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Defense On Fire, Offense Flames Out

Time to award Tomahawks and Smelly Socks from the Wake game, our first Best & Worst of the season 

Jimbo. For not going Mickey Andrews on his two young QBs. That fatherly approach after INTs can only help their confidence.

The Defense. Still #4 in FBS Total Defense and #2 in Scoring Defense.

The Toe of Gano. Still not 100%, he scored the only Nole points of the night.

The TE. They actually threw to him (Josh Dobbie), and he caught it for 14 yards.

The Punter. Shawn Powell boomed 'em for a 47.5 avg. Beats the 40.5 combined average of last season when Gano and Brent Moody shared punt duty.

You. For not panicking, realizing this is a work in progress. And especially for not whining on message boards about how much your team stinks, or even babbling about switching loyalties. Pathetic.

All the Penalty Perpetrators. 139 yards of negative yardage on 12 penalties. More than double last year's average of 66.9 per game. An absolute breakdown of discipline.

Jimbo. Failed his first big test as CIW (Coach in Waiting). Offense not prepared mentally and tactically. Average and occasionally puzzling play selection. Inability to adjust in-game (Wake found things that worked, while FSU never did).

More? Lots, yet it's time to move on. This was a jarring speed bump. But there's tons more time on the '08 game clock for the offense to grow up and turn the corner.

Uniquely Random and Depressingly Meaningless Thoughts, from the bodacious brain of BFT

1. Even after a tough loss like last night there are always positives to take away. One positive certainly is getting through the offensive highlights did not take very long at all in the post game show. Another positive is I’m positive not very many Seminole fans will want to watch the Sun Sports replay of the game. The biggest positive? At least it wasn’t 30-0. Does that help?

2. Poll: In your estimation, the main reason for last night’s tough one to lose is

A.     Penalties
B.     Turnovers
C.     Penalties and turnovers
D.     Turnovers and penalties
E.      All of the above including penalties … and oh yes, turnovers

3. And on those penalties and turnovers, Bobby Bowden summed it up best in the post game show saying “That’s called self suicide” although we’re not sure there is any other suicide that doesn’t involve one’s self.

4. And speaking of a tough one to lose, congrats go out to Christian Ponder who accurately predicted earlier in the week that this one would a tough one for FSU to lose.

5. We’d also like to extend congratulations to whoever drew up the offensive game plan. If the plan was to imitate Auburn’s offense from last week’s game against Mississippi State ….. job well done!!!! A+ there, my man. A+.

6. And after the assorted interceptions in the first half came this piece of wisdom from Mrs. BFT following D’Vontray Richardson’s first pass in the game that was well overthrown. “Well, at least it wasn’t intercepted.”  Little did she know later on.

7. And as Sam Swank lined up for a 32 yard field goal attempt came the comment from yours truly, “You just know he won’t miss three field goals in one game.” BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Of course that turned to crying shortly thereafter.

8. Three guesses as to what occurred next following Gene Deckerhoff’s comment as FSU lined up on offense following Swank’s third miss, “Don’t throw a pick.” Come on, guess. Here’s a hint. See #2.

9. Quote on the aforementioned Swank by the also aforementioned Deckerhoff: “Is there anything Swank can’t do with his toe except stub it?”

10. Quote from Bert Reed printed earlier this week about the upcoming game: “It’s going to be electric.” I think I can speak for many if not all Seminole fans that were definitely shocked.

One Coach has the most to prove this Saturday night

Last year, Jimbo was the heralded offensive coordinator trying to turn a team around. This year, he's The Man. The knighted heir to the throne. The face and future of the program.

As such, he has the most to win or lose against Wake.

A victory is the solid gold proof to FSU fans that Jimbo is truly the chosen one. And that the Noles have, indeed, turned that corner.

All the signs are there. He's got a born again offense with the most weapons since the Dynasty days, along with the coaches he wants, and a confident -- dare we say winning -- attitude.

Now, can he out-coach the shrewdest, most resourceful coaching staff in the ACC? Does he have enough tricks up his sleeve to outfox all the defensive wrinkles the Deacs will throw at him? And can he dial up the team's motivation to just the right level -- focused and feisty, instead of over-hyped or flat?

It doesn't get any easier after Wake. Every team, with the possible exception of N.C. State, is a heavyweight bout. But out-coaching and out-playing the Deacons from the dark side can be the confidence builder that ignites a special season.

The Nitty Gritty on the Deacs with Zach from the Old Gold Site

Zach of the Old Gold & Blog joins us this week to tackle five things FSU fans want to know about those demonic church elders descending on Doak this Saturday.

With a week off to prepare, how will Wake's offense differ from the one that beat Ole Miss?
I do think we'll see some different things from Wake's offense this week, but I don't think it will have a whole lot to do with the week off. Wake has run a very "vanilla" offense for the first two games (Baylor in particular), not running much of the end around, "misdirection," and "trick" plays people tend to think of when they think of Wake under Jim Grobe. The offense has actually been evolving away from that over the last few years and those things are no longer the core of Wake's offense (if they ever really were). Still, they are useful for adding variety and catching opponents off guard, and I think we'll see a little bit more of it against Florida State.

After two games Wake is tenth in the ACC in rushing offense. Have the Deacs worked to improve that during the off week?
The team actually took much of last week off and did not have regular practices. The players focuses on getting healthy, hitting the weight room, and studying film, while coaches took a little break, did some media-related things, and began preparing for Florida State. Although the team hasn't suffered any serious injuries to this point, there have been many players who'd gotten nicked up the first couple of weeks and needed the time off to recuperate.

As for the running game, it is definitely a concern at this point. I know the team is working hard on improving it, and some of those signs showed in the second half of the Ole Miss game. This year's offensive line is lacking in experience and is still learning what they need to do to open holes for the running backs. Similarly, I think the running backs could do a better job hitting holes quickly and getting up field. These are all things the team has definitely been working on this week.

Jim Grobe: "This is the most talented football team we've had since we've been at Wake"

 The normally not very talkative Jim Grobe gave these insights to Wake's winning ways on ESPN News during the Deacs week off.

You said after the Ole Miss game you felt really good going to that last drive. Why?
Well, I felt really bad when our defense let 'em get in (giving Ole Miss a one point lead), and we only had a minute left. But when I looked at Riley Skinner and the offensive kids I just felt like they had a little bit of determination and they didn't look like they'd pushed the panic button. And any time you've got Riley Skinner out there, you've got a chance.

What do you tell your team when it's two minutes to go and you need a field goal or touchdown?
We know the kids better, so we've got a pretty good idea what to do to as a coaching staff. And I think the kids have developed a trust in our coaching staff to know we're going to try and put 'em in the best situations possible. But it's still up to the kids. They know the coaches can't do it and it's their game to play.

What will define your success this year as a football team?
We're fortunate to be 2 and 0, but we still don't know a lot about our team. I think this is the most talented football team we've had since we've been at Wake Forest. But that doesn't necessarily make it the best team. But I like where we are right now, and we're trying to keep expectations under control. And I do think we have a chance to be a good team. We're just trying not to look too far down the road.

What would Riley Skinner or another of your players say defines a Jim Grobe coached team?
I hope they'd say it's all about team and not individuals. I think too many times teams get caught up in stats and kids are more worried about their individual success than the team's success. And if you interviewed our players you'd find guys that like each other and care about each other when they go out on Saturday. I think they're more concerned with finding a way to win than what they do individually.

And the #1 Defense in the Nation is...

No, it's not the men of Troy and their bluest-of-bluechip superstars. And not Urban's hogtown heroes. It's the team that has Mickey Andrews smiling today (okay, it's a wince instead of the usual scowl).

Yes, that's the Noles atop the NCAA's Bowl Subdivision rankings for Total Defense, allowing a miserly 170 yards per game.

What's that? Something about the quality of competition in those first two games? Fine, but how about the quality of defenders? All those youngsters and wide-eyed walk-ons thrown into the breach for FSU?

For now, let's just relax and enjoy it while we can. And who knows? With the return of Bud Thacker against Wake, and other defenders for the Colorado game, Mickey's D just might steal some headlines from Jimbo's fast-developing crew of playmakers.

Other NCAA stats of note to Noles:

Rushing Defense: FSU #2, allowing 43 yards per game.

Pass Defense: FSU #9, allowing 127 yards per game.

Scoring Defense: FSU #2, allowing 3.5 points per game.

Total Offense: FSU #9, averaging 527.5 yards per game.

Rushing Offense: FSU #11, averaging 7.61 yards per carry.

Passing Offense: FSU #20, averaging 284 yards per game.

Passing Efficiency: Christian Ponder #5, with a 193.3 rating.

Distinctly Random and Definitely Meaningless Thoughts from the fertile brain of BFT

by Bill from Tampa

1. According to Dictionary.com stealth is defined as Military. a U.S. Air Force project involving a range of technologies, with the purpose of developing aircraft that are difficult to detect by SIGHT, sound, radar, and infrared energy. So when it flew it over before the start of the FSU game, how did anyone actually see it?

2. From the FSU radio booth, apparently the Seminoles are not chopping it up anymore. Bar None, you’re doing a nice job so far. But we deem that omission this week to be an improvement.

3. On Kenny Ingram’s devastating hit on Clint Woods, Gene Deckerhoff commented “he doesn’t know what number he’s wearing’. Doubtful he knew what stadium, city, state, time zone, and quite possibly what galaxy he was in at that moment either.

4. Following a sack making it 2nd and 21 with FSU at their own forty-five yard line, I told Mrs. BFT not to worry. That’s OK, they don’t need to get it back all at once here. A fifty-five yard D’Vo TD run later came the retort from the couch “you’re not planning on becoming an offensive coordinator anytime soon are you?”

5. On the post game radio show calls were solicited to answer this week’s trivia question in which the winner would win two tickets to the next home game against ……. UT Chattanooga. Something tells me those tickets will not be honored at the gate. That’s just a guess mind you.

6. FSU punter Shawn Powell has to be loving this. He only has to work a half a game.

7. So the Sunday highlight show is no longer done in the studio and instead filmed at the stadium right after the game. Here’s the biggest disappointment with not having Bobby’s comments accompanying the clips anymore. We no longer get to hear him say he saw so and so’s momma and daddy in the stands at the game.

8. Right now the Cal Bears are asking themselves “these guys lost to Middle Tennessee State last week?” It’s understandable though why they lost to Maryland. A noon start was like 9 AM to them. And as we know most college students don’t get up until noon anyway.

9. And the announcer jinx strikes once again. As Cal lined up for a FG with four seconds left in the half, came the analysis from the TV booth “Cal is going to take the sure thing here” right before the ball doinked off the right upright.  Sure hope that guy is spending a lot of time in Vegas.

10. If you like tons and tons of offense, lots of scoring with teams running up and down the field, then Starkville Mississippi was NOT the place for you last night. For those in attendance at the Auburn/MSU game, if they wanted to see a 3-2 score they might as well stayed home and caught a baseball game on the tube.

He played and coached at FSU, but on Saturday his job to is stop Jimbo's offense

Note: This combines our interview from earlier this year with other Q&A's with UTC's defensive chief.  Meet Dick Hopkins, Defensive Coordinator at Tennessee-Chattanooga, and former FSU quarterback and tight end. He played for the Noles in the early 70s -- "though I didn't play much," Dick admitted during our interview.

Tell us about your days in Garnet and Gold.
"Out of high school in West Palm Beach I wanted to go to Florida State because they were throwing the football, and I couldn't run a lick. I was a classic dropback passer. But Gary Huff was there, so there was no way I was going to see the field. Then they moved me to tight end and I played behind Gary Parris.

"I spent eight years at FSU: five as a player and three as a grad assistant. I had a wonderful time there, and I love Tallahassee. I'm looking forward to going back. I just wish we had the kind of players FSU does."

Talk about the players and scheme you'll bring to Tallahassee.
"We'll be a 4-3 defense, and we'll do some zone blitzing. Against a spread offense you've got to have more than one package. Our strong suit is probably our corners. We've got three pretty good cover guys that had a very good spring. They have good man coverage skills, though not very tall -- they run about 5'9" to 5'11" (One of those DBs, Raeshon Ball, is the brother of Marcus Ball).

“In the 4-3, you have an extra down lineman. There are really three different fronts in football – a 3-4, a 4-3 and what we call a Bear front. It refers to our four down linemen and the coverage that we use when there are two backs in the backfield. The softness of that defense is that the corners are put on a little bit of an island. They have to be able to be good man-to-man cover guys because when we have a four-man rush, you have corners in man coverage without any help, you are bringing six or more on a blitz. That’s where we have to continue to work with our corners about who is taking care of the vertical release of their No. 1 receivers. They are man-to-man on those guys.

Bobby on how much fun it was to open with a cupcake, and other midweek musings

Highlights from Coach Bowden's Wednesday media conference call.

On Christian Ponder:  "I liked him, he never caved in."

On D'Vo Richardson's leap into the QB picture:  "Once he started devoting full-time to football (this spring), he became a different player. His development started from that time on."

On a possible two-headed QB situation: "That could happen, we'll let it develop. I've got no qualms about that."

On opening with a 1-AA team:  "I've forgotten how much fun it was. Your kids get some experience, you get the kinks out -- now I see why everybody else does it."

On the possibility of FSU improving from game one to game two: "We feel like Chattanooga is much stronger than WCU. I think you're gonna see a better football team. We might could show improvement, but not necessarily in the score."

On the game delays due to lightning: "I think I can put up with this once every 55 years (said Saturday was his first weather delay). I can think of at least three times we played through that (lightning in past games). It kills us in practice."

On the controversial penalty at the end of the Washington - BYU game: "It's the inconsistency of the thing that disturbs me."

Close-up on Chattanooga: Q & A's with Mocs beat writer John Frierson

John Frierson is the go-to guy for news about Moc Football. He's the UTC beat 'n blog writer for the Chattanooga Times Free Press, and fielded our questions about what to expect Saturday night.

Tell us about Tony Pastore, tabbed as the Mocs starting QB Saturday night. Pocket passer, or a guy with mobility?
Tony's a pocket guy, but Jare Gault, who started the first two games and is more of a scrambler, will play a fair amount, as well. Both have strong arms, but Pastore (15 of 27, 320 yds. last game) has been with the program for two years and knows the system a lot better than Gault, a junior college transfer (East Mississippi CC).

Has Tony come of age football-wise after a shaky start last year?
That remains to be seen. Making good throws and good decisions against a mediocre NAIA team like Cumberland, when you're not even close to getting sacked, is much, much different than doing it against Oklahoma or Florida State or Appalachian State. If nothing else, Tony's confidence is a lot better than it was a year ago.

Coach Allison is eager to get the run game cranked. Will we see a more balanced attack, or will the Mocs come out throwing?
I think the Mocs will try for balance, but you can probably expect a lot of runs as UTC tries to keep the clock moving. That's what allowed the Mocs to stay close against Arkansas last season (won by Arkansas, 34-15).

With three INTs and a blocked punt, has the Moc defense improved from game one?
The defense sure looked a lot better, but there's no way to compare the two performances since one was against a team that could win a national title and the other was against an NAIA team that won three games last season. But any time you're forcing turnovers, that's a good thing.

Is the team now fired-up and more confident after the win, believing they can make a statement against FSU?
The Mocs definitely feel better about themselves after having been productive on offense and defense against Cumberland. But they know Cumberland is Cumberland and Florida State is Florida State and nobody will ever confuse the former for the latter.

Still, my perception is that while ideally they would love to come in and pull off the upset, more realistically they're hoping that Saturday's game is competitive, at least for a while, which their game at Oklahoma never was.