Florida State beats Terps in final seconds

Florida State Seminoles 2009 ... Head Coach: Bobby Bowden

2009 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 8-4
2009 Record: 6-5

9/7 Miami L 38-34
9/12 Jack. St W 19-9
9/19 at BYU W 54-28
9/26 South Florida L 17-7
10/3 at Boston Coll.L 28-21
10/10 Georgia Tech  L 49-44
10/17 OPEN DATE 
10/22 at N Carolina W 30-27
10/31 NC State W 45-42
11/7 at Clemson L 40-24
11/14 at W Forest W 41-28
11/21 Maryland  W 29-26
11/28 at Florida

2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 7-5
2008 Record: 9-4

8/30  OPEN DATE
9/6 Western Carolina W 69-0
9/13 UT Chattanooga W 46-7
9/20 Wake Forest L 12-3
9/27 Colorado (Jax) W 39-21
10/4 at Miami W 41-39
10/11  OPEN DATE
10/16 at NC State W 26-17
10/25  Virginia Tech W 30-20
11/1 at Georgia Tech L 31-28
11/8 Clemson W 41-27
11/15 Boston College L 27-17
11/22 at Maryland W 37-3
11/29 Florida L 45-15
Champs Sports Bowl
Dec. 27 Wisconsin W 42-13

Florida State Seminoles

Nov. 21
at Florida State 29 … Maryland 26
Greg Reid came up with an electrifying 48-yard punt return to set up a Lonnie Pryor three-yard touchdown run with 32 seconds to play to give Florida State the win and become bowl eligible. Maryland got two Davin Meggett touchdown runs, including a nine-yarder late in the fourth to take the lead, but the offense couldn’t run out the clock. Pryor also tore off a 50-yard scoring run for the Noles in the first half on the way to a 14-3 lead, but Maryland scored 16 straight points including a 20-yard Adrian Cannon 20-yard touchdown catch before FSU took the lead back on a 42-yard Bert Reed touchdown catch in the fourth.
Player of the Game: Florida State LB Nigel Bradham made ten tackles and a sack
Maryland: Passing: Jamarr Robinson, 20-27, 214 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: DaRel Scott, 19-83, Receiving: Torrey Smith, 7-74
Florida State: Passing: E.J. Manuel, 17-27, 206 yds, 3 INT
Rushing: Lonnie Pryor, 2-57, 2 TD, Receiving: Jarmon Fortson, 5-71
What It All Means: So that’s where Florida State is at now? The team is doing cartwheels just to get bowl eligible? Actually, yes. The five losses so far came against teams that will all go bowling, and the Florida game coming up is a sure loss, so yeah, it’s fine to be jacked up to get a win over Maryland. The Noles didn’t get a great game out of E.J. Manuel, losing three interceptions, and the defense struggled to get the Terps off the field, but it was a clutch win in the home finale and in the final game under defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews. This year, take the highlight. 

Nov. 14
Florida State 41 … at Wake Forest 28
Freshman E.J. Manuel took over the offense for an injured Christian Ponder and threw a seven-yard touchdown pass and ran for a one-yard score, while the rest of the team helped pick up the slack. Jermaine Thomas ran for 149 yards with a six-yard score, while Greg Reid came up with one of the plays of the ACC season with a scintillating 68-yard punt return for a score. Wake Forest tied it at seven in the first quarter on a three-yard Josh Adams run, but a 24-point Florida State scoring run provided the cushion needed. The Demon Deacons tried to come back with touchdown runs from Josh Adams and Jevin Harris, but ten straight Florida State points put it away.
Player of the Game: Florida State RB Jermaine Thomas ran 25 times for 149 yards and a score.
Wake Forest: Passing: Riley Skinner, 25-40, 227 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Brandon Pendergrass, 5-60, Receiving: Chris Givens, 6-67, 1 TD
Florida State: Passing: E.J. Manuel, 15-20, 220 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Jermaine Thomas, 25-149, 1 TD, Receiving: Bert Reed, 5-81
What It All Means: Just when it seemed like the season was totally lost, E.J. Manuel stepped in and had a nice game in the key win over the Demon Deacons. There’s still work to do, needing a win against Maryland to get bowl eligible before dealing with Florida, but for a program with so many problems, this was an emotional victory that showed the resiliency under Bobby Bowden. The defense is still soft, but the offense made up for it with a great day from the O line paving the way for Jermaine Thomas to take the pressure off of Manuel. 

Nov. 7
at Clemson 40 … Florida State 24
It was the C.J. Spiller show as the Tiger running back took a pass 58 yards for a score and ran for a five-yard touchdown as Clemson dominated the second half. Florida State got up 17-6 in the first quarter helped by a 49-yard Lonnie Pryor touchdown catch and a 52-yard Jamie Robinson interception return for a score, but Kyle Parker was able to get the Tigers back into the game with a 43-yard pass to Xavier Dye to spark a 34-7 run. Kyle Parker threw four touchdown passes on the day and Clemson picked off four Christian Ponder passes, but Clemson didn’t pull away until late in the fourth with a two-yard Durrell Berry touchdown catch.
Player of the Game: Clemson RB C.J. Spiller ran 22 times for 165 yards, caught three passes for 67 yards and a score, returned three kickoffs for 71 yards, and returned a punt for nine yards.
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 21-33, 264 yds, 1 TD, 4 INT
Rushing: Jermaine Thomas, 26-119, Receiving: Rod Owens, 9-77
Clemson: Passing: Kyle Parker, 18-30, 242 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: C.J. Spiller, 22-165, 1 TD, Receiving: Xavier Dye, 3-68, 1 TD 
What It All Means: For all the problems Florida State has had, at least the passing game was clicking. Against Clemson, Jermaine Thomas and the running game were fine, but Christian Ponder finally had a dud of a performance throwing four interceptions in an attempt to keep up the pace. With all the problems with the coaching staff and defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews, it wasn’t a good enough game from the Seminole D to show that things could be turned around. C.J. Spiller was busy doing whatever he wanted to with big play after big play, while Kyle Parker threw too well on the beleaguered FSU secondary. Now it’s going to take wins over Wake Forest and Maryland just to get to a bowl game. Forget about hanging around with Florida in the regular season finale.

Oct. 31
at Florida State 45 … NC State 42
In a wild shootout with the two teams combining for 1,093 yards of total offense, FSU got the game winner on a three-yard touchdown from Bert Reed on a short catch and a barrel into the end zone with 1:36 to play. The Noles rumbled for 278 rushing yards with Jermaine Thomas scoring from four and 54 yards away and Chris Thompson scoring from six and four yards away, but NC State kept pace with five touchdown passes from Russell Wilson including an 80-yarder to Owen Spencer in the first quarter. Jarvis Williams caught two touchdown passes for the Wolfpack in the second half.
Player of the Game: Florida State RB Jermaine Thomas ran 20 times for 186 yards and two scores.
NC State: Passing: Russell Wilson, 20-30, 349 yds, 5 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Toney Baker, 19-112, Receiving: Owen Spencer, 5-165, 1 TD
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 26-40, 277 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Jermaine Thomas, 20-186, 2 TD, Receiving: Rod Owens, 7-56, 1 TD
What It All Means: Florida State might have waning fan support and the defense has gone bye-bye, but it’s still playing hard and it’s still pushing for wins. There’s no quit in this team, even when things aren’t going well, and as bad as things have been, the coaching staff deserves credit for keeping the players into the games. This was a huge win to keep bowl hopes alive with three road games in the final four games, including a season-ender at Florida. Christian Ponder and the passing game have been great, and now the ground game is producing more and more. If the D can turn up at some point, beating Clemson and or Wake Forest is possible. 

Oct. 22
Florida State 30 … at North Carolina 27
In a tale of two halves, North Carolina got up 17-6 going into halftime helped by a five-yard Greg Little run and a 13-yard touchdown pass from T.J. Yates to Ed Barham, and took an 18-point lead in the second half on a ten-yard Yates run. And then it was all Florida State in a furious 25 minutes as Christian Ponder threw three touchdown passes including a 98-yarder to Rod Owens and an 18-yarder to Beau Reliford for the lead with 6:20 to play. The defense was able to hold on with a sack stopping a final Hail Mary attempt. The Noles won despite making 16 penalties for 121 yards.
Player of the Game: Florida State QB Christian Ponder completed 33-of-40 passes for 395 yards and three touchdowns
North Carolina: Passing: T.J. Yates, 12-25, 64 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Shaun Draughn, 23-126, Receiving: Greg Little, 6-60
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 33-40, 395 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Chris Thompson, 6-18, Receiving: Rod Owens, 9-199, 1 TD
What It All Means: Just when you think Florida State stinks and isn’t about to see its season go into the tank, it comes up with a flurry that shows just how good the team can be. Christian Ponder was brilliant in the second half, and he now needs to be in the discussion among the best quarterbacks in the nation as he’s producing week after week. The 16 penalties were dumb, and ridiculous, but the team turned it around just in time to save the game and its season. Defensively, Kendall Smith was terrific with ten tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks.

Oct. 10
at Florida State 49 … Georgia Tech 44
In a wild shootout, Florida State blinked as the defense couldn’t handle Josh Nesbitt and the Georgia Tech wishbone. The Yellow Jackets ran for 401 yards with Jonathan Dwyer tearing off a 69-yard touchdown dash, to go along with a two-yard touchdown run, and Nesbitt connected with Demaryius Thomas on a 73-yard scoring play. But Florida State kept up the pace with a brilliant day from Christian Ponder, who threw five touchdown passes to five different receivers, but the offense sputtered in the second half failing to get into the end zone until 4:14 to play on a 13-yard Rod Owens grabs. But the Yellow Jackets, down five, were able to hold. The two teams combined for 1,071 yards of total offense.
Player of the Game: Georgia Tech QB Josh Nesbitt completed 4-of-8 passes for 131 yards and a score, and he ran 27 times for 140 yards and three touchdowns
Georgia Tech: Passing: Josh Nesbitt, 4-8, 131 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Jonathan Dwyer, 14-102, 2 TD, Receiving: Demaryius Thomas, 2-84, 1 TD
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 26-36, 359 yds, 5 TD
Rushing: Jermaine Thomas, 19-98, 1 TD, Receiving: Jarmon Fortson, 7-77
What It All Means: Florida State came out and played an inspired effort for its beleaguered head coach … on offense. The defense has been a disaster at times this year, and it didn’t have a prayer of slowing down the Georgia Tech attack. Simply put, the Noles couldn’t figure it out. At 2-4 and on a three game losing streak, the heat will be turned up several notches on Bobby Bowden, but with the way Christian Ponder is playing, there’s a chance to turn things around in a big hurry even with three road games in the next four. Unfortunately, though, there are 12 days until a Thursday night game at North Carolina. There will be a lot of grumblings about Bowden’s future until then. 

Oct. 3
at Boston College 28 … Florida State 21
On a day honoring LB Mark Herzlich and his fight against cancer, Boston College jumped out to a 21-6 lead at halftime helped by two Dave Shinskie touchdown passes, highlighted by a 38-yard play to Jeff Smith, and a three-yard Montel Harris run, but Florida State stormed back with 18 straight points. Christian Ponder bombed the Noles back into the game leading to a ten-yard Louis Givens score and Jermaine Thomas scoring on a two-yard run, but Harris gave BC the lead for good on a 42-yard dash. The final FSU drive stalled in Eagle territory.
Player of the Game: Boston College RB Montel Harris ran 25 times for 179 yards and two touchdowns
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 29-42. 341 yds
Rushing: Louis Givens, 3-23 & Christian Ponder 10-23, Receiving: Richard Goodman, 9-105
Boston College: Passing: Dave Shinskie, 12-21, 203 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Montel Harris, 25-179, 2 TD, Receiving: Colin Larmond, 5-98 
What It All Means: The Seminoles can no longer be called flaky; they’re just not that good. The BYU win wasn’t necessarily an aberration, but it was a bit of a mirage as the secondary hasn’t played well throughout the rest of the year while the offense hasn’t done nearly enough with the running game to take control early. Against Georgia Tech next week, the front seven has to be far better at keeping the big runs to a minimum. If BC was able to average five yards per carry, then Tech should be able to come up with some big numbers.

Sept. 26
South Florida 17 … at Florida State 7
B.J. Daniels threw a 73-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Griffin and an eight-yarder to Ben Busbee in the second quarter for all the points USF would need in the stunning upset. The Bull defense dominated the Noles forcing four turnovers and just 288 yards of total offense, allowing only a three-yard Ty Jones touchdown run in the fourth. The Bulls were able to put the game away on a 27-yard Eric Schwartz field goal late in the fourth.
Player of the Game: USF QB B.J. Daniels completed 8-of-21 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions, and he ran 23 times for 126 yards.
South Florida: Passing: B.J. Daniels, 8-21, 215 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: B.J. Daniels, 23-126, Receiving: Dontavious Bogan, 2-18
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 25-47, 269 yds
Rushing: Ty Jones, 12-21, 1 TD, Receiving: Bert Reed, 9-114 
What It All Means: It was this simple: the Florida State O line couldn’t handle the USF defensive front. The defense did a decent job. The USF running game sputtered, outside of a long dash from B.J. Daniels, and the passing game when nowhere outside of the two 70+ yard plays. But the offense couldn’t produce, even though Christian Ponder did what he could to get the ball out of his hands in a hurry and he didn’t make any huge mistakes. The running game went absolutely nowhere.

Sept. 19
Florida State 54 … at BYU 28
Florida State got up early and wasn’t threatened after the first 20 minutes as Lonnie Pryor ran for two short scores and Christian Ponder connected with Caz Piurowski for a five-yard score with 24 seconds to play in the first half. Following a fumble recovery, FSU got a 33-yard field goal to end the half and the rout was on. BYU turned it over five times with Seminole corner Greg Reid returning a pick 63 yards for a score. Down 44-14, BYU got an 80-yard touchdown catch from McKay Jacobson, but it was far too little, too late.
Player of the Game: Florida State QB Christian Ponder completed 21-of-26 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns, and he ran 11 times for 77 yards and a score.
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 21-26, 195 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Ty Jones, 12-108, 1 TD, Receiving: Jarmon Fortson, 6-62, 1 TD
BYU: Passing: Max Hall, 20-31, 306 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Harvey Unga, 10-97, 1 TD, Receiving: Dennis Pitta, 5-60
What It All Means: Florida State played with Florida State swagger again. Almost no one picked the Noles to beat BYU, but the FSU defense had other ideas playing aggressively, with speed, and with good discipline against the Cougar passing game. Offensively, QB Christian Ponder was nearly perfect with the time to throw and make the throws that were there to make. He also ran well, helping FSU to convert 12-of-15 third down chances. This was a special performance that should trigger a rebirth of sorts for the great program.

Sept. 12
at Florida State 19 ... Jacksonville State 9
Down 9-7 late in the fourth quarter, Florida State survived the scare with a one-yard Ty Jones touchdown run with 35 seconds to play, and tacked on a 33-yard fumble return for a score from Kevin McNeil 14 seconds later. JSU led, led by former LSU QB Ryan Perrilloux, got a 28-yard touchdown catch from Jamal Young and a 37-yard field goal, but the defense couldn't hold on late.
Player of the Game: Florida State LB Dekoda Watson made nine tackles with 3.5 sacks
Jacksonville State: Passing: Ryan Perrilloux, 12-27, 213 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Calvin Middleton, 13-44, Receiving: Greg Smith, 3-29
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 22-35, 324 yds
Rushing: Ty Jones, 8-40, 2 TD, Receiving: Richard Goodman, 8-80
What It All Means: Call it a letdown, call it a short week, or call it a team-wide mental cramp, but if Florida State really is good enough to challenge for the ACC title it can't struggle so much with a team like Jacksonville State. The secondary has been lousy over the first two games, while three fumbles killed the offense and any flow it tried to have. Now comes the showdown against BYU, and if the Noles aren't far, far sharper, and far, far better in the secondary, that's going to be an ugly blowout.

Sept. 7
Miami 38 ... at Florida State 34
In a wild see-saw battle, Miami's Jacory Harris overcame a big hit that led to a 31-yard interception return for a touchdown by Markus White for a 31-24 FSU lead in the fourth quarter to lead the Canes to two more touchdowns connecting with Graig Cooper for a 24-yard score and driving late leading to a three-yard Cooper touchdown run. FSU came roaring back and got within range for a game-winning touchdown, but the Canes held on with a goal line stand, stopping the Noles four times from the two, with the game ending with Jarmon Forston dropping a low pass in the end zone. Neither team led by more than a touchdown with each one answering the other's big play. Christian Ponder threw for two touchdowns and a two point conversion for the Noles.
Player of the Game: Miami QB Jacory Harris completed 21-of-34 passes for 386 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions. He also ran for a score.
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 34-41, 294 yds, 2 TD 1 INT
Rushing: Ty Jones, 14-59, Receiving: Richard Goodman, 5-82
Miami: Passing: Jacory Harris, 21-34, 386 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Javarris James, 11-36, 1 TD Receiving: Travis Benjamin, 4-128, 1 TD
What It All Means: Where was the defense? This was being touted by the coaching staff as one of the fastest defenses FSU has ever had, but it struggled to make enough key plays in the fourth quarter outside of the Marcus White pick six. Offensively, for all the good things Christian Ponder and the passing game did, the Noles only managed a field goal over the final 20 minutes of the shootout. There were way too many big plays allowed, and now the job is to find even more of a pass rush against Jacksonville State before going to BYU for a chance to make a national statement..