Florida State football, recruiting news: FSU still in top ten of offensive, defensive S&P+

Football

In case you missed it, there’s been a time change for FSU’s matchup with Louisiana-Monroe this Saturday.

With Bill Connelly’s S&P+ rankings updated to factor in the first week of the 2017 season, Florida State falls but not too far. In fact, the Seminoles are still ranked in the top ten in offensive and defensive S&P+. Special teams on the other hand.....

Are you a football film junkie who wants to break down what went right and wrong in FSU’s loss to Alabama? Tomahawk Nation has you covered.

Everyone in Tallahassee is rallying around James Blackman, even some on-campus buildings.

Speaking of Blackman, the questions came pouring in about FSU’s true freshman QB on this week’s ACC Teleconference Call.

If you are clamoring for more info on Blackman, Noles247 put together a list of five things you need to know about FSU’s new starter.

Sports Illustrated’s Andy Staples breaks down the best-case and worst-case scenarios for how the rest of FSU’s season plays out.

Best-case scenario: Blackman is unusually poised for his age and takes advantage of a Florida State receiving corps that offers a lot of options. There’s the explosive (Nyqwan Murray), the huge (Auden Tate) and the tight end (Ryan Izzo). Meanwhile, fellow freshman Cam Akers gains a lot of yards against teams not named Alabama, and Florida State’s defense keeps scores low. The Seminoles drop one ACC game but beat Clemson in November after Blackman gets some seasoning. Then they win the ACC title and become the first two-loss team to make the College Football Playoff as the committee acknowledges the way the Seminoles responded to the Francois injury.

Worst-case scenario: The Seminoles don’t have a quarterback on the roster who is either effective or ready. They still win nine games because of a superior defense, but the offense can’t get them over the hump against their best opponents. The regular-season finale against Florida is like looking into a mirror, and the Seminoles win three pick-sixes to two.

Recruiting

247Sports’ Steve Wiltfong caught up with a Big Ten coach who has very strong words in praise of FSU QB target Justin Fields.

We spoke with a Big Ten college coach this regarding Justin Fields, who was certainly happy that 247Sports’s top-ranked prospect was no longer in the fold for Penn State.

“I have no problem with someone making him the No. 1 player in the country,” our source said. “He’s a freak. He can really run, he can really throw and we know he’s a great kid. He’s a high-level player.

“I also think he looks like a Florida State quarterback. He moves like a Florida State quarterback, runs like a Florida State quarterback and throws like a Florida State quarterback. I wish he looked like a (blank school) player.”

“But sometimes we get into too much hyperbole with these kids. Is he one of the best in he last 10 years? Well okay maybe, is he a once in a generation player, really?”

Alumni

Dalvin Cook has made a strong impression early in his time in Minnesota thanks in large part to the knowledge of all aspects of the game he learned during his time at FSU.

“He came from a pretty advanced offensive system at Florida State,” Shurmur said in training camp. “You saw principles of zone running, gap running and pass protection where he was involved. He was also involved in route running. He has a pretty good foundation of what we’re going to ask him to do, and I think that helps him.”

Other Sports

Two former FSU golfers have earned the prestigious honor of being named to this year’s President’s Cup team representing the United States.