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The 2013 Florida State Seminoles treated their schedule like it was an old heavy bag in Chuck Liddell’s garage, pummeling teams such as the Clemson Tigers 51-14, the Miami Hurricanes 41-14, and their former ACC Atlantic cohorts, the Maryland Terrapins, 63-0. This year’s undefeated reincarnation treated their schedule more like it was an old treadmill in Michael Moore’s basement, laboring through 2014 in the most strenuous way possible.
Staying undefeated, regardless the schedule, is not easy in college football today. Technology has turned game-planning from an indiscrete art into an objective science. The film room no longer has to be a dedicated oubliette-style bunker, and the analyzed frames don’t have to be grainy reflections off a projection screen. You can now watch film anywhere, and you can even do it in 1080p HD on an iPad.
The game is evolving fast and the coaches must adapt with it. This is exactly why Jimbo Fisher earns every decimal place of his $3.275 million contract. Florida State is not “playing down to their opponents” as much as they’re absorbing staggering shots from teams eager to hit the bullseye on their back. Fans saw that as the season wore on, Florida State’s alleged futility matured into resilience.
The Oregon Ducks will be the best team the Seminoles play all year. Oregon can spread you out, Marcus Mariota can extend plays, and the Ducks’ tempo can push defensive rotations beyond exhaustion. Everybody knows this. The saving grace for Seminoles? They’ve had 26 days to get up from the mat.
They also didn’t spend last week getting beat up by a team gunning to take them down. They’ve had a month to mend, repair and refocus. This extra time can also be used introspectively to see just how Florida State’s weaknesses were being exploited week-in, week-out, and also to understand what the Arizona Wildcats did right way back in October when they gave Oregon its only loss.
If anyone can expound these points upon their players and execute the solution, it’s Jimbo Fisher.
Don’t be surprised if FSU appears to be a markedly different football team on New Year’s day. Don’t act awestruck if Florida State plays up to a team after 13 weeks worth of playing down to their opponents. What doesn’t kill your season should only make you stronger, right?
Jerry Landry is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jerry2Landry, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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