Things go from bad to worse
It was one of the worst offensive performances by a Florida State offense in decades.
Special teams wasn't much better. And the defense was so gassed in the second half that Syracuse ran right through the Seminoles in the final 30 minutes.
The result was a 30-7 loss to the Orange in the sweltering Carrier Dome heat on Saturday.
Florida State is now 1-2 on the season and 0-2 in the ACC. Dating back to last year the Seminoles are now 4-8 in their last 12 games against Power 5 teams and 3-7 in their last 10 against ACC foes.
And the two losses this year can be attributed directly to the offense.
After scoring three points in the opening loss to Virginia Tech, the Seminoles didn't find the end zone on Saturday until there were six minutes left in the fourth quarter. This was against a Syracuse defense that surrendered over 600 yards and 40 points to Western Michigan in the season-opener.
When Deondre Francois scored on a QB sneak in the final period, it ended a streak of 28 straight possessions against ACC foes this season without a touchdown.
Francois finished 18 of 37 for 178 yards and an interception. He was sacked four times and knocked down at least three times that many as the Florida State offensive line struggled to block anyone on the Syracuse front. Francois was on his back almost all afternoon, as his teammates took turns having to pick him up off the turf.
Keith Gavin finished with six catches for 79 yards, including a 39-yarder on the TD drive in the fourth quarter.
But by that time it was much too late.
The Seminoles' offense was 1 of 14 on third downs and finished with just 240 yards of offense. The rushing attack garnered a total of 62 yards on 23 attempts.
Meanwhile, the Syracuse offense found its groove in the second half behind backup quarterback Tommy DeVito, who played the whole second half in relief of the injured Eric Dungey.
DeVito, a freshman, completed 11 of 15 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown. He also ran in for a score against an exhausted Florida State defense. The Orange ran 87 offensive plays compared to FSU's 60 and held a distinct advantage in time of possession.
Syracuse (3-0) took advantage of that disparity and scored 24 points in the second half, handing Florida State another lopsided ACC loss. Through two conference games, Willie Taggart's Seminoles have been outscored 54-10.
And while the Orange was able to put the game away in the second half, it was the first 30 minutes that made it abundantly clear that what's wrong with the Seminoles is not a quick fix.
Because the first half was one of the most anemic in decades for a Florida State offense.
Not only did the Seminoles fail to score a point in the first 30 minutes, but until the final drive of the first half they had exactly one first down.
During one stretch they had five straight three-and-outs and then an interception.
Still, because of the FSU defense, the Seminoles still had a chance to take the lead on the final drive before the half. Or at the very least get on the board with a field goal. Instead, they did neither.
Francois hit Nyqwan Murray for two first-down passes on the final drive, moving the ball to the Syracuse 20-yard line. But with 11 seconds left, Francois threw a seven-yard out to Gavin, who caught the ball but failed to get out of bounds.
Florida State was without a timeout, despite what the Carrier Dome scoreboard said, and the half ran out with the Seminoles inside the Syracuse 15-yard line.
It was just the last in a long line of horrific first-half mistakes.
The Seminoles were 0 for 7 on third down. And had eight penalties in the first half, including two dead-ball personal foul penalties that kept drives alive for Syracuse.
Fortunately, for Florida State, the defense played really well in the first 30 minutes, holding the Orange to just two field goals - both coming off drives that got the ball inside the FSU 5.