After a slow start to the 2016 season, Florida State junior wide receiver Travis Rudolph really made his presence felt in last week’s 17-6 victory over Wake Forest. In 60 minutes of football, Rudolph nearly doubled his season totals with 13 catches for 238 yards receiving — the third most in FSU history.
Rudolph’s big day came after a disappointing start in which he caught just 19 passes for 259 yards through six games. In now two and a half seasons in the garnet and gold however, starting slow has been part of Rudolph’s M.O.
As a freshman in 2014, Rudolph caught just 11 passes for 152 yards and a touchdown in his first six games before tallying 302 yards on 21 receptions and three scores over his final eight. After catching 28 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns in his first six games last year, he recorded 31 grabs for 639 yards and four touchdowns over the Seminoles’ final seven games.
Through his first two seasons on campus, Rudolph’s numbers were actually ahead of where FSU’s all-time leading receiver Rashad Greene was through his first two years at Florida State. Greene is a player that Rudolph has often been compared to and to some extent, for good reason.
At 6-1 and 190 pounds, Rudolph has all the traits necessary to become a complete receiver. Rudolph can burn defenders deep, he can run after the catch, he can make the tough grabs over the middle and he’s a good blocker. While Greene was a model of consistency for the Seminoles, that has hardly been the case for Rudolph.
Rudolph’s 238-yard performance against Wake Forest marked the second time in eight games going back to last season’s Peach Bowl against Houston that Rudolph had more than 200 yards receiving. Against the Cougars, he finished with 201 yards receiving. Rudolph also had a 191-yard receiving effort against Syracuse last season.
Those three performances all rank in the top 17 all-time for individual receiving efforts by Seminoles. The only other Seminole with three of the top 20 single-game receiving performances is Ron Sellers, who has five.
Outside of those three Herculean efforts however, Rudolph has just one career 100-yard receiving game — an 105-yard effort against Charleston Southern in FSU’s home opener — and none against FBS competition.
If there is a time where the Seminoles needed Rudolph to put it all together on a week-to-week basis, it’s now. Not only will FSU face two teams who are currently ranked in the top 15 in Clemson and Florida over its final five games, but it could be doing so with a largely depleted cast of receivers.
Second-leading receiver Jesus Wilson’s status moving forward is up in the air after suffering a foot injury in last week’s win over Wake Forest. The Seminoles have already lost George Campbell for the season to a groin injury and Ja’Vonn Harrison to a suspension. Ermon Lane also moved from wideout to safety earlier this month while sophomore Auden Tate has been used primarily as a red zone weapon to this point.
Not that they weren’t already, but with FSU suddenly thin at receiver and redshirt freshman quarterback Deondre Francois banged up with a shoulder injury, defenses are sure to sell out to stop star running back Dalvin Cook and the ground attack. For the Seminoles to have success on offense, they’ll need to make opponents pay through the air. If there is a player best suited to do that, it might be Rudolph.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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