Defending national champion Florida State will begin its title defense on Saturday night in Dallas against an Oklahoma State team that finished 10-3 a season ago and narrowly missed capturing a second Big XII crown in three years. The Seminoles are big favorites heading into the contest as Florida State looks to tie a school-record by winning its 17th consecutive game.
Reigning Heisman Trophy winner and sophomore quarterback Jameis Winston will headline a Florida State offense that scored more points in 2013 than any other school in FBS history. While the Florida State offense looks to be potent once again, the Oklahoma State offense has the potential to give the Seminoles some problems defensively in the season-opener.
The Cowboys will be replacing a lot of firepower offensively with the loss of quarterback Clint Chelf and his top two pass receivers. Reloading offensively however, has never seemed overly difficult for Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy.
Following a 12-1 campaign in 2011 that culminated with a dramatic Fiesta Bowl victory over Stanford, Oklahoma State lost both quarterback Brandon Weeden and All-American wide receiver Justin Blackmon to the first round of the NFL Draft. The following season, the Cowboys finished fourth nationally in total offense and third in points-per-game.
Like Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher, Gundy sometimes fails to receive the recognition that he deserves. In nine seasons as the head coach in Stillwater, Gundy has compiled a 77-38 career record which includes eight straight winning seasons. While Fisher has been very successful in four years as a head coach by posting a 45-10 career record, Gundy hasn’t been far behind during that span with a 41-11 record of his own.
While Boone Pickens’ generous contributions to the university have certainly help put Oklahoma State on the map, Gundy’s wide-open explosive offense has proved key in turning the Cowboys into a top 15 program on a perennial basis. Despite losing recruiting battles to Big XII foes like Oklahoma and Texas on an annual basis, Oklahoma State’s ability to put points on the board has largely offset perceived weaknesses in other areas.
Like Fisher, Gundy began his stint with his current school as the team’s offensive coordinator. Gundy’s offenses however, have hit new heights since the former Oklahoma State quarterback became the school’s head coach in 2005.
Since 2006, Oklahoma State has ranked in the top 10 nationally in total offense and points-per-game five times. During that span, the Cowboys have finished worse than 23rd in scoring just once.
Although Oklahoma State is losing a large portion of its offense from last season, it does return its leading rusher in senior Desmond Roland. At 6’2″ and 210 pounds, Roland is a power-runner and can attack perhaps the weakest point in the Florida State defense — the interior of the defensive line.
Florida State not only has to replace All-American Timmy Jernigan at the defensive tackle position, but the Seminoles lose a pair of guys critical to the team’s depth last season in Jacobbi McDaniel and Demonte McAllister. Starters Eddie Goldman and Nile Lawrence-Stample appear to be a fairly solid 1-2 punch for Florida State, but behind them, there is virtually no experience.
If Oklahoma State can sustain drives, the Seminoles may have to turn to a pair of true freshmen in Derrick Nnadi and Demarcus Christmas to help create penetration up front. Aside from junior Terrance Smith, Florida State is also very young at the linebacker position.
Though FSU breezed through the majority of its schedule last season, the two teams to give the Seminoles trouble — Boston College and Auburn — each had backs that could run between the tackles. While Roland likely won’t end up being a Heisman finalist as Andre Williams and Tre Mason were last season, he won’t be an easy guy to take down for a defense that replaces five starters and has yet to form a cohesiveness.
While the Florida State offense looks to once again be able to put up points in a hurry, Oklahoma State may have the scheme and personnel to keep Saturday’s season-opener in Dallas interesting. Oklahoma State under Gundy has traditionally boasted one of the nation’s premier passing attacks, but the key for Florida State on Saturday may be slowing Roland and the Cowboys’ ground game.
