FSU Seminoles

Get ready, ACC fans, "ESPN College GameDay, Built by The Home Depot" is heading to Tallahassee this week for Florida State's showdown with Clemson. I was at FSU last year for the Oklahoma game when the GameDay crew was there and it was one of the best game day atmospheres I've seen in the ACC in a long time. I'm expecting the same if not better this weekend.

Florida State and Clemson will face off at 8 p.m. (ET) Saturday. The game will be televised live on ABC.

“We’re happy to have ESPN’s College GameDay coming to Tallahassee,” FSU coach Jimbo Fisher said in a prepared statement. “It’s going to be a great game and great atmosphere next weekend and having GameDay here will add to that. Having that big game … it’s one of the reasons our players come to Florida State and our fans show up. Creating that atmosphere is one of the best things about college football.”

The crew will be live from Langford Green on the campus of Florida State beginning at 9 a.m. ET on ESPNU and from 10 a.m.-noon on ESPN.

Clemson and Florida State have easily looked like the best teams in the ACC this year. Next Saturday, we'll find out which one takes the lead in the Atlantic Division race.

 

 

 

<a href="http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/_/id/501094/debrale-smiley" target="_new">Debrale Smiley</a> bounced off a would-be tackler and rumbled 18 yards into the end zone for Florida State's seventh touchdown of the day, a final dose of salt in the wounds for Wake Forest and the finishing touches on a 52-0 Seminoles win.

In the end, Smiley's touchdown meant little, but it did push Florida State past the 50-point plateau for the third straight game -- something it had never done before.

"We wanted to make a statement today," fullback <a href="http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/_/id/480765/lonnie-pryor" target="_new">Lonnie Pryor</a> said. "Our goal is to win the ACC and hopefully win a national championship, and they were in our way. Hopefully we can keep this going."

This marked just the third time in ACC history that a team topped 50 in three straight games, the last coming in 1992.

Florida State actually might have been able to add to the carnage again in the fourth quarter, as third-string quarterback <a href="http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/_/id/514124/jacob-coker" target="_new">Jacob Coker</a> drove the Seminoles to the Wake Forest 19 before the clock ran out.

As it turned out, that drive snapped a streak of 25 straight trips into the red zone that resulted in points for FSU, but it was of little consequence.

Overall, the Seminoles tallied 612 yards of total offense, including 385 on the ground. Eleven different receivers caught passes, <a href="http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/_/id/380849/ej-manuel" target="_new">EJ Manuel</a> accounted for two passing touchdowns and one on the ground, and <a href="http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/_/id/480764/chris-thompson" target="_new">Chris Thompson</a> racked up 220 yards of total offense.

"We've still got a lot of things to work on," receiver <a href="http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/_/id/514136/rashad-greene" target="_new">Rashad Greene</a> said, "but this was a game to be able to get better and have fun."

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Tanner Price had just completed a 41-yard pass early in the third quarter. It would end up as the longest play of the day for Wake Forest.

It was hardly a threat. The Deacons were deep in Florida State territory, but the Seminoles were already working with a five-touchdown lead in a game they'd eventually win 52-0.

But for the FSU defense, the play was significant. It was a chink in their armor, and it didn't sit well.

Three of the next five plays went for a loss, two more passes fell incomplete, and Wake Forest followed its biggest play of the game by marching eight yards in the wrong direction. The Deacons ended up punting, and Florida State's defense recorded its second straight shutout.

"It means everything," defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan said of the shutout. The Seminoles have now outscored the opposition 176-3.

Wake Forest's overmatched offensive line crumbled at the hands of Cornellius Carradine and Bjoern Werner, who combined for four sacks and five tackles-for-loss.

A week ago, Price was the ACC's top quarterback, and receiver Michael Campanaro hauled in 13 catches for 163 yards. On Saturday, Price completed just 8 of 22 passes, and Campanaro ended up with just eight yards receiving.

In the game, Florida State's defense held Wake Forest to a mere 126 yards of offense, racked up 11 tackles-for-loss, and forced punts on 13 of 15 drives.

Through three games, Florida State's defense has held the opposition to just 1.91 yards per play.

"Our defense was very dominant," coach Jimbo Fisher said. "They contested all the throws, controlled the line of scrimmage, didn't give them any free releases. We're going to have to continue that next week."

Indeed, the test gets far more difficult next week when Sammy Watkins and Clemson come to Tallahassee for what promises to be one of the biggest games of the year in the ACC.

A year ago, the Tigers tallied 443 yards, and Watkins went for 141 yards and two touchdowns in a 35-30 win, and Jernigan knows that's enough to undermine a good portion of the work the FSU defense has done in three easy wins to start this season.

"I'm not trying to get in a tongue-wrestling match with nobody," Jernigan said. "We've got a point to prove, and I feel like every week in practice we're going out and making sure we're able to prove it on Saturday."

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Jimbo Fisher could list the ugly plays from memory.

EJ Manuel missed a sideline route to Rodney Smith. He overthrew Lonnie Pryor on a route that Pryor gave up on too soon. He had hands in his face too often throughout the game. There were a few drops by receivers, too.

It was a 52-0 win, but Fisher knows his offense could've played better.

"I've got it on the quarterback, I've got it on our protection, and I've got it on our receivers," Fisher said. "I think all three phases could do a better job."

Complaining about missed assignments and dropped balls are a luxury for a team that is now 3-0 for the first time since 2005 and has outscored its opposition 176-3 thus far.

But the task gets tougher this week with Clemson looming on the horizon, and Fisher aims to iron out any flaws in the offense.

Some of the problems were caused by Wake Forest's 3-4 scheme, which offered few surprises but still managed to prove a bit complex for Florida State's blockers. Right tackle Daniel Glauser looked bad on a number of plays in his first start of the season, while fullbacks and tight ends failed to pick up blitzes on several others, Fisher said.

"It was a little different," guard Tre Jackson said. "All we really came out trying to do was not mess it up. We continue to work and get better."

Glauser was in the lineup because starting right tackle Menelik Watson missed three practices this week with an ankle injury. Watson played in the second half, but Fisher said he was wary of giving the junior college transfer a lot of work against the unique Wake defense without the proper preparation.

The rest of the offensive line looked a bit perplexed at times, too, and at halftime, Manuel was just 5-of-11 passing for 75 yards. His production improved in the third quarter, but he was under duress throughout. The Florida State line allowed its first three sacks of the season.

But while the offensive line struggled at time in pass protection, the run blocking was stellar.

Florida State racked up 385 yards rushing Saturday, led by two long touchdown runs for Chris Thompson. Both runs went to the right side, with Jackson opening up the holes.

So while there remains work to be done on the line, Jackson said, it's tough not to celebrate the line's performance against Wake Forest.

"That's the best feeling as an offensive lineman you can have, when you set the block, open up the hole, and you see your running back bust through," he said. "You're just running behind him cheering him on."

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- A week ago, lightning ended Florida State's win over Savannah State with nearly 25 minutes of game time remaining. It meant little to the starters, who had long since retired to the sideline.

For the freshmen getting their first significant taste of action, however, the abrupt ending to the game was a missed opportunity. Against Wake Forest on Saturday, however, they were able to make up for lost time.

By the fourth quarter of Saturday's 52-0 win over the Demon Deacons, sophomore Karlos Williams was the lone member of Florida State's defense on the field that wasn’t a freshman or redshirt freshman.

"They held up real well," defensive end Cornellius Carradine said. "They're still trying to adjust to the system, but they held up great. They'll get more comfortable as the season goes along."

Defensive tackle Eddie Goldman finished with three tackles, including one for a loss. Defensive ends Chris Casher and Mario Edwards Jr. both saw action in the second half, combining for two more tackles. Ronald Darby and Keelin Smith both got plenty of work in the secondary, and they picked up right where their veteran teammates left off, smothering the overmatched Wake Forest offense.

"They played hard," sophomore defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan said. "The coaches are real tough on them, and I'm just glad to see them out there making plays and still hunting. That's the biggest thing."

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- As if facing one of the toughest defenses in the country on the road wasn't enough, Wake Forest was handed an average starting field position at its own 19-yard line.

The result were disastrous.

The Demon Deacons accumulated just seven first downs and 126 yards of total offense. They gained 2.1 yards per snap.

It was mission impossible.

"When you have a kicker as talented as Dustin [Hopkins] is to adjust those kicks for him to be doing what he is doing, and then to be as athletic as we are -- I know as a play-caller, when you start inside the 20-yard line, you call them different," Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher said. "You have to. Mistakes can get you killed.

"For us to do that and have a defense that can stop people, it is points. You control the field position. It makes it a big advantage.”

And Hopkins and the rest of kickoff team mean business.

There are no freshmen on the unit. It is a group of starters or key contributors with two key attributes in common -- speed and the willingness to deliver a knockout blow.

The kicker has one goal: get the ball high into the air. The rest takes care of itself.

"If I get anything close to a four-second hang time, our guys are going to get them at the 15, 18, right around there," he said. "It is a huge field position thing. It adds up. That hidden yardage, it adds up.

It worked on Saturday just as it had so far this season. Every time a Deacons returner fielded a return, he failed to reach the 20. The other times the ball sailed deep into the end zone for a touchback.

And the two touchbacks out of Hopkins' nine attempts were a blessing for those dressed in black and white on Saturday.

"I don't know if you all watch kickoff, but someone's helmet comes off at least one time on kickoff," said senior fullback Lonnie Pryor.

It wasn’t just the kickoff team that did damage for the Seminoles.

Rashad Greene returned his second punt for a touchdown in three games to give Florida State a 14-0 lead and the visitors all kinds of doubt.

And to round out the day, the punt team did pretty well too.

True freshman punter Cason Beatty had four attempts, three of which were downed inside the opponent's 20 and the other was a touchback giving Wake Forest exactly zero return yards.

When Clemson comes to town next weekend, the Seminoles will need to win the special teams battle once more. If they do, it will give them a huge leg up in the ACC Atlantic race.

If not, the challenge of containing Tajh Boyd, Sammy Watkins and the Tigers will become all the more difficult.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- A year ago, Florida State limped off the field against Wake Forest, having lost its third straight game. Chris Thompson was lost, as well, out for the season with a broken back.

A lot has changed in a year.

Thompson racked up 220 yards of offense and broke off two long touchdown runs as Florida State crushed Wake Forest 52-0 to open the season 3-0 for the first time since 2005.

The Seminoles have won 10 of 11 games since last year's loss to Wake Forest, and they look like a much improved team from the one that coughed up five turnovers in that game.

Thompson led an offensive onslaught; Bjoern Werner and the defense held Wake Forest to just 126 yards of offense; and, for the third straight game, the starters were resting comfortably on the sideline by the fourth quarter.

Through three games, Florida State has outscored its opponents 176-3, but the task gets much tougher next week with Clemson coming to Doak Campbell Stadium.

It was over when: Thompson broke his second long touchdown run, an 80-yarder down the sideline, to give Florida State a 28-0 lead. Wake Forest's rush had stunted FSU's passing game, but the Deacons had no answer for Thompson. His first touchdown took the wind out of Wake's sails. The second one effectively ended any hopes it had of recovering.

Game ball goes to: Thompson. The senior tailback didn't need this game to prove he was fully recovered from the injury he suffered a year ago, but he needed to prove something to himself. His 220 yards of offense represented a career high, and he turned in the 10th-best rushing performance in school history despite not taking a single handoff in the second half.

Stat of the game: 197. That's Thompson's rushing total for the game, all coming in the first half. In school history, only Greg Allen's 238-yard second half against Western Carolina in 1981 was a more productive 30 minutes. Thompson's runs of 74 and 80 yards were his fourth and fifth career touchdown runs of at least 70 yards, and the game marked his first 100-yard performance since the 2010 Chick-fil-A Bowl.

Unsung hero: The Florida State secondary. Xavier Rhodes and Lamarcus Joyner were exceptional against Wake Forest's passing attack. Just a week after Tanner Price won the ACC's quarterback of the week award and Michael Campanaro hauled in 13 catches for 163 yards, the Deacons were utterly helpless trying to find yardage downfield. Price finished the game with 8-of-22 passing for 82 yards, and Campanaro had just two catches for 8 yards.

What we learned: For the third straight week, we might not have learned very much about Florida State. The running game picked up big yardage and the defense was dominant, but the opponent also was completely overmatched and FSU's starters were on the bench by the start of the fourth quarter. Perhaps the biggest takeaway from the performance was the offensive line's struggles in pass protection. EJ Manuel was sacked three times and was under pressure for much of the game despite Wake's best defensive lineman, Nikita Whitlock, sitting out with an injury.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- A year ago, Chris Thompson's career nearly ended against Wake Forest. He took a handoff, cut inside, lowered his head, and ran into a tackle that broke two bones in his back and ended his season.

Thompson said this had been an emotional week as he thought back to the injury and how far he has come since, and, in the first half Saturday, he marked the occasion by delivering one of the best running performances in Florida State history.

Thompson had touchdown runs of 74 and 80 yards in the second quarter, helping Florida State to a 38-0 halftime lead.

Stat of the half: 197. That's Thompson's rushing total in the first half, more than double his total for the entirety of the 2011 season. In addition to his dominance on the ground, Thompson added two catches for 23 more yards.

Player of the half: Thompson, of course. The senior tailback had already tallied the 10th-best rushing day in Florida State history with nine minutes remaining in the second quarter. The two long touchdowns were the fourth and fifth of Thompson's career of at least 70 yards. Thompson was responsible for 62 percent of Florida State's total offense in the first half.

What's working for FSU: Aside from Thompson, the special teams have been the key. Rashad Greene returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown, his second of the year. Dustin Hopkins has pinned Wake Forest inside the 20 on five of six kickoffs, and punter Cason Beatty delivered two exceptional kicks in the first quarter to pin the Deacons deep in their own territory.

What's not working for FSU: Despite Thompson's big day, it's hard to say the first big test for Florida State's offensive line has gone well. The pass protection has been bad, with EJ Manuel sacked twice and under pressure throughout. The Seminoles also were stuffed three straight times from inside the 2 in the second quarter. Pass protection and short-yardage play were big concerns a year ago, and the revamped line has done little to show it has turned a corner.

Noteworthy: Florida State has outscored its first three opponents of the season by a combined 162-0 in less than nine quarters of action. … Right tackle Menelik Watson (ankle) was available for Saturday's game, but Daniel Glauser got the start. … Defensive end Bjoern Werner added 1.5 sacks in the first half and has 6.5 for the season.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida State has opened the year with big expectations before, but, for the past six seasons, that early hype has worn off by Week 3.

The Seminoles haven't opened a season 3-0 since 2005, and, to snap that streak this year, they'll need to get by a Wake Forest team that has won four of its past six meetings with Florida State.

"They’re much more athletic than people think," FSU coach Jimbo Fisher said. "Wake’s got good players."

Despite the history and Fisher's words of warning, Florida State remains a four-touchdown favorite for the game.

Perhaps a bigger concern for the Seminoles is the fact that their starters have played only about three quarters through two games, both blowout wins over FCS opponents. Wake Forest represents by far Florida State's biggest test thus far as well as the opening of conference play.

"I don't think the fact that we haven't played a whole lot will bother us at all," quarterback EJ Manuel said. "I think if I still played, I'd have had the same focus and mentality. I don't think it's going to affect us. If anything, it's going to help us because we're more rested. Those guys have had two dogfights."

Florida State right tackle Menelik Watson missed several practices this week with an ankle injury, but he was on the field for warm-ups and Fisher said he expects the junior to be available for the game. Still, fellow junior college transfer Daniel Glauser will get the start at right tackle.

Wake Forest, on the other hand, will be without starting nose guard Nikita Whitlock, who had seven tackles and a sack in last year's win over the Seminoles.

TALLAHASEE, Fla. -- It's a familiar refrain when Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe talks about his offensive line. He's working around injuries, mixing and matching players at new positions, getting regular work for young linemen short on experience.

It sounds an awful lot like the problems FSU coach Jimbo Fisher has faced for much of the past year.

"Our offensive line is in flux," Grobe said, echoing a sentiment that had defined FSU's line until the start of this season.

In fact, a year ago no team in the ACC allowed more sacks than Florida State. Second on the list was Wake Forest.

Both teams have managed to turn things around a bit in 2012. The new-look Seminoles line has yet to allow a sack, while Wake has allowed just two. But plenty of questions remain.

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Wake Forest starting noseguard Nikita Whitlock has been ruled out for Saturday's game against Florida State with a sprained ankle.

Whitlock was hurt last week against North Carolina and has been unable to practice. On the ACC coaches call earlier this week, Grobe talked about the prospect of playing without his top defensive lineman.

"I like Tylor Harris," Grobe said. "He's a true freshman, but he's a big guy, he's very athletic, he's a pretty physical kid. I really like the things that he's doing right now. Some of our other guys that have been very productive, I thought the nice thing was when we didn't have Zach Thompson last week that Hasan Hazime came in and played absolutely great, and now he'll be starting at defensive end. That might give us a chance to move Zach down inside.

"It's really hard to replace Nikita, but I think the thing we've got is we've got about five guys in that defensive front for those three positions where we've kind of through practice in August rotated those guys around, and most of those guys have played either noseguard or defensive end.

"We've got enough athletes that we can move those guys around. We'd hate to miss Nikita, but I think Tylor Harris will be the guy starting out, but we'll have to roll some of those guys in behind him to try to keep him fresh."

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Jimbo Fisher expects to have Menelik Watson and Xavier Rhodes ready for Saturday's game against Wake Forest after the pair of starters missed practice time this week.

Watson injured an ankle during Tuesday's practice and did not work out with the team Wednesday. He was limited during Thursday's drills, but he appeared to be moving well and Fisher doesn't anticipate a need to sit the right tackle Saturday.

"He was out there moving around, took a rep or two, and the ankle is good," Fisher said. "We're expecting him to play."

Fellow junior college transfer Daniel Glauser took the bulk of the reps with the first-team offensive line, and Fisher said he wouldn't be concerned about using the backup right tackle against Wake Forest if necessary.

Rhodes missed Tuesday's practice with flu symptoms, but he was back on the field Thursday, laughing and joking with teammates during drills and appearing to be past the illness.

In fact, Fisher said Rhodes has been remarkably impressive this week.

"Xavier has looked as good as he's every looked the last couple days," Fisher said.

The only new addition to Florida State's injury report is linebacker Markuss Eligwe, who will not be available this week with a hand injury. Eligwe was already slated to redshirt this season.

Going for Goldman: Ronald Darby's quick start in the secondary and the will-they-or-won't-they decisions on redshirts for Mario Edwards Jr. and Chris Casher have garnered the most attention among freshmen performances thus far, but defensive tackle Eddie Goldman continues to make progress, too.

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