Noles News: No. 16 Florida State sets sights on UF, soccer to the Elite 8, women’s hoops keeps rolling

It’s been a wild run for Florida State football; rounding the last corner of their regular season puts them at home, set to take on the Florida Gators this Saturday inside Doak Campbell Stadium. Men’s basketball has seen better days being wrought by injury and seemingly unable to find a rhythm, while women’s hoops have found a star in Ta’niya Latson, who continues to impress in and outside of the paint. Soccer is rolling under new head coach Brian Pensky while volleyball ended its season strong with a win over the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Football

With 10-wins staring in the face of head coach Mike Norvell and Co. for the first time in his tenure at FSU, the Noles handled business last Saturday, cruising by the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns 49-17.

A bowl game is sealed, and the state of Florida, along with bragging rights, are on the line. Florida State will now turn its attention to the bleached, sun-wrenched mullets of Jorts Diego, FL, otherwise known as the team right outside of Jacksonville that just lost to Vanderbilt. FSU heads into the matchup favored by 10 points as the 19th-ranked team in the country, touting a top-ten offense backed by a defense that has put up dominant performances in the last four weeks.

Norvell has yet to mention the Gators by name, but the importance of this rivalry is not lost by any stretch of the imagination.

“I’ve not mentioned their name at any point this year. But in our first meeting, we talked about two games. I told you all that a few weeks ago. There are two games we talk about. Everything that you do, every practice, every rep, every game, every lesson, prepares you for this one; and I love being a part of this game.”

The Noles and the Gators are set to kick off Friday, 7:30 p.m EST and will broadcast on ABC.

Recruiting

There are a couple of things heating up on the recruiting trail, with potential top-tier commitments looming for the 23 and 24 classes. Follow up with experts Josh Pick, Bobby Boucher, and Tim Scribble, who bring reliable updates on everything recruiting in and outside of the Garnet and Gold at Florida State Football: OFFICIAL Tribe ‘23 Recruiting and Portal Thread #13. There might be some big news on the horizon this week, so stay tuned for that.

Spoiler: Frank is leaving TN to pursue his dreams on Forged in Fire as a master blacksmith.

Basketball

What a start to the season for men’s hoops. Key injuries have plagued the Seminoles, and they are now sitting at 0-4 before entering conference play. They are set to face Mercer on Monday at 6:30 p.m. inside the Tucker Center after dropping a rivalry matchup against UF 76-67.

From Tomahawk Nation’s Max Escarprio:

The Tucker Center was filled to the brim for the first time this season. It seemed like the Noles were finally inching away at their first win of the year, heading into halftime with a comfortable lead, but turnovers and offensive inefficiency were problems yet again. Florida State dropped its fourth game 76-67.

There was nothing to show on the offensive end to battle against the Gators. Florida State had a well designed game on defense, but it’s very difficult to win a game with over 15 turnovers. The Seminoles head back to the drawing board after losing three straight games to start the season.

Women’s hoops edged by Houston in overtime on the road 79-73 and move to 5-0 before facing Oklahoma State on Thanksgiving morning at 11 a.m. Standout star Ta’Niya Latson led the team with 21 points, four rebounds, and four assists.

From Seminoles.com:

Graduate guard Jazmine Massengill set the tone defensively with a career-high 17 rebounds. Sophomore Mariana Valenzuela added 11 off the glass while Erin Howard had 10 points and 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the season.

All Sports

Women’s soccer advanced to the Elite-8 quarterfinals for the fifth time in a row and the 17th time in history after a 3-0 shutout over the Pittsburgh Panthers. The Noles outshot Pitt 17-8 in a trend that saw them outmatching the Panthers throughout the night.

Cross country finished in the top 20, the 13th team in FSU history to do so, ending their season in the 18th spot.