The Florida State Seminoles stomped their way to a 77-6 victory over the Delaware State Hornets on Saturday afternoon. Jimbo Fisher’s squad came out hot early and never truly wavered in their dominant showing at Doak Campbell Stadium.
It became apparent near the end of the first half that Florida State (4-6, 3-5 ACC) was not going to let an inferior FCS opponent hang around. In just seven minutes of possession, the Seminoles put up six touchdowns with furious play from all facets of the team.
The Seminoles scored in a variety of ways in the first quarter. Initially they received the kickoff and marched for an easy rushing touchdown by Jacques Patrick. On the ensuing Delaware State drive, the Hornets attempted a 42-yard field goal that was blocked at the line. Tarvarus McFadden picked it up and ran it all the way back to go up 14-0 early.
Delaware State wasn’t completely out of it yet, however. It had three straight 15-plus yard plays that brought the Hornets all the way to the FSU goal line. They punched it in on fourth down but were unable to convert the extra point. The score was 14-6 with a little over nine minutes remaining in the first.
It looked like the Seminoles were in questionable shape after they punted in their next drive. But to complete the hat trick, Derwin James intercepted a ball and returned it all the way for a 41-yard touchdown. All the momentum was in Florida State’s favor up 21-6 right before the second quarter.
It wasn’t much of a contest from then on. The Florida State defensive line was completely dominant and did not allow Delaware State quarterback Keenan Black to do much of anything. Five stunted drives were converted into five straight Seminole touchdowns. They entered the locker room up 56-6 on the Hornets. They outgained Delaware State 281 yards to 131 yards.
It was announced coming out of halftime that both team had agreed to shorten the last two quarters to 10 minutes each.
Not much different transpired in the second half. Multiple backups for Florida State were still able to make their impact however. Wide receiver Justin Motlow got the first touchdown reception of his career, and Ryan Green scored his first two rushing touchdowns of the season. Freshman defensive end Josh Kaindoh tallied three sacks.
The stats show complete domination. The Seminoles had 481 yards, averaged 8.7 yards per play, and had nine different players score.
James Blackman went 11-for-15 for passing 179 yards and three touchdowns. Backup J.J. Cosentino contributed with 51 yards and a score. Keith Gavin led all receivers with four receptions for 78 yards. Nyqwan Murray, Auden Tate, Justin Motlow, and Gabe Nabers each had a receiving touchdown. Ryan Green ran for 96 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. D.J. Matthews notched 138 punt return yards, which is more than the team had combined over the rest of the season.
Defensively, the numbers were shared liberally. The leading tackler was Kaindoh with six, and 22 players in all had at least one. Derwin James finished with one interception for the aforementioned touchdown. Stanford Samuels III also grabbed one at the end of the game. Defensive tackle Arthur Williams brought 2.5 tackles for loss.
Florida State is now 4-6 and heads to Gainesville next week for the annual rivalry match-up with the Florida Gators. Delaware State finishes its season at 2-9 overall.
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