Florida State allowed only 12 touchdown passes in 2015. On Monday night, Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly had three by halftime.
Kelly delivered the same number of touchdown strikes in the second quarter alone as Clemson's Deshaun Watson and Houston's Greg Ward had against FSU across eight quarters combined.
"The defense, we had to find our heart," sophomore safety Derwin James said. "We talked about it all year -- about what we worked for as a defense. Defense carries this team. But in the first half, the offense carried us. So we had to dig deep, look each other in the eyes and know the game wasn't over yet."
For the defense, it was only the beginning.
The Seminoles smothered Ole Miss' offense in the second half, forcing numerous turnovers and three-and-outs and limiting the Rebels to minus-7 yards in the entire third quarter. Kelly would deliver one more touchdown pass, but that was it as Florida State rallied for a 45-34 victory.
For the game, FSU forced Ole Miss into four turnovers, three coming off interceptions. The Rebels finished with just 67 rushing yards on 25 attempts.
"We wanted to stay balanced, and we just didn't," Rebels coach Hugh Freeze of his offense in the second half. "We weren't balanced at all, and then the two turnovers that kind of just shifted the whole momentum of the game. Then, you know, we didn't feel like we had an opportunity to run. They were really ‑‑ that [defensive] front is very, very talented, and that whole defense is."
