Quick starts have been a problem for Florida State's offense this season. It did not appear to be the case against Boston College.
FSU scored on its first drive and took an immediate 7-0 lead. Soon the Seminoles pushed it to 14-0. After a few stalled drives, the Seminoles were able to add to their lead and put the game out of reach in a 45-7 beatdown over the Eagles on Friday at Doak Campbell Stadium.
Getting a quick touchdown did more than set the tone. It was FSU's first touchdown on the opening drive against a Power 5 team this season.
FSU (7-3, 4-3 ACC) took its 7-0 lead when redshirt freshman quarterback Deondre Francois threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to Auden Tate with 8:50 left. The lead doubled to 14-0 when Francois found Nyqwan Murray for a four-yard pass.
Star junior tailback Dalvin Cook made it 21-0 when he rushed for a 19-yard touchdown with 2:50 left in the second quarter. Cook finished with 18 carries for 108 yards and a touchdown.
He was removed toward the end of the third quarter just 18 yards shy of tuing the school record for career rushing yards. The mark is currently held by Warrick Dunn, who ran for 3,959 yards over four seasons in a mark which stood for 20 years.
A graphic displaying the school's all-time leading rushers was shown on the video board in the north end zone. The camera immediately cut to Cook who smiled as he was given a strong ovation.
Cook was not the only player to receive praise from the crowd. Francois finished the night 16 of 24 for 183 yards and three touchdowns. He was removed in the third quarter with a shoulder contusion.
It opened the door for senior Sean Maguire on Senior Night. Although FSU has one more home game left against rival Florida, the school opted to make Friday its day to honor seniors.
Maguire met his parents along with Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher in the pre-game ceremony. He came out to another round of applause when he replaced Francois and threw for two touchdowns.
The offensive explosion was the right balance to FSU's dominant defense.
BC was 0-for-11 on third down against FSU's first-team defense. The Eagles' lone touchdown came in the fourth quarter when the second-team unit was in the game.
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