I thought about writing this if Florida State won on Friday night. But the tone isn’t right given all the injuries. Still, I’d like to share a few thoughts as we’re all unpacking what happened in FSU’s win. Look for more from Curt and a column from Jerry as well as our second-watch thoughts on Sunday and our Seminole Sidelines show, too.
It was six years ago today (Sept. 17, 2016) that Lamar Jackson and Louisville shredded FSU. It feels like the day the “fun” of FSU football stopped. The cracks in the foundation of the coach, players, team and program became evident, whether we admitted we saw it at the time or not.
Each season, we ask our friends what we think FSU’s record will be. We debate the definite wins, the likely losses and the 50-50 games. We look for reasons to be optimistic. It’s why we love this sport and it fills a summer thinking about what’s ahead in the fall.
Going into 2021, I encouraged FSU fans to take a different approach. I wanted this team to be competitive and for fans to have fun watching the Seminoles. After the mess of the end of the Jimbo Fisher era, the failures of Willie Taggart and the disjointed COVID season, we felt like fans were craving a reason to celebrate. Where the 2021 team fell short is obvious – a loss to Jacksonville State and a weird, turnover-plagued day at Wake – but you saw the players and coaches take a step forward. And a win over rival Miami as well as at UNC felt very good, while there were still frustrating losses down the stretch and the Seminoles again missed out on a bowl as well as a chance to develop young players in December on the field.
Going into 2022, I projected FSU at 7-5 based on what we had seen in spring and preseason practices. If anything, practices were more competitive and depth was building. We’ll see how severe the injuries are, and if you were putting a value on players going into this fall you would likely say Jordan Travis, Fabien Lovett, Jared Verse and Robert Scott are among the most valuable on the roster. The long-term outlook for the fall is cloudy (although if you’re an optimist go with partly cloudy).
But my real feeling about this season is similar to 2021: I wanted to see a competitive team that fought each week, showed it was climbing and knocked off at least one rival, if not two, en route to a bowl berth. A win over LSU carries prestige, a victory over an SEC team in its home state. Maybe not a true rival but one that historically has been important to FSU. Louisville certainly feels like a rivalry, although not the same as a Miami, Florida or Clemson. It’s still huge, no matter how much regard you give to the current Cardinals, but especially considering what happened at Louisville in 2016 and 2020.
We saw the flaws on Friday. We have mentioned them as a staff and many of you have too. It’s also more palatable to evaluate after a 3-0 start, especially one in which we’re seeing a team that’s as fun to watch as any in recent years.
As Jerry often reminds, and your wallet can attest, getting to Tallahassee isn’t easy for many and it ain’t cheap. It’s awesome to hear that more and more fans are making plans to get back to Doak. The curiosity about what’s next with the Seminoles as they move on to BC is what will have us all watching. And here's hoping for more fun days ahead on fall Saturdays.
It was six years ago today (Sept. 17, 2016) that Lamar Jackson and Louisville shredded FSU. It feels like the day the “fun” of FSU football stopped. The cracks in the foundation of the coach, players, team and program became evident, whether we admitted we saw it at the time or not.
Each season, we ask our friends what we think FSU’s record will be. We debate the definite wins, the likely losses and the 50-50 games. We look for reasons to be optimistic. It’s why we love this sport and it fills a summer thinking about what’s ahead in the fall.
Going into 2021, I encouraged FSU fans to take a different approach. I wanted this team to be competitive and for fans to have fun watching the Seminoles. After the mess of the end of the Jimbo Fisher era, the failures of Willie Taggart and the disjointed COVID season, we felt like fans were craving a reason to celebrate. Where the 2021 team fell short is obvious – a loss to Jacksonville State and a weird, turnover-plagued day at Wake – but you saw the players and coaches take a step forward. And a win over rival Miami as well as at UNC felt very good, while there were still frustrating losses down the stretch and the Seminoles again missed out on a bowl as well as a chance to develop young players in December on the field.
Going into 2022, I projected FSU at 7-5 based on what we had seen in spring and preseason practices. If anything, practices were more competitive and depth was building. We’ll see how severe the injuries are, and if you were putting a value on players going into this fall you would likely say Jordan Travis, Fabien Lovett, Jared Verse and Robert Scott are among the most valuable on the roster. The long-term outlook for the fall is cloudy (although if you’re an optimist go with partly cloudy).
But my real feeling about this season is similar to 2021: I wanted to see a competitive team that fought each week, showed it was climbing and knocked off at least one rival, if not two, en route to a bowl berth. A win over LSU carries prestige, a victory over an SEC team in its home state. Maybe not a true rival but one that historically has been important to FSU. Louisville certainly feels like a rivalry, although not the same as a Miami, Florida or Clemson. It’s still huge, no matter how much regard you give to the current Cardinals, but especially considering what happened at Louisville in 2016 and 2020.
We saw the flaws on Friday. We have mentioned them as a staff and many of you have too. It’s also more palatable to evaluate after a 3-0 start, especially one in which we’re seeing a team that’s as fun to watch as any in recent years.
As Jerry often reminds, and your wallet can attest, getting to Tallahassee isn’t easy for many and it ain’t cheap. It’s awesome to hear that more and more fans are making plans to get back to Doak. The curiosity about what’s next with the Seminoles as they move on to BC is what will have us all watching. And here's hoping for more fun days ahead on fall Saturdays.
