3 Things We Learned About the Florida State Seminoles in Week 8

The Florida State Seminoles trailed the Duke Blue Devils 20-17 entering the fourth quarter. Jordan Travis and FSU hit the turbo button and pulled away for a 38-20 victory to remain unbeaten on the season. 

What did we learn about the Florida State Seminoles on Saturday?

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Florida State’s Firm Control

It was a wild day in the ACC. Florida State handed Duke its first in-conference defeat. North Carolina also suffered its first loss, getting stunned at home by Virginia. Combine that with Louisville losing for the first time in the week prior, and Florida State is now firmly in control of the race to make the ACC Championship Game. There are no divisions, so the best two records will make the title game in Charlotte, and the Seminoles are the clear-cut favorites. A chance to put another quality win on the resume could be significant as Florida State tries to reach the College Football Playoff.

No-Fly Zone

Riley Leonard suffered a high-ankle sprain at the end of the Blue Devils’ loss to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. He had a bye week to heal and tried to play on Saturday night in Tallahassee, but it was clear he was nowhere near 100 percent. Florida State knew early that Leonard would not be the threat he typically is with his legs and focused on making sure Duke would not be able to hurt them through the air. The plan was carried out successfully. Duke was held to just 76 yards passing between Leonard and backup Henry Belin IV and completed only eight passes in the game. Without a consistent passing attack, the Blue Devils were never a real threat to win the game, and FSU appeared aware of that.

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Duke had a clear game plan on defense: take Keon Coleman out of the game and try to force other Seminoles to beat them. Duke has a strong defense with an excellent secondary and was able to limit the open looks Coleman had, holding him to two receptions for 54 yards. That meant Travis had to lean on other targets. Johnny Wilson had five catches for 58 yards before exiting with an apparent head injury, but it was tight end Jaheim Bell who stood out. The South Carolina transfer had eight catches for 53 yards and converted several third-down plays to keep drives alive for FSU. Travis completed 27 passes for 268 yards and added 62 yards on the ground to help lead Florida State to the win.

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