In three weeks, FSU will take the field for the 2012 ACC Championship Game. That was assured last night by the OMG! finish at Va. Tech.
But be afraid. Be very afraid. Like the cliffhanger in Blacksburg, this game won't be played at Doak Campbell Stadium. And sadly the 2012 Noles have earned a reputation for playing badly on the road. In fact, only General Custer and his cavalry were a worse road team -- ironically losing to a tribe of native American not named Seminoles.
Forget the final score, do these stats sound like an FSU victory?
Total Offense: 311 yards (more than 200 yards below the season average).
Rush Yards: -15 net
Average Per Rush: -0.6
Third down efficiency: 3 of 14
Sacks Allowed: 5
Punt Return Yards: 0
Fumbles: 2 (1 lost)
Only the kickoff team gets any kudos, thanks to 118 yards of K.O. returns.
Thursday night's near disaster can't be blamed on the players alone. The gameplan seemed doomed from the start (though at least some adjustments worked). Questionable calls, like Freeman's east-west run resulting in a safety, had Nole fans everywhere throwing foam Tomahawks at their flat screens. The team didn't seem the least prepared for what everybody knew would be a fright night of geeked-up fans and Tech players suddenly believing they could beat the Packers.
So enough brinksmanship, guys. You can't play dead for most of the game and expect to beat the reptiles. Or a damn good team in the Orange Bowl. Hell, there are no guarntees against the MASH Unit known as Maryland on the 17th.
Okay, we're stepping away from the ledge and writing on the blackboard a hundred times, "A win is a win is a win." Hey, even Bama won with seconds to go last week. But that was against LSU, not a 4-5 Hokie team struggling through its worst season in 20 years.
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