The Florida State football team takes on a bitter rival this Saturday, facing the Miami Hurricanes for the 66th time in the matchup’s storied history.
Last week, FSU welcomed in N.C. State and trailed 14-0 at halftime in what began as an ugly offensive showing for the Seminoles. An onside kick-sparked comeback in the third quarter cut the Wolfpack lead to 7, but ultimately the 'Noles fell short, 28-14. Now, FSU (3-6) battles Miami (5-4) on Senior Day inside Doak Campbell Stadium at 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN).
Against Miami last season, FSU was without head coach Mike Norvell (COVID protocols), and the game was never close. The Hurricanes led by 35 points at the break and rolled to a 52-10 victory.
This season, Miami recovered from an inauspicious 2-4 start that had head coach Manny Diaz on the hot seat and instead now come into Tallahassee with three straight wins over ACC Coastal opponents (two of them ranked). Since a change was made at quarterback, Miami's last five games have all been decided by a possession or less.
Here's our in-depth look at the positional matchups for both sides of the football and special teams, plus staff predictions for the Seminoles' 10th game of the season.
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After starting this season with four straight losses, FSU saw winning results once the 'Noles tweaked their offense and streamlined their passing game for quarterback Jordan Travis to feature a more run-based attack. Over a four-game stretch, Travis completed 67 percent of his passes with seven touchdowns and just one interception and ran the ball for over 300 yards.
But last week, UCF transfer McKenzie Milton (who saw extended action in September and started three games of his own) was called in to start against N.C. State when Travis fell ill with a bug that circulated throughout FSU's campus and affected other athletic programs as well. Milton went for 233 yards, a touchdown and a pick while completing 50 percent of his passes (22 of 44) after a slow start to the game.
Now that reserve redshirt freshman Chubba Purdy has entered the transfer portal, that leaves FSU with just three scholarship quarterbacks on its roster: Travis, Milton and 2020 signee Tate Rodemaker.
At wideout, FSU has stuck with four main options so far this season, and three of the four have several years of experience starting at the collegiate level. Junior Ontaria “Pokey” Wilson struggled last week but has contributed 220 yards and three scores this season. Fellow junior Keyshawn Helton has emerged as much more of a consistent threat in recent weeks and now leads the team in receiving yards. While his playing time has been sporadic, Kansas transfer Andrew Parchment brings plenty of talent, with 264 yards and three touchdowns through the air so far in 2021. Then there’s true freshman Malik McClain, who recently took a pass for 51 yards against UMass and has major potential for the future. For added depth, second-year wideouts Kentron Poitier and Darion Williamson round out the two-deep. Either one could play upward of 20 snaps in a given game.
Florida State’s starter at tight end, Camm McDonald, continues to improve and leads the team with 18 catches this season. The junior had at least two catches in six straight games but was injured against Clemson. He returned to play 31 snaps last week off the bench. Usual co-starter Jordan Wilson has chipped in nine grabs of his own, and third-teamer Preston Daniel is utilized mainly as a blocker.
On the other side, Miami has struggled against the pass all season and might be short-handed going into this game. Star safety Bubba Bolden is out for the season with a shoulder injury, and true freshman Kamren Kinchens has received much more time and a couple of starts as a result. Other starters include senior safety Amari Carter and cornerbacks Tyrique Stevenson and Te’Cory Couch. Miami has the No. 12 pass defense in the ACC and the No. 112-ranked unit nationally. Opponents have feasted for 270 yards per game and 18 touchdowns. Miami has 7 interceptions as a team.
One of the top defensive backs in the nation as a 2021 recruit, freshman James Williams has 28 tackles, 2 interceptions and has started all but one game since Week 3. While the talent is there, a couple of quarterbacks have torched Miami’s defense in 2021. Alabama’s Bryce Young had 344 yards and 4 touchdowns in the opener, and Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett went for 519 yards through the air (albeit in a Miami win). Michigan State quarterback Payton Thorne had a 4 touchdown, 0 interception line against the ’Canes but has only 13 touchdowns against 7 picks in his other 8 starts. Miami did hold pass-happy Virginia to under 300 yards in a Thursday night defeat.
The problem here for FSU is that the Seminoles' passing game might not be efficient enough to take advantage of the Hurricanes' flaws.
WINNER: EVEN
