The Florida State Seminoles (1-0) hit the road and travel to New Orleans to take on the LSU Tigers (0-0) at the Superdome in the Allstate Louisiana Kickoff. Head coach Mike Norvell heads into his third season at Florida State and expectations will certainly be high for the multi-time National Champion Seminoles. FSU is in the midst of four-straight losing seasons, which hasn't been done there since the 1970s. The LSU Tigers will play their first game under the regime of former Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly. Two years removed from a national title, Kelly hopes to return the Tigers to the glory years of their recent past. Neither team comes into this game ranked but that could change for the winner of this matchup. The opening kickoff is set for 7:30pm EST.
Mike Norvell knows that the time is now for his program to turn the corner. Norvell has gone 9-13 in his two seasons thus far in Tallahassee but he has been afforded some wiggle room. His first season was played under the looming specter of COVID-19 and last season was the first season with a number of his own recruits and transfers on the roster. If the Seminoles have another rough year in 2022, there will certainly be rumblings among the Seminole alums about the former Memphis head coach.
“It is always important, always a big year for us to keep taking those steps to get Florida State back to the top echelon of college football,” athletic director Michael Alford said. “Mike knows that we have 100 percent faith in where it's headed. Mike and I have talked about this: We're setting it up for long-term success, not short-term success.”
Norvell and the Seminoles got off to the right start in Week 0 with a 47-7 win over Duquesne at home. The win was expected but the blowout style victory was also very welcome. Quarterback Jordan Travis, in his second season at the helm of the Seminoles, completed 11-of-15 passes for 207 yards without an interception. He also ran for 18 yards in a touchdown. The running game was the feature of the game for FSU. Three different running backs rushed for over 100 yards as the Seminoles ran the ball 54 times for 413 yards and seven touchdowns. Treshaun Ward and Trey Benson led the way with 127 yards and 109 yards respectively. Each averaged over nine yards per carry in the game. Defensively, the Seminoles had six tackles for loss and had one sack on the day as they shuffled players in and out during the blowout in the Florida heat.
“It definitely wasn't a perfect game. There are a lot of things that we're going to be able to learn from. A lot of guys played, got opportunities. There was some good, some bad, t hings that we're going to have to continue to grow upon, but the experience and the approach is what I'm really pleased about.” Norvell said in his press conference after the win.
Tops in the nation in Week 0 (via @PFF_College)#NoleFamily | #KeepCLIMBing pic.twitter.com/WHpOKHYlcP
— FSU Football (@FSUFootball) August 30, 2022
It will be interesting to see how much the Seminoles will be able to insert their will into this matchup with LSU. The Seminoles clearly want to run the ball this season with their best backfield tandem in years with Ward and Oregon-transfer Benson. This might be the team's best offensive line since their glory days as they come into the season with a veteran group and the addition of Bless Harris from Lamar to take over one of the tackle spots. If this unit can keep Travis upright and not forced to scramble at every turn, it will be a very good year at FSU. Defensively, the Seminoles were just sixth in the ACC in overall defense in 2021. They return a veteran unit that has to make the next step if the team plans on earning a spot in a major bowl this season. The team did lose their top two ends from last season to the NFL but have experience elsewhere. Safety Jammie Robinson heads a secondary that is loaded with talent that has yet to reach their peak. They wi ll be tested by Kelly and the Tigers in game two.