Notre Dame dominated Florida State 42-13 in a frigid South Bend on Saturday night, handing the Seminoles their sixth loss of the season and making bowl eligibility a tall task.
The Seminoles could not ask for a worse start. On the second play of the game, Deondre Francois threw a bullet to Tre’ McKitty that got deflected for a Notre Dame interception. The Fighting Irish quickly converted for a touchdown, and the rout was on.
Notre Dame jumped out to a 17-0 lead thanks to an FSU punt and fumble on back-to-back drives. The Seminoles did not score until the second quarter, when they drove down the field and Cam Akers punched it in from eight yards out. In a play that encapsulates Florida State’s season, the ensuing point after attempt was blocked and returned by Notre Dame for two points.
Florida State would not score for the rest of the half. Notre Dame added two more touchdowns, one from quarterback Brandon Wimbush, and another from running back Dexter Williams. Despite Florida State’s running game looking more successful, the Seminoles were unable to convert on later downs and the offense stalled because of it.
Notre Dame entered the locker room up 32-6. Wimbush led both teams with three touchdowns, all through the air.
The momentum started to change in the third quarter. Wimbush proved vulnerable after throwing an interception to Stanford Samuels III, giving the Seminoles great field position to start. Four plays later, Cam Akers ran it in for another touchdown, making it 32-13. It was Akers’ second multi-touchdown game of the year.
A Notre Dame field goal made it 35-13 midway through the third quarter. Florida State was gifted another opportunity after Dontavious Jackson came up with an interception inside Notre Dame territory.
They were able to get inside the Notre Dame 5-yard line with a 1st-and-Goal opportunity. Instead of scoring, Florida State stumbled on four straight plays and turned it over on downs. The Fighting Irish responded with a backbreaking 12 play, 97-yard scoring drive that ended with another touchdown run from Dexter Williams.
Francois finished the game 23-for-47 for 216 yards and one interception. Nyqwan Murray was the leading receiver with six receptions for 79 yards. Dontavious Jackson led in tackles with 11. Florida State did not record a single sack for the second straight game.
An instant reaction podcast will be up shortly.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login