Pickin' Splinters » Florida State Seminoles

This Date in College Football Belt History – October 12

Casey — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 05:52:01 +0000

October 12, 2002

Florida State at Miami

The 9^th ranked, 5-1 Florida State Seminoles of coach Bobby Bowden provided the Homecoming opposition for the top-ranked, 5-0 Miami Hurricanes & coach Larry Coker. Miami had taken The Belt from Florida State 2 years earlier in the game known as “Wide Right III” & had easily won the rematch last season but now the Seminoles hoped to end the 24-game Belt reign of the Hurricanes. Florida State again suffered a missed field goal attempt that could have won the game as Miami held on for a 28-27 victory. After a Florida State punt, Miami took their opening drive 89 yards with All-American RB Willis McGahee scoring from 4 yards giving the Hurricanes a 7-0 lead. Neither team was able to score the rest of the 1^st quarter. After recovering a fumble by Miami’s All-Big East QB Ken Dorsey at their 16-yard line, Florida State drove 84 yards in 4 plays with RB Nick Maddox scoring on a 30-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7-7. Seminoles’ PK Xavier Beitia’s 45-yard field goal gave Florida State a 10-7 lead & a 10-yard touchdown pass from QB Chris Rix to WR Talman Gardner put the Seminoles up 17-7. Miami took their next possession 80 yards in 12 plays in 2:08 with Dorsey connecting with All-Big East TE Kellen Winslow, Jr. on a 5-yard touchdown pass as the teams went to intermission with Florida State leading 17-14. The Seminoles got the only 3^rd quarter points on a 42-yard field goal by Beitia. With 11:44 to play, Florida State’s RB Greg Jones scored on an 11-yard run & the Seminoles had a 27-14 advantage. Miami’s belt reign was in jeopardy but the Hurricanes would not go away without a fight. After exchanging punts, Dorsey lead a 70-yard drive hitting WR Kevin Beard for a 2-yard touchdown with 8:10 to play making the score Florida State 27, Miami 21. Miami’s defense forced a Seminoles’ punt on their next possession & the Hurricanes went 79 yards in 2 plays – a 68-yard screen pass from Dorsey to McGahee & 11-yard touchdown run from RB Jason Geathers giving Miami a 28-27 lead. Each team punted again & Florida State took possession at their own 46-yard line with 2:05 to play. Seven plays later, the Seminoles set-up for the winning field goal at the Miami 25-yard line as time was expiring. Beitia’s 43-yard field goal attempt was wide left & Miami had held on for a 28-27 victory. Dorsey finished with 362 yards passing with 2 touchdowns & 2 interceptions. For Florida State, Rix threw for just 83 yards with a touchdown while Jones finished with 189 yards rushing with a touchdown in the losing effort. Miami finished the season 12-1; Big East Champions, ranked 2^nd nationally while the Seminoles finished 9-5, ACC Champions, & ranked 21^st nationally. Florida State would play for The Belt again in 2009.

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This Date in College Football Belt History – September 2

Casey — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 08:50:54 +0000

September 2, 1989

Florida State vs Southern Miss

At the start of the 1989 season, the Florida State Seminoles of coach Bobby Bowden were ranked 6^th nationally & returning several stars including All-Americans S LeRoy Butler. The Seminoles were young at skill positions though with QB Peter Tom Willis & RB Dexter Carter making their first extensive contributions. QB Brett Favre led the Southern Miss Golden Eagles, coached by Curley Hallman. Favre threw for 2 touchdowns including a 2-yard touchdown pass to TE Anthony Harris with 0:23 left in the game for a 30-26 upset of the Belt holders. Florida State took a 10-0 lead in the 1^st quarter after the Golden Eagles drove inside the Seminoles’ 15-yard on their first 2 possessions only to have fumbles recovered by Florida State. Carter scored a touchdown on the Seminoles’ first possession when he carried in from 11 yards & PK Bill Mason kicked a 24-yard field goal to complete Florida State’s second possession that again started with a Southern Miss fumble. The Golden Eagles got on the scoreboard when PK Chuck Davis hit a 22-yard field goal. Southern Miss took advantage of two Florida State fumbles in the 2^nd quarter to score 14 points & take a 17-10 halftime lead. Early in the quarter, RB Eddie Ray Jackson scored on a 3-yard touchdown run to tie the game & Favre completed a 4-yard touchdown pass to WR Alfred Williams with just 0:11 left in the half to give the Golden Eagles the lead. The Seminoles seemed to take control in the 3^rd quarter when Willis connected with WR Lawrence Dawsey for a 24-yard touchdown pass & Carter scored his second touchdown, this one on a 9-yard run, but the missed extra-point attempt left the score Florida State 23 Southern Miss 17 as the game entered the final quarter. Early in the 4^th quarter, Southern Miss’s RB Ricky Bradley scored on a 10-yard touchdown run as the Golden Eagles took a 24-23 lead but the Seminoles got some help from the officials with 6:57 to play. As Mason attempted to kick the go-ahead field goal, the kick was blocked by Southern Miss’s LB Bryant Medders. Amazingly, Medders was called for a illegally batting down the attempt giving Mason another chance from 27 yards. This kick was good giving Florida State the lead before Favre went to work for the final time. Southern Miss trailed 26-24 late in the game as Favre drove the Golden Eagles the length of the field. Positioned for the field goal on 3^rd & goal from the 4-yard line, Favre instead rolled out on a play-action pass finding Harris for the touchdown. The score gave Southern Miss a 30-26 upset of Florida State & the Belt. Favre finished with 282 yards passing with his 2 touchdowns. Willis threw for 269 yards with his touchdown & Carter rushed for 118 yards with his 2 touchdowns but the Florida State fumbles on critical drives spelled the difference. The Seminoles finished the season 10-2; ranked 3^rd nationally while Southern Miss finished 5-6. Florida State would play for The Belt again in 1999.

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This Date in College Football Belt History – October 23

Casey — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 05:53:39 +0000

The top-ranked, 7-0 Florida State Seminoles of coach Bobby Bowden met the 3-3 Clemson Tigers of first-year coach Tommy Bowden. The game was significant for many reasons; it featured a Belt match-up, Seminoles’ All-American WR Peter Warrick played for the first time in 3 weeks after the resolution of his Grand Theft charge, a father & son faced each other as head coaches for the first time in major college football, & Bobby Bowden tried to win his 300^th game as a head coach. Florida State’s All-American PK Sebastian Janikowski kicked 3 field goals as the Seminoles retained The Belt with a 17-14 victory. Janikowski gave the Seminoles a 1^st quarter lead with a 33-yard field goal but the 2^nd quarter belonged to the Tigers. Janikowski actually missed the kick from 28 yards but the Seminoles were called for a delay-of-game penalty giving the All-American another chance from 33 yards. Clemson’s QB Woody Dantzler hit WR Rod Gardner on a 7-yard touchdown pass to give the Tigers a 7-3 lead with 6:17 left in the 2^ndquarter. The score came after Clemson ran a fake punt from the Florida State 46-yard line when Tigers’ P Ryan Romano threw a 23-yard pass to LB Braxton Williams. Dantzler then led an 8-play, 80-yard scoring with the quarterback carrying in from a yard out that sent Clemson to the locker room ahead 14-3. The Florida State defense took control of the 2^nd half as the game got chippy; both teams were flagged for 85 yards in penalties including 3 personal fouls charged against the Tigers. The Seminoles did manage a Janikowski 33-yard field goal & a 1-yard touchdown run by RB Travis Minor in the 3^rd quarter. Florida State again took advantage of their slow play calling on the 2-point conversion attempt as Clemson appeared to stop the try to hold the lead but the Seminoles had again snapped the ball late & got another chance from the 7-yard line. This time the ball was snapped on time & Florida State’s QB Chris Weinke threw a 7-yard pass to RB Dan Kendra to tie the game at 14-14. Janikowski added his 3^rd field goal, this one from 39 yards, with 5:25 to play giving the Seminoles a 17-14 lead. Clemson’s last chance to push the game to overtime ended with 1:57 to play when PK Tony Lazzara’s 42-yard field goal attempt was short & wide left. Florida State’s QB Chris Weinke finished with 258 yards passing, Warrick had 11 catches for 121 yards, & Minor had 100 yards rushing with his touchdown, but it was Janikowski who proved the deciding factor giving Bobby Bowden his 300^th career coaching victory. Dantzler finished with 102 yards passing & 86 yards rushing in the losing effort. Florida State finished the season 12-0; ACC Champions, & National Champions while the Tigers finished 6-6. Clemson has not played for The Belt again.

The College Football Belt

This Date in College Football Belt History – October 12

Casey — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 12:27:20 +0000

AP Photo/Phil Coale

The 9^th ranked, 5-1 Florida State Seminoles of coach Bobby Bowden provided the Homecoming opposition for the top-ranked, 5-0 Miami Hurricanes & coach Larry Coker. Miami had taken The Belt from Florida State 2 years earlier in the game known as “Wide Right III” & had easily won the rematch last season but now the Seminoles hoped to end the 24-game Belt reign of the Hurricanes. Florida State again suffered a missed field goal attempt that could have won the game as Miami held on for a 28-27 victory. After a Florida State punt, Miami took their opening drive 89 yards with All-American RB Willis McGahee scoring from 4 yards giving the Hurricanes a 7-0 lead. Neither team was able to score the rest of the 1^st quarter. After recovering a fumble by Miami’s All-Big East QB Ken Dorsey at their 16-yard line, Florida State drove 84 yards in 4 plays with RB Nick Maddox scoring on a 30-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7-7. Seminoles’ PK Xavier Beitia’s 45-yard field goal gave Florida State a 10-7 lead & a 10-yard touchdown pass from QB Chris Rix to WR Talman Gardner put the Seminoles up 17-7. Miami took their next possession 80 yards in 12 plays in 2:08 with Dorsey connecting with All-Big East TE Kellen Winslow, Jr. on a 5-yard touchdown pass as the teams went to intermission with Florida State leading 17-14. The Seminoles got the only 3^rd quarter points on a 42-yard field goal by Beitia. With 11:44 to play, Florida State’s RB Greg Jones scored on an 11-yard run & the Seminoles had a 27-14 advantage. Miami’s belt reign was in jeopardy but the Hurricanes would not go away without a fight. After exchanging punts, Dorsey lead a 70-yard drive hitting WR Kevin Beard for a 2-yard touchdown with 8:10 to play making the score Florida State 27, Miami 21. Miami’s defense forced a Seminoles’ punt on their next possession & the Hurricanes went 79 yards in 2 plays – a 68-yard screen pass from Dorsey to McGahee & 11-yard touchdown run from RB Jason Geathers giving Miami a 28-27 lead. Each team punted again & Florida State took possession at their own 46-yard line with 2:05 to play. Seven plays later, the Seminoles set-up for the winning field goal at the Miami 25-yard line as time was expiring. Beitia’s 43-yard field goal attempt was wide left & Miami had held on for a 28-27 victory. Dorsey finished with 362 yards passing with 2 touchdowns & 2 interceptions. For Florida State, Rix threw for just 83 yards with a touchdown while Jones finished with 189 yards rushing with a touchdown in the losing effort. Miami finished the season 12-1; Big East Champions, ranked 2^ndnationally while the Seminoles finished 9-5, ACC Champions, & ranked 21^st nationally. Florida State has not played for The Belt again.

The College Football Belt

This Date in College Football Belt History – October 7

Casey — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 18:44:06 +0000

The top-ranked ranked, 5-0 Florida State Seminoles of coach Bobby Bowden battled the 7^th ranked, 3-1 Miami Hurricanes of coach Butch Davis. The teams had a history of playing close games with Florida State holding a recent edge winning the past five games. Miami liked to focus on the 1991 & 1992 games that came to be known as “Wide Right I” & “Wide Right II” when Florida State kickers missed late field goals that would have won the games. The Hurricanes got 2 touchdown passes from All-Big East QB Ken Dorsey & survived another missed field goal attempt by a Florida State kicker to claim The Belt with a 27-24 victory. Miami controlled the first half with a 22-yard touchdown pass from Dorsey to RB Najeh Davenport in the 1^st quarter, a 1-yard score from RB D.J. Williams & 31-yard field goal from PK Todd Sievers giving the Hurricanes a 17-0 halftime edge. Florida State rallied in the 3^rd quarter as PK Matt Munyon hit a field goal from 18 yards & Heisman Trophy winning, All-ACC QB Chris Weinke found WR Anquan Boldin for a 48-yard touchdown making the score Miami 17 Florida State 10. Sievers added a 37-yard Hurricane field goal, as Miami went to the 4^th quarter with a 20-10 lead. Most of the quarter saw the teams trade field position but with 3:15 to play, Weinke hit Boldin on a 2-yard touchdown pass. The Seminoles got a break when LB Brian Allen recovered a Davenport fumble at the Miami 48-yard line. Florida State took advantage of the break when Weinke hit WR Atrews Bell from 29 yards for a touchdown to give the Seminoles a 24-20 lead with 1:37 left in the game. Miami got the ball back at their own 32-yard line & Dorsey went to work. Hitting 6 of 7 passes on the drive, Dorsey connected with All-Big East TE Jeremy Shockey on a 13-yard touchdown pass with 0:46 to play. Weinke was able to get the Seminoles in position for a tying field goal try but, as time expired, Munyon’s 49-yard kick sailed to the right of the upright & “Wide Right III” was born with the 27-24 Miami victory. It was Miami’s second Belt reign & first since 1984. For the Seminoles, Weinke finished with 496 yards passing with 3 touchdowns but 2 interceptions both inside the Miami 5-yard line while All-American WR Marvin “Snoop” Minnis had 7 catches for 145 yards, Bell had 6 catches for 146 yards, & Boldin had 6 catches for 108 yards with 2 touchdowns. Miami’s Dorsey threw for 328 yards with 2 touchdowns & All-American WR Santana Moss had 7 catches for 115 yards. The Seminoles finished the season 11-2; ACC Champions, ranked 5^th nationally while the Hurricanes finished 11-1, Big East Champions, & ranked 2^nd nationally in Davis’ final season. Florida State would play for The Belt again in 2001.

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NCAA FB: Stunner of a Saturday

Casey — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 15:30:13 +0000

AP Photo/Don Ryan

By Paul Gotham

To be or not to be. Or something like that. A Saturday of college pigskin saw the unranked teams acting like they were at a five-year-old’s birthday party treating the top 25 like the pinata.

Oregon 42 #6 California 3

Scratch out October 3rd on the calendar of games to watch. Instead, insert October 31st. The Bears might have looked ahead to next week’s game with USC. (Okay, anyone who was having trouble saying national title and California in the same sentence doesn’t have to worry anymore.) Now the game to decide the PAC 10 could come on Hallow’s Eve when the Trojans make a trip north to Eugene. Oh, the tricks and treats to be had.

Oregon held Bear Heisman hopeful, Ahvid Best, to 55 yards on 16 carries. The tail back came in averaging over 137 yards per game for the Golden Bears who managed just 205 yards of offense. Meanwhile, the Ducks pounded out 524 yards of offense. LaMichael James led the ground attack with 118 on 21 carries. Jeremiah Masoli went 21-25 for 253 yards in the air.

The loss was Cal’s worst since 2001 when they lost to the Trojans, 55-14.

AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster

Iowa 21 #5 Penn St. 10

The legions who contributed to a ‘white-out’ at State College left unhappy. For the second straight year the Hawkeyes dealt the Nittany Lions their first loss of the season, 21-10.

Iowa scored 16 points in the fourth quarter including a blocked punt and return by Adrian Clayborn. Adam Robinson’s 13-yard touchdown run gave the Hawkeyes an 18-10 lead with 8:32 remaining.

Iowa defeated Penn State 24-23 last season. The upset came one week after the Nittany Lions defeated Ohio State, 13-6. Penn St. entered last year’s matchup with a record of 9-0.

#11 Virginia Tech 31 #9 Miami 7

AP Photo/Steve Helber

The outcome of this game wasn’t so stunning: the manner was. The U went to Blacksburg with national title hopes. The Hurricanes left with dreams washed away in a Hokie downpour.

In a driving rain, VT’s offense rushed for 272 yards while Miami gained 59 yards in 34 attempts. Miami quarterback, Jacory Harris, entered the game as a Heisman hopeful. The Hokie defense limited the sophomore to nine completions on 25 attempts and one fumble. Dorian Porch forced the turnover in the first quarter on Miami’s fifth snap of the game. The Hokies took possession on the Miami 11. Ryan Williams scored one of his two touchdowns en route to 150 yards on the ground. The Hokies held a 21-0 lead at half.

Miami had previously beaten two ranked opponents, Georgia Tech and Florida State.

South Florida 17 #18 Florida St. 7

AP Photo/Phil Coale

B.J. Daniels played with a chip on his shoulder. And why not. The Seminole staff ignored the Tallhassee native in high school. There’s no ignoring the red shirt now. Daniels accounted for 341 of USF’s 368 yards as the Bulls beat the Seminoles in the first-ever meeting between the sunshine state schools.

Daniels rushed for 126 yards and threw for 215 including two touchdowns.

USF’s D held the Seminoles to 19 yards on the ground.

This Date in College Football Belt History – September 17

Casey — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 01:15:19 +0000

The 3^rd ranked, 2-0 Clemson Tigers with coach Danny Ford hosted the 10^th ranked, 1-1 Florida State Seminoles of coach Bobby Bowden. The Seminoles who had been top-ranked in pre-season, were loaded with talent including All-American CB Deion Sanders as well as QB Chip Ferguson, WR Terry Anthony, & OT Pat Tomberlin. An opening loss to 8^th ranked Miami stunned the Seminoles & they didn’t plan to fall to another ranked team. Sanders returned a punt for a touchdown & a trick-play that goes down in college football history helped the Seminoles claim The Belt for the first time with a 24-21 victory over the Tigers. Clemson took a 1^st quarter lead with their own trick play as WR Chip Davis threw an option pass to WR Gary Cooper for a 61-yard touchdown giving the Tigers a 7-0 lead. Florida State tied the game in the 2^nd quarter with a conventional 40-yard touchdown pass from Ferguson to RB Dexter Carter but the Tigers took a 14-7 halftime lead when QB Rodney Williams scored on a 7-yard touchdown run. After Sanders returned a punt 76-yards for a touchdown & RB Dayne Williams scored on a 1-yard touchdown run Florida State appeared to have control of the game 21-14, if the defense could hold. Clemson’s RB Tracy Johnson scored for the Tigers to tie the game at 21-21 with just 2:32 left in the game. Clemson readied for a final shot at scoring as Florida State prepared to punt from their own 21-yard line with just 1:33 to play. It appeared disaster had struck the Seminoles as the ball was apparently snapped over Florida State’s P Tom Corlew’s head but Bowden had called a play that came to be known in football lore as the “puntrooksie”. Williams, the blocking back, had intercepted the long snap & handed it between the legs of S LeRoy Butler who ran around the left end while 2 other Seminoles faked to the right. Clemson realized what was happening & All-American CB Donnell Woolford finally knocked Butler out of bounds 78 yards later at the Clemson 1-yard line. As brilliant as the gamble was, it still had not changed the score. After getting stopped at the goal line on 3 straight plays, the Seminoles called a timeout with 0:35 to play & the clock stopped. Problem was that Florida State had no timeouts left but the clock was stopped anyway. Florida State scored a touchdown on the next snap but the score was called back after the confused officiating crew determined Florida State should not have been given the timeout. Strangely, no penalty was assessed but the Seminoles had to try again for the score. This time, Bowden opted to try a field goal even though his kickers had been 0 for 3 on field goal attempts in the game. Florida State’s PK Richie Andrews’ 19-yard field goal kick was good & the Seminoles had an improbable 24-21 win. Ferguson finished with 241 yards passing with his touchdown while Williams threw for 96 yards in the loss. The Tigers finished the season 10-2; ACC Champions, ranked 9^th nationally while the Seminoles finished 11-1 & ranked 3^rd nationally. Clemson would play for The Belt again in 1999.

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