Eight games are in the books for the defending national champion Florida State Seminoles and all eight have been victories. The Seminoles will close the season with their final three ACC games before concluding the regular season with its annual match-up with arch-rival Florida. As the 2014 season enters its final month, here are which match-ups to watch for FSU in November:
Virginia at Florida State — November 8th
Match-up to Watch: FSU rushing attack vs. Virginia rush defense
Running the ball hasn’t always come easy for Florida State this season, but the Seminoles have shown immense improvement in recent weeks. Fresh off a 173-yard effort on the ground, Florida State will be facing a Virginia defense that is third in the ACC when it comes to stopping the run. Karlos Williams has been a solid between-the-tackles runner for FSU while Mario Pender and Dalvin Cook have emerged as big play threats on the ground. The Virginia defense is led by safety Anthony Harris and defensive end Eli Harold, who leads the conference in tackles for loss. Virginia also has a very talented corps of linebackers.
Florida State at Miami — November 15th
Match-up to Watch: FSU rush defense vs. Duke Johnson
Florida State has struggled this season against good backs like Louisville’s Michael Dyer and Notre Dame’s Tarean Folston, but perhaps the best the Seminoles will face this season will be Miami’s Duke Johnson. At 5’9″ and 205 pounds, Johnson can run with speed and power, ranking sixth nationally in rushing yards. Johnson is averaging 7.7 yards-per-carry on the year with 11 total touchdowns. For the Seminoles to slow down Johnson, they will need a big day from defensive tackle Eddie Goldman as well as junior linebackers Reggie Northrup and Terrance Smith. FSU is thin on the defensive interior, but the talent is still there nonetheless.
Boston College at Florida State — November 22nd
Match-up to Watch: FSU rush defense vs. Boston College rushing offense
Florida State is extremely thin up front and Boston College currently ranks 10th in the nation in rushing. The majority of the damage for the Eagles has come from Florida transfer at quarterback Tyler Murphy, but running backs Myles Willis and Jon Hilliman have already combined for nearly 1,000 yards as well. Led by All-American Andre Williams last season, Boston College rushed for 200 yards against the Seminoles and gave Florida State its toughest game of the regular season. Consecutive games against two very good rushing offenses should certainly test the inconsistent Florida State run defense.
Florida at Florida State — November 29th
Match-up to Watch: Rashad Greene vs. Vernon Hargreaves III
Vernon Hargreaves III, one of the SEC’s premier corners, will try to match up with a potential All-American in Rashad Greene, who could be Florida State’s all-time leading receiver at the time of this match-up. The Seminoles exploited the Florida secondary for over 300 yards last season, but the majority of the damage came from Kelvin Benjamin. Should Florida State be able to run the table up to this point, it will be facing the team to hand it its last loss at the same location. FSU looks to have the upper-hand in terms of being the more talented team, but the Florida secondary may have the talent to slow down Greene, Jameis Winston and the Florida State passing attack.
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