For the first time since 1989, Florida State is 0-2. Self-inflicted wounds and the inability to get timely stops haunted the Seminoles at Doak Campbell Stadium on Saturday as No. 12 FSU fell to North Carolina State, 27-21.
N.C. State (3-1, 1-0 ACC) came out firing. The first two FSU drives resulted in punts, which the Wolfpack offense took advantage of quickly. Quarterback Ryan Finley led his team down the field each time and helped N.C. State take a 10-0 lead going into the second quarter.
Florida State (0-2, 0-1 ACC) needed a response, and it got one from quarterback James Blackman and receiver Auden Tate. Blackman went 5-for-6 on the third drive and passed for 46 yards. One of those passes was a floater to Tate in the end zone, cutting the Wolfpack lead to just 10-7.
From there, FSU began to shoot itself in the foot. A great defensive stop led to more offensive fireworks by the Seminoles, but Blackman fumbled deep in N.C. State in the second quarter and allowed N.C. State to take over. The defense once again did a great job at forcing another punt. The Seminoles drove downfield with a now confident quarterback, but a missed 30-yard field goal from Ricky Aguayo stunted the momentum.
Finley than dropped a beautiful pass to Jakobi Meyers for a 71-yard touchdown on the ensuing N.C. State possession. Florida State was able to move the ball enough for another field goal attempt from Aguayo. He made that one, and the Seminoles entered halftime down 17-10.
The defense came out hot and forced another N.C. State punt. FSU was able to turn it in to another field goal, making the score 17-13. But Auden Tate was injured after a 51-yard reception and had to go to the locker room. He would not return for the rest of the game.
N.C. State tacked on three more to make it 20-13 in the middle of the third. Officiating then began to take over. After a litany of calls over the next two drives, Jacob Pugh was ejected for targeting when his arm contacted the helmet of an N.C. State passer. FSU was able to get the ball back and once again get near the goal line, but settled for another Aguayo field goal to make the score 20-16.
The Wolfpack then gained a huge advantage with a methodical drive that ended in a touchdown, going up 27-16 in a game where FSU had yet to score a touchdown. Not surprisingly, they would lead for the rest of the game.
FSU was able to add a fourth Agauyo field goal with more than three minutes to play, but a first down run from N.C. State’s Nyheim Hines thwarted any comeback hopes.
Blackman, who became the first true freshman to start at quarterback for FSU since 1985, passed for 278 yards on 22-for-38 passing with the aforementioned touchdown and fumble. Tate and George Campbell each finished with career-highs for receiving yards with 138 and 85, respectively.
Jaylen Samuels did just about everything for the Wolfpack, finishing with 25 yards passing, 11 rushing and 64 receiving to go along with two touchdowns. Finley remained unblemished in the interception column while passing for 230 yards. Meyers paced N.C. State receiving with 112 yards.
FSU will look to rebound after losing ACC openers in consecutive years as it hits the road to face Wake Forest next Saturday. N.C. State will return to Raleigh to face Syracuse.
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