The Gold defeated the Garnet 38-17 in this year’s annual Florida State spring game, but the story was the play of the early enrollees for the ‘Noles.
The nation’s top high school safety last season, Derwin James, wasted little time making his presence felt for the Gold, intercepting quarterback Sean Maguire on the second play of the game and returning it 41 yards for a touchdown.
James however, wasn’t the only true freshman to shine for the Gold team. De’Andre Johnson threw for 155 yards and a pair of touchdowns while George Campbell reeled in two passes for 99 yards and a score. Jacques Patrick led all rushers with 81 yards on 16 carries and scored a touchdown.
Maguire, who came in as FSU’s starting quarterback, passed for a game-high 289 yards on 22-for-44 passing, but was intercepted twice. Redshirt freshman J.J. Consentino was very impressive for the Gold, completing 7 of his 11 attempts for 177 yards and a long touchdown pass.
On the defensive side of the ball, Trey Marshall made a game-high 10 tackles which included a sack for the Gold. Jalen Ramsey finished with 7 tackles and a forced fumble.
Lorenzo Featherston led the Garnet with six stops and a pair of sacks. Fred Jones added a sack for the Garnet while teammate Keelin Smith recorded an interception.
The Garnet’s Jesus Wilson led all receivers with 8 catches for 114 yards while Ermon Lane led the Gold with four grabs for 100 yards and a touchdown. Tight end Mavin Saunders shined for the Garnet team with 6 receptions for 91 yards and a touchdown.
In limited action, Dalvin Cook scored a pair of rushing touchdown. Roberto Aguayo was 2-for-3 on field goal attempts including a make from 56 yards out.
The Garnet team never led in the contest as the Gold took a 24-17 lead into the break before blanking the Garnet 14-0 in the second half. More than 25 players sat for Saturday’s spring game — most with injuries. The ‘Noles will have four months to rest up before they begin preparing for their 2015 opener against Texas State on September 5th.
