Story lines and hype are aplenty for Saturday’s season-opening contest in Atlanta between No. 3 Florida State and top-ranked Alabama.
The contest is a classic case of “teacher vs. student” as FSU head coach Jimbo Fisher notably worked under Alabama’s Nick Saban at LSU. The two men won a national championship together in 2003. One year later, Saban left Baton Rouge for the NFL while Fisher left the capital of Louisiana for the capital of Florida to become FSU offensive coordinator prior to the 2007 season.
Saban and Fisher’s history is well-documented, but in this segment which we call “Good Times, Bad Times”, we’ll look at the history for FSU against the Crimson Tide:
All-Time Series: Alabama leads 2-1-1
Good Times: The Sept. 23, 1967 contest between Florida State and No. 2 Alabama didn’t end in a win for the Seminoles, but it sure felt like it. One week after losing by 20 to Houston, Kim Hammond passed for 280 yards and three touchdowns while wide receiver Ron Sellers finished with 13 catches for 165 yards receiving in a 37-37 tie in Birmingham. The Seminoles took a 27-22 lead to the final quarter, but the Crimson Tide were able to go up twice in the period before Hammond’s 8-yard touchdown pass to Bill Moremen with over a minute to play evened the score. Chuck Eason’s second interception of Alabama’s Ken Stabler salvaged the tie.
The Sept. 29, 2007 contest in Jacksonville was the first season for Alabama under Nick Saban and the first for FSU with Jimbo Fisher running the offense. It would also serve as FSU’s first win over Alabama, 21-14. After a scoreless first half, quarterback Xavier Lee replaced an ineffective Drew Weatherford and accounted for 283 yards of offense and a pair of touchdown passes to De’Cody Fagg. Everette Brown recorded a pair of sacks and a forced fumble for an FSU defense that carried a shutout into the fourth quarter.
Bad Times: Florida State’s first ever meeting with Alabama on Oct. 23, 1965 didn’t only result in a loss, it resulted in a 21-0 shutout. Quarterback Ed Pritchett was just 8-for-25 passing for FSU with 76 yards and three interceptions as the Seminoles were held to just 201 yards of offense. Alabama’s Bobby Johns had two of the interceptions. Leslie Kelley scored a pair of short touchdowns for the Crimson Tide. Steve Sloan also found the end zone in the victory in Tuscaloosa.
On Oct. 12, 1974 in Tuscaloosa, Florida State gave No. 3 Alabama all it wanted, but still, the Crimson Tide found a way to win, 8-7. A 6-yard touchdown run by FSU’s Larry Key less than five minutes in accounted for the only touchdown and gave the Seminoles a 7-0 lead. The Seminoles nursed a 7-3 lead with time running out when FSU punter Joe Downey took a deliberate safety, running out the back of the end zone with 1:27 remaining to avoid the block and make it 7-5. The Seminoles’ attempt to pin Alabama deep failed as Bucky Berrey made the game-winning 36-yard field goal with 33 seconds to play. Key finished with 123 yards rushing while the FSU defense, led by Bert Cooper’s 20 tackles, held the Crimson Tide to just 229 yards.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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