Seminoles rally for 24-20 victory at N.C. State
For nearly four quarters Saturday night, it looked as if Florida State would suffer another painful loss at N.C. State.
Instead, the Seminoles rallied for a 24-20 victory with a 19-yard touchdown pass from Deondre Francois to Travis Rudolph with just over three minutes remaining. FSU's defense then came up with a defensive stop on N.C. State's final possession to seal the win.
The Seminoles improved to 6-3, 3-3 in the ACC. N.C. State fell to 4-5 and 1-4.
It was another game in which FSU started slow and had to keep fighting back from deficits.
N.C. State actually took a 20-10 lead late in the third quarter, but Florida State quickly answered with a touchdown drive of its own. Junior tailback Dalvin Cook scored from 11 yards out as time expired in the quarter to make it a three-point game.
N.C. State carried a 13-10 lead into halftime after dominating most of the first two quarters.
The Wolfpack took a 7-0 advantage in the first quarter on a 28-yard pass from quarterback Ryan Finley to Bra'Lon Cherry. That capped off an eight-play, 71-yard drive.
FSU answered with a 32-yard field goal, but the Wolfpack quickly responded with a field goal of its own to make it 10-3. Then after the Seminoles tied it at 10-10 on a short touchdown run by Jacques Patrick, N.C. State added another field goal just before halftime.
Florida State got another impressive receiving performance from sophomore Nyqwan Murray, who hauled in nine catches for 153 yards. Cook was held to 65 yards on 18 attempts.
The Seminoles won despite being outdone in total yardage (469-393) and first downs (31-20). FSU's defense was led by 10 tackles apiece from defensive end DeMarcus Walker and safety Ermon Lane. Walker also recorded two sacks.
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