The last three seasons have been very good to Florida State as the Seminoles have collected three ACC titles, two major bowl victories and the school’s third national championship. After another perfect regular season in 2014 that was followed by a 59-20 loss to Oregon in the Rose Bowl, expectations are not nearly as high for 2015.
Though many preseason publications have the Seminoles ranked in the top 10, playing for a national championship is something few expect for this upcoming season. FSU lost 11 players to the NFL and will be dealing with a very young roster. Despite this, there are still some very obvious areas where Florida State will need to improve and here are five of them:
1. The Running Game
Dalvin Cook came on in a big way the latter half of the 2014 season, becoming the first FSU freshman to rush for 1,000 yards. Despite Cook’s late emergence, the Seminoles finished just 98th in the country in rushing yards-per-game a season ago. With Jameis Winston, Rashad Greene, Karlos Williams and Nick O’Leary all gone, FSU will rely heavily on Cook and the running game this year. Cook, Mario Pender and Jacques Patrick make for a talented trio of backs, but they will be running behind an offensive line that could feature four players without a career start. Having a successful ground game in 2015 will be vital in taking pressure off a first-year starting quarterback for Florida State.
2. Generating a Pass-Rush
Despite having a pair of defensive linemen in Mario Edwards Jr. and Eddie Goldman go in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft, the Seminoles finished 108th in sacks last season with only 17. DeMarcus Walker and Rick Leonard both had an outstanding spring for FSU while sophomore pass-rushing specialists in defensive end Lorenzo Featherston and linebacker Jacob Pugh look to see more reps this season. Redshirt junior Chris Casher, who was forced to play linebacker at times last year due to injury, should also spend more time trying to get to the quarterback. FSU will be facing a number of returning starters under center as well and not getting to them will make for a long season in Tallahassee.
3. Starting Strong
What was perhaps most amazing about Florida State starting 13-0 in 2014 was that the Seminoles overcame so many slow starts. FSU became the first team since UCLA in 2005 to overcome three separate deficits of 15 points or more in one season. The Seminoles trailed at halftime six times and by two scores in the first half on five different occasions. Without a Heisman winner under center and with a team likely more determined to run the football in 2015, Florida State will not be able to succeed by playing from behind.
4. Turnovers
Coaches and analysts often talk about the importance of winning the turnover battle, but in 2014, Florida State did not get that memo. Despite a 13-1 season and a top 10 finish, the Seminoles ranked 101st in the country in average turnover margin. Jameis Winston was criticized for his 18 interceptions, but FSU also lost 12 fumbles and Sean Maguire threw two picks in his only start. For the season, only New Mexico State finished with more turnovers than FSU and the Aggies went just 2-10. Without the experience and offensive leadership that the 2014 team had, the Seminoles cannot make the same mistakes this upcoming season.
5. Getting Off the Field on Third Down
Florida State had two cornerbacks go in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft, but the Seminoles still managed to have a difficult time getting off the field on third down last season. Nationally, FSU ranked 103rd in the country in third down conversion defense, allowing opponents to convert nearly 44 percent of the time. In Florida State’s Rose Bowl loss to Oregon, FSU allowed the Ducks to convert seven of 12 third down attempts. Many of the third down struggles last season were due to the aforementioned lack of pass-rush. If the Seminoles have any hope of four-peating as ACC champions, the young defense must find a way to get off the field on third down.
