeding, not the whole case).

FSU is attacking the very nature of the GoR and saying that it's rights are not necessary to the media deal. I have a lot to read, and a lot of this may still be redacted, which will suck. But this is a good thing. This (and the response) will really put the issues to the forefront.

Being played across the country. Not saying FSU wins out or even wins again but I have some hope that Norvell can salvage this season.

FSU will host several dozen prospects on unofficial visits this weekend. Of course, four-star 2025 LB TJ Alford will be making an official visit to FSU this weekend. He is committed to Ohio State currently.

Official Visit:

Login to view embedded media
Class of 2025 Unofficial Visits:

Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media

From Rivals' John Garcia, updates on prospects from around the state. Story includes thoughts on DE Nicolas Clayton and RB Byron Louis as well as DE Javion Hilson:

Rivals' John Garcia and Marshall Levenson discuss:

In addition to serving as a mea copa on game day fumbles with a promise from the gameday operations staff to rectify it by Saturday, I hope you'll find this aticle an explainer about how the game day operation works in most stadiums across the nation, the important role of the Marching Chiefs, and when and why house music is played. As noted, I served on that opps team for most of 19 years, so its a subject I understand and believe I can offer a perspective worth considering.

Gameday Explainer

FSU president Richard McCullough:

- "I will give you a teeny, tiny update on our lawsuit with the ACC. We underwent court-ordered mediation with the ACC and we continue to have an open dialogue with the ACC. And all of that is good."

- 79,000 high school applicants for 6,000 slots. (Note: I think a few years ago the applicants were 60,000 or 66,000.)

- More than $1 billion in research proposals submitted, an FSU record. FSU has a very high hit rate – 30 percent - McCullough says.

The more we dig in on Byron Louis, the better the FSU spot at No. 1 on his list feels going into decision time. More notes here:

I spoke with Linton last night about the offer and where the Seminoles sit with him.

Login to view embedded media
This is premium content. Please subscribe to view.

During the bye week, FSU's QBs and wideouts got together a few times without coaches to try and work out the kinks that have showed up this season.

After an improved week in practice, Mike Norvell is hopeful the passing game can sync better vs. Memphis.

Here is the YouTube link for today's show. Please join us live at 3pm today.

Login to view embedded media

The battle for Linton is heavily favored to Georgia currently but Florida State has thrown their hat in the ring for the North Atlanta defensive end.
https://floridastate.rivals.com/new...rmer-rutgers-commit-four-star-de-chase-linton

The Oral Argument on the ACC's request that the appellate court overturn Judge Cooper's decision on whether the stay the case in favor of NC will be heard in just over 24 hours (10am) in Tallahassee. Here is a link to the DCA site where it should be streamed. Each side gets 20 minutes.

I see a lot of people saying that the snub caused all this, or that our staff doesn't recruit well enough. That's all BS. I'm not even going to address the snub, that was last year, we have a different football team this year. As for recruiting, here's the deal. We recruit at a high enough level to win a national championship. We consistently have outrecruited Michigan and Washington, who played in the national championship last year. I don't think we have the NIL budget to consistently land top 10 classes. I think we are going to live in that 10-20 area, which is good enough. No amount of different coaches on this staff will lead to us landing a top 5 class. We literally do not have the money for it, so just forget about it. But money is not the issue. Georgia Tech and Boston College both recruit a bunch of players that we would never even offer, but because they actually developed their players, they both kicked our ass. Michigan and Ohio State is another perfect example. Michigan has never recruited on the level of Ohio State. Ohio State has always had way more money to throw around. Yet, because of their superior coaching and development of players, Michigan took the rivalry back and won a national championship. Now, Ohio State has built possibly the most expensive CFB roster ever constructed, and they are probably going to wipe the floor with Michigan this year. We cannot do what Ohio State is doing, we do not have the money for it. We can however, do what Michigan did, and develop our recruits into elite players. Michigan is the blueprint we can follow. We will never have the money to recruit with Ohio State, Oregon, Georgia, Texas, etc. Our donor base is just not as big as those schools. We have to win with development, and that is precisely what we are not doing. I also see people complaining that we relied too heavily on the portal. That is also not the issue. Last year's team was built through the portal, and we were one of the best teams in the country before the Travis injury. Miami, who is probably going to murder us this year, is also built heavily through the portal. Their QB, RB, entire DL, and star LB are all from the portal. You can win through the portal if you choose the right guys who are hungry and develop them properly. So what is the solution? If these trends continue, we need to clean house with this coaching staff. Forget about recruiting, we have a decent enough NIL budget and that's all that matters in recruiting. What we need are coaches who can properly develop our players. We have enough talent on this roster to be way better than we are. We need better coaches. Norvell needs an OC. Atkins has shown zero ability to teach our line how to run block. Even last year, run blocking was the weakness of the team, and we probably would have been one dimensional in a playoff game, and probably would have lost. Keeping Atkins for recruiting is asinine. We have a bunch of 5th year seniors on this roster who still can't block. Atkins has not developed our players. He needs to go. Thomsen obviously needs to go, our tight ends are god awful. If the d-line doesn't improve rapidly, Papuchis and Haggins need to go. Shannon obviously needs to go, the linebackers are completely lost. I think Fuller may need to go as well. Teams have figured out his weakness, and he hasn't adapted. Teams have figured out that we always keep the box too light, and we don't communicate effectively when there is pre-snap motion. Until he adapts, we will continue to get gashed on defense. His system has 2 major weaknesses, and they've been figured out. Storms also needs to go. No excuse for us being pushed around by GT and BC. Barring a dramatic change in trajectory, this is going to a very bad season, and we need to fire a bunch of coaches. Forget about recruiting, we need coaches who can develop the players that we recruit. It should be obvious from the last 2 losses that development trumps recruiting every time.

FSU sports information:

The No. 21 Florida State volleyball team (5-1) will look to keep its momentum going as they host two in-state foes in Florida Atlantic (5-2) and UCF (4-0) this weekend in the Seminole Classic at Tully Gym. FSU will take on the Owls on Friday at 6 p.m. and UCF at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Both matches can be seen live on ACCNX with Shawn Davison and Madison Fitzpatrick on the call.

Noles Off to Hot Start

• FSU is off and running so far in 2024 as they look to defend its ACC Championship.
• FSU started 4-0 for the first time since 2017 including a win over No. 25 Georgia for their first ranked non-conference win since 2021.
• FSU opened up the season at home for the first time since 2011 and went 3-0 against USF, UC Santa Barbara and No. 25 Georgia. Both Georgia and UC Santa Barbara qualified for the 2023 NCAA Tournament while USF finished 22-12 last season.

Spreading the Wealth

• FSU has a plethora of offensive weapons and continues to spread the wealth.
• In the Seminole Invitational, FSU had three different kill leaders in three games.
• FSU has had five different players record 10 or more kills through six games.

Climbing the Ranks

• FSU was ranked No. 15 in last week’s AVCA/TARAFLEX Coaches Poll which is the program’s highest ranking since 2017.
• FSU opened the season ranked 20th in the preseason poll. It was the first time FSU was ranked to start the season since 2017.
• FSU picked up a ranked win against No. 25 Georgia. It was FSU’s 41st ranked win in program history and was the first time FSU beat a ranked non conference opponent since defeating No. 14 Florida in 2021.

SHE’S BAAAACCCKKKKK

• The reigning 2023 ACC Co-Player of the Year Audrey Koenig is back for one last season with the Seminoles and will look to solidify herself as one of the top players in FSU history.
• Koenig was just the fourth Seminole to win the ACC Player of the Year award and was the first Nole to accomplish the feat since Payton Caffrey in 2018.
• Koenig leads the team with 70 kills through six matches and is averaging 3.33 kills per set.
• Koenig has recorded 10 or more kills in the last four matches.
• Koenig also leads the team with 52 digs.
• Koenig also earned 2023 AVCA All-America Honorable Mention honors for the first time in her career.
• Koenig’s 13 double-doubles last season were the 13th-most in FSU history.
• Koenig has recorded 1,027 kills during her career with the Garnet and Gold. Koenig became just the sixth player in FSU history to surpass 1,000 career kills in the rally scoring era. Her 1,027 kills is the sixth-best mark in school history. Koenig needs 11 kills to move into fifth and 40 kills to move into fourth. Koenig also ranks second all-time in the rally scoring era with 2,813 attacks.

Louis Coming Off Her Best Season as a Nole

• FSU senior and Tallahassee native Khori Louis put together her best season as a Seminole in 2023 as she earned First Team All-ACC honors and AVCA All-America Honorable Mention for the first time in her career.
• Louis hit a career-high .432 in 2023 which ranked fourth in the nation and was the fifth-best mark in school history and the best mark since Sareea Freeman in 2012.
• Louis has picked up right where she left off as she is hitting .450 with 60 kills to go along with 19 blocks.
• Louis holds a career hitting percentage of .366 which is fourth all-time in FSU history. Brianna Barry holds the program record for career hitting percentage as she hit .371 in her career from 2006-09.
• Louis was second on the team with 271 kills and 93 blocks in 2023.
• In her career, Louis has recorded 817 kills which is 11th in program history in the rally scoring era. Louis needs just 40 kills to crack the top 10 list.
• Louis also ranks top 15 in program history in the rally scoring era in solo blocks, assisted blocks and total blocks.

Noles Make Transfer Splash with Taylor Head

• The Seminoles made one of the biggest transfer moves in college volleyball last season as they picked up transfer Taylor Head from Arkansas. Head will have one season with the Seminoles after three seasons with Arkansas.
• Head was one of the best hitters not only in the SEC but the entire country last season as she picked up AVCA Third Team All-America honors after recording 494 kills with a .231 hitting percentage for a Razorback team that qualified for the Elite Eight.
• Head is currently second on the team with 51 digs and is third on the team with 55 kills.
• Head was one of the best all-around players in the country last season as she was third in the entire nation with 22 double-doubles.
• Head ranked in the top 10 in the SEC in total kills, kills per set, total attacks, attacks per set, double-doubles, points and total digs.
• Last season, Head would’ve led the ACC in total kills, points, double doubles and total attacks. Head also would’ve ranked in the top five in kills per set, attacks per set and points per set.
• Head spent her spring with the Florida State beach volleyball team where she finished the season with a 8-2 record.

Dupes Ready To Get Back on the Court

• After a knee injury kept her off the court in 2023, libero Emery Dupes is ready to become a force for the Seminoles’ defense once again.
• Dupes has played in all 21 sets so far this season and has recorded 21 digs.
• Prior to injury, Dupes led the team with 287 digs in 2022 while playing in 94 sets.
• As a freshman, Dupes earned All-ACC honors and became the first freshman libero in FSU history to earn All-ACC honors.
• Broke the school freshman record with 3.88 digs per set and was also just the 12th player in FSU history to record over 400 digs.
• Dupes is currently averaging 3.29 digs per set in her career which ranks ninth all-time in FSU history.
• Dupes has also been terrific behind the service line recording 44 aces in two seasons. In 2021, Dupes recorded six service aces in a single match which is tied for the third-most ever by a Seminole in a single match.

Perry Shines on Opening Weekend

• After redshirting at Iowa State last season, Perry shined on opening weekend for the Noles.
• Perry currently leads the team with 21 blocks and 1.11 blocks per set.
• Perry had seven total blocks against No. 25 Georgia which was just one block off her career high.
• Perry also has recorded 12 kills on 33 attempts.

Filimaua: A True Swiss Army Knife

• Kyleene Filimaua is a true do-it-all for Florida State volleyball.
• Returning to her main position as an outside hitter after playing libero last season, Filimaua was FSU’s kill leader in the season opener against USF with 10 kills while also adding 11 kills against UC Santa Barbara. Filimaua had just one double-digit kill game last season.
• To go along with her 61 kills this season, Filimaua has also recorded 46 digs, 15 assists, eight aces and four blocks.

Phelan Becoming a Force On the Service Line and On Defense

• Kenna Phelan has shown off her nasty serve this season, and it became a game-changer for FSU.
• In 10 sets on opening weekend, Phelan recorded 10 aces from the service line. Her 10 aces were the eighth-most in the entire country on opening weekend.
• Phelan has recorded 13 service aces in six matches so far this season.
• Phelan has also come on defensively as she has recorded 34 digs the last two matches. It is the first time in her career that Phelan has had back-to-back matches with 10 or more digs.
• Phelan has also been great as a setter in FSU’s 6-2 system as she has recorded 99 assists.

Henke Off To Strong Start for the Garnet and Gold

• After missing opening weekend, Iane Henke has come right in and been a very valuable asset for the Seminoles.
• In her debut, Henke tallied 10 kills and six blocks against Cal Poly.
• In total, Henke has had 24 kills in three matches and is averaging 2.18 kills per set.

For the final time before Saturday's home game against Memphis, the Florida State football held an open practice to media members Wednesday morning.

FSU head coach Mike Norvell said after the practice that they wanted to bring a bit more speed and intensity to the day's work to prepare the team for Saturday after it hasn't played up to its standard in the first two games of the season. I thought that was clear and translated onto the field, especially as the practice progressed. Below are the Osceola staff observations from Wednesday morning's practice:

FSU was definitely trying to find some unique ways to work on tackling in practice Wednesday after struggling to make tackles consistently enough in the first two games. One particular drill which we don't often see in practice during game weeks saw the skill-position players work on a perimeter blocking/tackling drill with screen passes and lateral runs towards the sideline. The coaches watching this drill seemed pleased with the defense's response to the physical challenge.

For the second time in as many practices, I thought the passing game really grew into the practice and finished quite strong after a slower start. There was a fairly successful one-minute drill which moved the ball across midfield early in practice and then the offense finished strong when working against the scout-team defense. Yes, it was the scout team, but we saw a level of very successful deep passing from DJ Uiagalelei during this portion of practice that we hadn't seen in some time even against the scout team. During this final portion of practice, he hit a number of beautiful deep balls to Ja'Khi Douglas through some pretty good coverage, found Jalen Brown open deep for a few more touchdowns and generally took more shots and had more success with the intermediate to deep passing game than we've seen him have in recent memory. It's not to say it was a perfect day for Uiagalelei. He had some miscues and missed opportunities. But it was an encouraging trend if he again starts for the Seminoles against Memphis.

Brock Glenn also had some success during this final portion of practice, including a few connections with Deuce Spann, who made a few nice catches against the scout team in addition to an exceptional leaping, toe-tapping catch in the back of the end zone during 1-on-1s. Norvell said that Hykeem Williams has had to shake some rust off this week as he's ramped back up, but he again made a few plays on Wednesday, including a really strong leaping catch near the goal line during situational work.

Freshman QB Luke Kromenhoek continues to impress, especially during 7-on-7 pass skelly. His arm is legit and he uses it well to rocket some throws over the middle of the field.

The run game also found a bit of success during the scout-team period with both Roydell Williams and Caziah Holmes busting a few runs. Freshman RB Kam Davis continues to flash as a pass-blocker with a few really nice reps Wednesday, showing how far he's come in this facet in a short period of time.

Patrick Payton added to his practice "sack" total Wednesday, combining with Tomiwa Durojaiye for a sack on the goal line. Marvin Jones Jr. also had a "sack" during an early 11-on-11 period when the defensive line converged on the quarterback. Redshirt freshman safety K.J. Kirkland added an interception against the scout-team offense.

On the special teams front, freshman kicker Jake Weinberg made what seems like an impossible trick shot when, on a field-goal attempt, he made the kick through the uprights and also fit it into a small window of approximately one foot by one foot way up the wall where FSU uses a camera to film out of. It was an impressive display of accuracy to match the big leg Weinberg possesses as FSU's kicker of the future.

Florida State is desperate to get the run game going. A big, bruising back like Kam Davis could be part of the solution.

The Seminoles will sorely miss a versatile and elusive runner (and pass-catcher) like Jaylin Lucas, who is out for the season with an injury. But after the bye week, FSU coaches are now trying to figure out which three running backs will take on the majority of the playing time.

Davis was FSU’s running back on the first drive of the third quarter against Boston College, a sign that the coaches feel good about what he can do in pressure moments.

“I just think it’s trust,” Davis said. “I work hard. The guys in the room push me to be able to be ready whenever my name is called. Coach YAC (David Johnson), he trusts me a lot.”

2025 four-star DE Tobi Haastrup has earned 19 Division 1 offers in just two weeks as he is exploding on the scene in his senior year. I spoke with Haastrup last night on why Florida State is a school that is he is seriously considering early on before making a decision in December. This kid is very raw but with the loss of Hilson, he needs to become a priority.
Login to view embedded media https://floridastate.rivals.com/new...talks-fast-rise-why-fsu-is-an-early-contender

If I buy a couple tickets in the club section for me and the boy Sat ( and possibly a few of his miscreant friends)do I get to hobnob inside as well ?

I have a horrible back and would like to have a seat softer than a cinder block.

I assumed I would be able to but just making sure.

TIA.

FSU is paying Memphis a $1.3 million guarantee for Saturday’s home game. This is close to prior guarantees to G5 schools but also lower than in past years this decade.

2020
Jacksonville State — $400,000

2021
Jacksonville State — $400,000
UMass — $1.5 million

2022
Duquesne — $400,000
Louisiana — $1.4 million

2023
North Alabama — $400,000
Southern Miss — $1.5 million

2024
Charleston Southern — $450,000
Memphis — $1.3 million

2025
Texas A&M Commerce — $450,000
Kent State — $1.2 million

FSU earned $5.1 million for playing LSU at New Orleans in 2022 and $5.1 million for playing LSU at Orlando in 2023

We previously wrote about the FSU-GT contract for the game in Ireland