The competition was fierce in the opening round of the Special Teams portion of our 2020 Bracket Challenge, and that theme likely will continue today.
Despite some impassioned arguments made by subscribers on behalf of Rohn Stark on our Tribal Council message board, the punting great came up short in his battle with placekicker Roberto Aguayo. The No. 2 seed Aguayo advanced with 57.4 percent of the vote on the Tribal Council. In the other matchup, No. 1 seed Sebastian Janikowski cruised with nearly 93 percent of the vote.
Our version of Seminole Madness continues today with the final two matchups from our Special Teams division -- the specialists. These are either return men or players who made big plays on special teams via blocks, etc.
No. 1 seed Greg Reid vs. No. 4 seed Joe Wessel
No. 2 seed Tamarick Vanover vs. No. 3 seed Willie Reid
If you need more information and insight, we present bios on each player below:
Don't miss our great FSU sports coverage. Get your 30-day FREE trial
In addition to voting on our Tribal Council message board, you can also submit your vote on Warchant's Twitter account. The voting window is 24 hours, and each round offers an opportunity for Warchant subscribers and Twitter users to win a $25 e-card to Garnet & Gold. That prize will go to the person who makes the most compelling and/or original argument for their vote.
If you already know who gets your vote, click here to make your picks on the Tribal Council:
The Matchups
No. 1 seed Greg Reid vs. No. 4 seed Joe Wessel
Greg Reid was one of the most exciting players of the Jimbo Fisher era and one of the most dynamic special-teams players in school history. He is tied for the FSU career record for punt return touchdowns with three, and he also boasts two of the longest returns in school history. His 83-yard punt return against Miami in 2010 is tied for fifth all-time, and his 74-yarder against Samford that season is tied for 15th. Reid also holds the school record for most kickoff return yards in a single game with 193 against North Carolina in 2010. His 742 yards on kick returns that season also stands as an FSU record.
Joe Wessel came to Florida State as a walk-on and left with his name etched throughout the Seminoles' record books. Still today, a quarter-century after his Florida State career concluded, Wessel holds or shares 10 different records. During his Seminole career, Wessel scored touchdowns on punt returns as well as blocked kicks and punts. He also holds records for blocking kicks and blocking punts. Wessel eventually earned a scholarship and was named one of the team's captains in 1984. During that season, he was credited with four blocked punts and five blocked kicks in what likely will be an unbreakable record.
No. 2 seed Tamarick Vanover vs. No. 3 seed Willie Reid
Tamarick Vanover was incredibly gifted athletically and used his combination of speed and power to burst onto the national scene as a freshman kick returner during the 1992 season. On his way to Freshman All-America honors, Vanover returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown against Wake Forest and broke off a 94-yarder against Miami. His finest all-around game came against rival Florida when he racked up 181 yards on three kickoff returns. His average of 60.3 yards-per-return on that day remains a school single-game record. Vanover also is still tied for the FSU record with two kickoff returns for a touchdown in season.
Willie Reid was an effective return specialist and receiver throughout his Florida State career, but he blossomed into a dominant force as a senior in 2005. He helped FSU win the 2005 ACC Championship Game against Virginia Tech with an 83-yard punt return for a touchdown, and he broke off an 87-yarder a few weeks later in the Orange Bowl against Penn State. Reid is tied for the school record with three career touchdowns on punt returns, and his career average of 15.4 yards per punt return still stands as the best in FSU history. He also holds the single-season mark with 541 punt return yards.
Winner of $25 eCard from Garnet & Gold - snapper-zapper
Click here to make your votes on the Tribal Council. If you're not yet a member of Warchant.com, start your 30-day Free Trial today. (Votes also can be placed through the poll at our official account on Twitter, @Warchant.)
About the tournament
We've broken down the field of 64 into four 16-team brackets:
* Offensive Playmakers
* Defensive Playmakers
* Linemen (offensive and defensive)
* Legends/Special Teams
The first three "regions" are pretty self-explanatory. The final one is a combination of eight Seminole "legends," which we've defined as players who graduated by 1985 (just before the Dynasty era really began), and eight special-teams players.
The special-teams players were broken down further into two four-team brackets -- kickers/punters and "specialists" (return men or players who specialized in blocking kicks).
* CLICK HERE for a printable bracket
(Note: Players who already held a spot in one of the other categories were not eligible to also be selected as specialists. That is why Deion Sanders, Peter Warrick and Terrell Buckley are not listed there.)
----------------------------------------------------
Talk about this story with other Florida State football fans in the Tribal Council
