Top-ranked Florida State will return to the site of its last ACC loss on Saturday as the Seminoles visit N.C. State in what will be FSU’s first true road. The Seminoles and Wolfpack are a combined 7-0 entering the contest.
After Sean Maguire helped deliver Florida State to a dramatic 23-17 overtime victory over Clemson at Doak Campbell Stadium on Saturday, quarterback Jameis Winston will be back under center for FSU.
Winston was suspended for the contest against Clemson after being heard on campus yelling a vulgar phrase from a popular social media meme and viral video. Despite his absence, Florida State still racked up 305 yards passing in the victory over the Tigers.
For N.C. State, Saturday’s game will be its ACC opener. The Wolfpack are off to a 4-0 start and have looked much better of late after narrowly topping Georgia Southern and Old Dominion to open the season. N.C. State has defeated its last two opponents — South Florida and Presbyterian — by a combined 91-17 margin.
N.C. State has already eclipsed its win total from last season and has been explosive offensively, averaging better than 500 yards-per-contest — tops in the ACC.
Florida transfer quarterback Jacoby Brissett has 10 touchdowns passes with just one interception this season while the running back tandem of Shadrach Thornton and Matt Dayes have combined to rush for 550 yards with a 7.1 yards-per-carry average. Thornton was one of the few bright spots for the Wolfpack last season against the Seminoles, finishing with 173 yards rushing and two touchdowns.
Charged with slowing down the N.C. State attack will be a Florida State defense that just learned it will be without junior defensive tackle Nile Lawrence-Stample for the remainder of the season. Lawrence-Stample is done for the year with a torn pectoral muscle.
With Lawrence-Stample gone and Mario Edwards Jr. still fighting a concussion, defensive tackle Eddie Goldman may once again need to make plays for the defensive front of Florida State. The junior came up huge down the stretch in Florida State’s victory over Clemson. Goldman had a late forced fumble, a sack in overtime and forced a stop on 4th-and-1 in the extra period.
Coming up with takeaways this week may not be easy for Florida State. Brissett has thrown just one interception this season and the Florida State secondary has not picked off a pass since the first quarter of the Oklahoma State game after leading the nation in that category last season.
The secondary for Florida State however, has been effective despite the lack of interceptions. Safeties Jalen Ramsey, Nate Andrews and Tyler Hunter are three of the Seminoles’ top five tacklers. Junior linebacker Terrance Smith leads the Seminoles in that category with 30 total stops on the season.
In his return to the Florida State offense, Winston will likely look early and often to the ACC’s leading receiver Rashad Greene. A senior, Greene has 418 yards receiving and two timely touchdowns in just three games this season. Greene sits just more than 700 receiving yards away from becoming the Seminoles’ all-time leading receiver.
Tight end Nick O’Leary is coming off of his best game of the season for FSU, but the offensive line has continued to struggle to generate a run game. Florida State totaled just 13 yards rushing in its win over Clemson although it was partially due to five sacks allowed.
Karlos Williams, Dalvin Cook and perhaps Mario Pender may be running behind a front this week that has a new look at center. With his struggles early on, senior Austin Barron could be replaced in the lineup. Chad Mavety has been named as a possible replacement. Florida State currently ranks just 111th in the country in rushing.
While Florida State has struggled to run the football, N.C. State has struggled to stop the run. As a defense however, the Wolfpack are yielding just 18.5 points-per-game.
Defensive tackle Thomas Teal has been a load in the middle, leading N.C. State with two sacks. Jerod Fernandez and Rodman Neal have been a solid tandem at linebacker for N.C. State this season.
Last year’s meeting in Tallahassee got ugly in a hurry as Florida State raced to a 35-0 first quarter lead before cruising to a 49-17 victory. Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher however, has yet to win a game in Raleigh.
The Seminoles let a 16-0 lead slip away in October of 2012 before falling to the Wolfpack 17-16. In 2010, Russell Wilson rallied N.C. State from a late deficit to top Florida State 28-24. Since joining the ACC in 1992, Florida State is just 6-5 at Carter-Finley Stadium.
Florida State will seek its 20th straight victory dating back to 2012 and a 2-0 start in ACC play. N.C. State has already eclipsed its win total from 2013, but will look for its first 5-0 start since 2002. The Wolfpack did not win an ACC game last season.
Kickoff for Saturday’s ACC match-up is set for just after 3:30 P.M. eastern time. It will be shown regionally on ABC.
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