Saturday's loss across the pond in Dublin at the hands of a ferocious Georgia Tech team in front of a worldwide audience ruffled the feathers of the Seminole faithful, as it should have.
Georgia Tech began the 2024 season with a bang, rolling through Florida State in an exuberant upset to earn the program's first win against a Top 10 team since 2015.
The Seminoles didn't live up to the preseason hype of being the 10th-ranked team in college football, creating massive questions for the Tribe from now on.
Mike Norvell's team faces an uphill battle as they sit 0-1 in conference play before September 1st. The room for error is already drastically diminutive, but for Florida State under Norvell's tenure, it seems the program performs best with its backs against the wall.
Norvell has always preached and emphasized the premise of responding to adversity, the foundational mantra of this program.
The Florida State revenge tour will begin with the team's home opener on Labor Day when it plays Boston College in Doak Campbell Stadium, where they opened as a 17.5-point favorite over the Eagles.
Let's start with the offense, which was pedestrian and, at times, hard to watch outside of the opening drive in Dublin.
There were instances on Saturday where the 'Noles looked completely stagnant offensively. Judging by the game plan and play-calling, Norvell hesitated to stray away from the team's identity as a power-running football team despite the Tech defense loading the box repeatedly and dialing up countless pressures.
The film displayed a complete disrespect and utter lack of confidence in DJU's ability to beat the GT defense downfield. If you look at the tape, the GT safeties' were constantly screaming downhill into run-fits and did an astounding job making tackles at the line of scrimmage. My question here was, where was the RPO game? Find a way to get your dynamic athletes the ball in space to do what they do best.
The new signal caller in Tallahassee, DJ Uiagalelei, has prided himself on throwing the ball downfield since his time at Clemson. We saw very little of that; the Oregon State transfer averaged -0.1 yards per attempt in the first half and did not have an attempt greater than five yards downfield before halftime outside of a pass to Lawrance Toafili that drew a defensive pass interference call.
In good news for Florida State fans, viewers witnessed DJU make several great throws: A textbook back shoulder fade to Ja'Khi Douglas on 3rd&7, a 20-yard strike to Douglas on 4th&7 over the middle of the field, and a 19-yard dart on 4th&8 on a slant to Malik Benson in the RZ.
Yes, he missed the wide-open touchdown on a deep crosser from Ja'Khi Douglas, but he still displayed his ability to make critical throws.
The Seminoles faced a mighty task in the offseason regarding reconstructing their pass catchers. With Johnny Wilson, Keon Coleman, and Jaheim Bell off to the NFL, a collection of new faces and program veterans are fighting to earn the trust of the coaching staff.
Transfers Malik Benson (Alabama) and Jalen Brown (LSU) are additions to the rotation. If it wasn't made clear Saturday, the Seminoles lack a physical and hard-nosed presence on the outside.
Whether it was the absence of physicality in perimeter blocking, fighting through the angst of press coverage, or just an overall lack of play-making ability, the wide receivers left a lot to be desired. The longest pass in the game was 21 yards, and concern should be had when your offense throws back shoulders to a 5"9 slot receiver on pivotal downs.
6"4 wide receiver Hykeem Williams did not play in Dublin. If he can return to the outside against Boston College, expect an increase in downfield success for the offense.
Unsurprisingly, the Florida State offense doesn't feature a high-caliber athlete at tight end. Kyle Morlock recorded the lone reception in that group on a screen pass that went for 12 yards.
Returning to the tape, there's a play in which the offense runs a scissors concept against quarters coverage into the boundary. This concept is ideally suited for attacking a cover-4 shell with a post route from the outside receiver, a corner route from the slot and in-line TE, and a flat route from the running back.
Morlock was tasked with running a corner route off the outside receiver's post route. DJU got to the end of this drop and was ready to throw the ball into the open space in the coverage.
The outside receiver running the post had cleared both safeties shaded to the boundary, yet Morlock still wasn't close to the top of his route. The play resulted in DJU having to scramble up the middle and grab any yards he could. The group just isn't dynamic athletically.
The offensive line received much criticism for its performance on Saturday, and rightfully so, but it wasn't as bad as it appeared. I'd argue that the runningbacks' absence of play-making ability against GT created many of the problems upfront.
Back to the tape, I was not discouraged by the offensive line's physicality. While some of the reads from pullers on counter runs were suspect, the Florida State backs went down after first contact on too many occasions.
While we're on the subject, let's talk about the counter, the foundational run scheme of Mike Norvell's offense dating back to his days at Memphis.
The play features two pulling linemen from the backside, typically a guard and tackle, but teams will also use tight ends in off-motion as lead blockers. The Yellow Jackets did so all game, out-executing the Seminoles at their own game.
In truth, it hasn't worked since 2022. The Florida State run game in 2023 was underwhelming compared to the previous year, but this was commonly overlooked as the passing game carried most of the load. This phenomenon continued on Saturday; it was tough to watch.
To wrap up things offensively, if we are being honest, DJU's performance was the least surprising part of Saturday. Fans, analysts, and yes, even the Florida State staff know what caliber of quarterback he is. DJU is a guy you can win with, but he is not the archetype of a player who you can depend on to win you the ball game in critical situations.
The game plan and play-calling were suspect, to say the least, as Norvell seemed uber timid about letting Uiagalelei attack Georgia Tech vertically downfield. However, what does that say about the staff's trust in their new signal caller? This will be an enticing storyline to follow.
The good news? The offense didn't commit a single offsides penalty and didn't turn the ball over despite only scoring 21 points. I fully expect the Florida State offense to play a more physical and hard-nosed game come Labor Day and I foresee the Seminoles running away with it.
Onto the defense. I have three words: lack of physicality. Arm tackles, lack of downhill aggression, and borderline absence of "want-to."
It shouldn't be surprising that the Seminoles struggled defensively despite losing all the talent and production. It looked like a team of players who hadn't played much football together and hadn't established trust with one another to fulfill their respective roles.
The defensive line garnered praise from media, coaches, and NFL scouts nationwide for being one of, if not the top, defensive line group in college football entering the 2024 season.
While they weren't great, they shouldn't be the primary scapegoat for the defense. That Georgia Tech offensive line returned four starters and is one of the premier units in the ACC, if not the entirety of college football.
Florida State's linebacker core is the worst position group on the roster and provided zero help to the defensive front. This has been the case every season under linebacker coach Randy Shannon, a hire that drew laughter and mockery from the Florida and Miami programs.
The film showcased a lack of eye discipline. Credit to the GT offense, OC Buster Faulker utilized pre-snap motion and deception on almost every play. USC/Auburn transfer Cam Riley struggled immensely with reading his keys, and I don't expect to see him featured on early downs as we advance.
There was a lot of hero ball, just total disregard for assignments and trying to make a play. I fully expect this to end as the unit builds chemistry and, most importantly, trust with one another.
I don't have many takeaways from the secondary. The unit played well when Georgia Tech decided to throw the football. However, the tackling and run fits leave more to be desired. I expect personnel changes on the back end going into the Boston College matchup.
In conclusion, give this team time. Georgia Tech was arguably the worst possible team to draw in Week 0 with all the new pieces and starters on this roster; Brent Key is building something tangible in Atlanta.
Offensively, figure out counter; it hasn't worked for over a year. Let DJU play; his strength as a passer is his arm strength and ability to attack defenses deep. Expect an increase in vertical concepts off of play action.
Get Jaylin Lucas the football. Every touch he had went for positive yards, yet he didn't touch the ball after the first quarter.
Get Hykeem Williams and Destyn Hill healthy; an injection of a physical presence outside will open things up both downfield and in the run game.
Defensively, evaluate the personnel substitutions. Florida State entered the season with one of the most talented secondaries in the country. Accept that and stack the box against a heavy team in Boston College and the Seminoles will march through the Eagles with ease.
Football is a simple game. Georgia Tech outplayed, outcoached, and out-physical-ed Florida State for all four quarters.
The chance to make the conference championship is still alive despite being 0-1 in conference play before the beginning of Week 1. A potential playoff birth is still alive, as the Seminoles are still in contention with the revamped 12-team field.
The Garnet & Gold will return to Tallahassee for its 2024 home opener in a Labor Day matchup with Boston College at 7:30 PM.
As Mike Norvell has always preached, how will you respond to adversity?