The match-up with the Samford Bulldogs on Saturday night heavily favors the Florida State Seminoles. They face off against their lone FCS opponent of the year less than one week after falling to the Virginia Tech Hokies 24-3 in an underwhelming season opener.
Don’t expect a similar performance by the offense in this one. FSU will likely score fast and often on its way to a huge victory.
There are still some questions regarding the team’s mindset and how they plan to correct mistakes committed on Monday night. If you recall last week’s edition of this article, we correctly identified three of the four biggest takeaways from the contest. We attempt to go 4-for-4 below.
What is the Mentality of the Team?
Adversity and how the team responds to it will be the focal point for the rest of the season. FSU sustained the equivalent of a strong right hook to the mouth on Monday night, and now the Seminoles have to pick themselves up and remember there’s a full season left. Fans are somewhat nervous since they witnessed a similar situation last season, but instead of picking itself off the mat, FSU left the rink altogether.
One game cannot define your identity and you cannot let one loss turn into another. Is the team ready to accept that and come together? Or will old habits die hard?
What’s the Plan for the Offensive Line?
Florida State shouldn’t have any trouble with Samford’s defensive line, save for star defensive end Ahmad Gooden, who might cause some issues. But there’s questions here which directly relate to our overview of the current position group. Mainly, who will be healthy and what will FSU be looking to tune up in this contest?
If the Seminoles have potentially two starters out for this game, does that change the way they approach both this one and the next couple of games? Offensive line coach Greg Frey holds the answers and it will be intriguing to watch how he handles it on Saturday night.
Will FSU’s Secondary Face Challenges?
If Josh Jackson and Virginia Tech couldn’t really hit at the FSU secondary, it seems doubtful that Samford would be able to. But keep in mind that the Bulldogs run a pass-heavy offense and have a quarterback (Devlin Hodges) and wide receiver (Kelvin McKnight) who produce. Their best chance is to attack with vertical passes that lead to one-on-one match-ups. The Seminoles are bound to lose a couple of those battles, though it’s more about becoming comfortable in the system. More in-game experience can only help.
What’s the True Sign of Offensive Success?
At risk of looking completely foolish, this game should realistically be over by the third quarter. FSU should be up by at least four touchdowns and score more than 40 points by the time the backups enter the game. Alternatively, it could start slow but then reel off a dominant stretch to end it.
Either scenario provokes the question of what the true signs of success will be. When examining a team’s play, you can’t get caught up in the outcomes more than the actual process. If Cam Akers gets met in the backfield, but then jukes his way to the outside and busts off a long touchdown run, that’s not a “successful” play in a lot of respects. That’s simply out-talenting an opponent.
True signs of success will be how crisp FSU looks when running plays and how comfortable it is in the scheme. That means receivers being aware of what they’re doing when they line up, quarterback Deondre Francois making the correct read on option plays, actually going up-tempo, etc. There’s going to be wrinkles that need ironing out, but overall, the offense should be focusing on the process more than the outcome.
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