Any concerns about a letdown were extinguished with a 31-point first half on Saturday night.

Trey Benson had three touchdown runs, while Jordan Travis and Tate Rodemaker tossed two touchdown passes in Florida State’s dominating 66-13 win over Southern Miss — the most points scored in the Mike Norvell Era.

The Seminoles (2-0) scored 35 points for an eighth straight game and made the Golden Eagles earn every dime of their $1.5 million payout. FSU was able to use its backups to get playing time at every position group in a game that was essentially over just minutes after it started.

"It's scary because we still haven't had our best game yet,” Benson said. “We still left a lot of points out on the field."

Here are three takeaways:

Florida State scored four touchdowns and a field goal on seven first-half drives. Jordan Travis threw for 175 in a half, connecting with eight receivers. Keon Coleman hurdled two defenders. The Seminoles went 4 for 5 on fourth downs and had possession for 21 minutes and three seconds — gaining an opportunity after Mike Norvell tried an onside kick with a 14-0 lead.

Things FSU could accomplish on short rest, even with center Maurice Smith watching from the sideline and offensive tackle Robert Scott apparently unavailable. And when playing an overmatched opponent.

It wasn’t all pretty. Johnny Wilson went 0 for 4 with four strikeouts, umm, drops in the first half. But the offense was plenty good enough with 294 yards.

And FSU’s defense allowed just 70 offensive yards on 22 plays (3.2 yards) in the first half.

From 2s to 3s and even walk-ons, nearly everyone on the FSU roster will show up on the participation report. And nearly all of it will be a positive or at least a learning experience.

Darion Williamson had 21 receptions coming into 2023, but he hadn’t found the end zone in his FSU career — until Saturday night. Williamson caught his first touchdown on FSU’s opening drive. While not a newcomer, it was a feel-good moment for a receiver who hadn’t seen as many opportunities (mostly due to injuries) in his career.

Vandrevius Jacobs also had a 13-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter. Eleven different receivers caught passes for the Seminoles.

Caziah Holmes added a 40-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, helping the Seminoles rush for 306 yards on 37 carries.

Norvell and the coaches also substituted liberally on defense in the second half. Blake Nichelson led FSU with five tackles. He was in coverage on a wheel route and almost had an interception as he fell down out of bounds. Walk-on linebacker AJ Cottrill also had a few tackles.

Nearly all of the freshmen defensive backs saw playing time, from Conrad Hussey to Quindarrius Jones, Ashlynd Barker and Ja’Bril Rawls.

Backup offensive linemen earned significant time in the second half, among them Brock Estes, Thomas Shrader, Jaylen Early, Julian Armella and walk-on David Stickle.

FSU did not commit a turnover and was penalized just three times for 45 yards. On the flip side, USM committed 13 penalties for 90 yards and had more penalty yards than offensive yards in the first half. It’s notable that the Seminoles did not play down to the opponent and pulled away early.

The fact that Southern Miss couldn't put together a touchdown drive until the third quarter — until FSU's coaches had 2s and 3s on the field — speaks volumes about how much the Seminoles were in control.

Smith wore a boot during warmups but was often encouraging teammates. Scott also did not play in Saturday’s game. Scott has started 31 career games, while Smith has started 30 career games.

Despite the losses of Smith and Scott, FSU's showed off its depth on the line and started five linemen who have are at least in their fourth year of college. The Seminoles’ starters were, from left: Bless Harris, Casey Roddick, Washington, D'Mitri Emmanuel and Jeremiah Byers.

Travis’ touchdown pass to Williamson was the quarterback’s 50th career passing touchdown.

Dennis Briggs had a second-quarter sack of Billy Wiles. It was the second straight game that Briggs had a sack.

Kalen DeLoach had 1.5 tackles for loss.

FSU will play at Boston College in the ACC opener on Saturday at noon (ABC).

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