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Belatedly Random and Frighteningly Meaningless Thoughts

\ 1. After all the wide rights and wide left, last second dropped passes in the endzone, and now this at least FSU is "entertaining", if you want to call it that, with their losses. Certainly Wolfpack fans were entertained. Glad somebody was.

2. The good news for this weekend? We will never ever never never never never ever never NEVER ... did I say never?  ... have to see Russell Wilson again. Apparently after giving up three rushing touchdowns neither did the FSU defense.

3. More good news for the weekend? At least the FSU soccer team won. What? They didn't? Oh well, at least the volleyball team won. Huh? Them too, eh. Well, at least the swimming team came through. No? The cross country teams won? WOO-HOO!!! We have a winner!!!!

4. And if that doesn't work to cheer you up, there's always that sage advice from that noted philosopher and pre-med student, "start drinking heavily".

5. Upon looking at the stats, after converting 12 of 18 third downs it would seem the Wolfpack would do well in the Canadian Football League.

6. If only the game could have ended after two quarters. They allow that in the CFL don't they?

7. Regarding that left-handed on the run flip pass Christian Ponder made, the word Favre-esq comes to mind. We're hopeful (and pretty certain) that that is all CP7 does that is Favre-esq, IF you know what I mean.

8. Following a delay of game penalty on NC State, said Gene Deckerhoff, "Tom O'Brien, a former Marine, has to be pulling his hair out" which would be a good trick what with Marines not having much to begin with.

9. Just a guess mind you, but I got the impression that defensive coordinator Mark Stoops thought there should have been holding called on NC State. The bulging eyes while screaming at the refs giving them the holding signal seemed to be an indicator. But I could be wrong.

10. Among the numerous penalties on FSU (or phantom penalties, depending on your point of view) was a 12 men on the field penalty. Now you would think that outnumbering them like that the Wolfpack would not have gained any yards on the play.

Bonus Belatedly Random and Frighteningly Meaningless Thoughts

Deadline Extended to Win Two Tickets to FSU's Homecoming vs. UNC

To clear up any confusion about our deadline, we've extended the deadline to 1am tonight -- which is the early morning of Nov. 1. Here are the rules again. Good luck and Go Noles!

•  Entries are due by 1 AM EST Monday, Nov. 1, 2010.

•  All entries are to be submitted via email to [email protected]

•  An entry can be either a written document or video file. No limit on the word count for written entries.

•  Winner will be announced on ChantRant @8pm Eastern Time on Monday Nov. 1.

•  All submissions become the sole ownership of ChantRant, and are subject to reposting or editing to meet format requirements. Proper acknowledgements will be given to any published work.

•  One winner will receive: 2 tickets to the FSU-UNC Homecoming Game, plus one Civic Center parking pass for the game.

•  Winner is responsible for providing prompt and proper mailing address to receive tickets and parking pass. ChantRant is not responsible for any delays caused by the postal service.

Mostly Bummers and a few Booyas! from a Wretched Night In Raleigh

• Another Thursday night game at Carter-Finley when FSU couldn’t match the geeked up, insane Wolfpack team and crowd.

• &%*! poor tackling. Give Russell Wilson credit, but give some demerits to Nole defenders who couldn't wrap up the slippery QB. A couple of key stops could've been the difference.

• Chris Thompson in to block on passes? Seriously?

• ACC ref crew was determined to call everything. Well, everything but some blatant N.C. State holding violations. On the other hand...

• Just when you thought FSU was over those undisciplined, shoot-yourself-in-the-foot penalties...10 for 81 yards.

• Is Willie Haulstead the new Jarmon Fortson? Among several nice catches -- four for 41 yds. -- the nagging memory of an easy one dropped at a critical moment.

• This is where we could tee off on Christian Ponder's performance. But 'ya gotta feel for the guy. Nobody could be tougher on him right now than CP7 himself.

*****            ****            ****            ****

• More Ty Jones, please. Nobody hits the hole faster. The big guy, who runs angry and punishes tacklers, had 113 yards for the night.

• Great goal line stand on the Packs’ long fourth quarter drive. Three stops within the two yard line. But then there was that dadgum fourth down.

• FSU had 11 more total yards on the night than the Wolfpack. Eh...big deal in the scheme of things.

• At least the Noles have an extra day to recover before a chance to redeem themselves against UNC.

• Hmm. There might be other Boo-Ya's!, but we're too Bummed out to think of 'em right now.

Seminoles enter the Wolves' den tonight. Will the Pack fear the Spear?

After Further Review: TomRob's updated North Carolina State preview

OFFENSE

What we know: The N.C. State offense is as explosive as we thought it would be, but perhaps a bit more balanced than originally thought.  The Wolfpack have not surprised anyone by the fact that they are leading the ACC in total offense and scoring offense. Most folks figured either NC State or FSU would take that honor. What has been a bit surprising, though, is that the Pack has a bit more balance, averaging 136 rushing yards per game. That isn’t great, but the mere threat of a running game has helped the rest of the offense.

That Russell Wilson kid is decent. Wilson (2,124 yards, 58%, 18 TDs, 9 interceptions, 200 rushing yards, 2 TDs) was expected to be one of the ACC’s top QBs again and he has done that. While he has struggled a bit more with turnovers this year than year’s past, Wilson is still one of the ACC’s best and is really underrated nationally. He can carve people up.

The receiving corps is the best in the ACC. Most people figured UM probably had the best group, followed by NC State, but I think the Pack’s receivers have proven to be the best in the conference. Wideouts Jarvis Williams (27 receptions, 421 yards, 3 TDs), Owen Spencer (34 receptions, 524 yards, 1 TD), Darrell Davis (12 receptions, 118 yards, 2 TDs), and T.J. Graham (17 receptions, 278 yards, 4 TDs) are big, physical targets who also have nice speed.  Tight end George Bryan (20 receptions, 240 yards, 2 TDs) is a future pro.

What we don’t know: How will the freshmen hold up? Coach Tom O’Brien has admitted that the week off before the FSU game was helpful because the freshmen were mentally and physically exhausted. With NC State relying on true freshman Mustafa Greene (419 yards, 4.9 average, 4 TDs, 18 receptions, 166 yards) and redshirt freshman Dean Haynes (290 yards, 4 average, 3 TDs, 13 receptions, 118 yards, 1 TD) to keep the ground game going, will they wear out eventually if they are already exhausted at midseason?

Win two tickets to the UNC game Nov. 6

We're serious. ChantRant is giving away two tickets for the FSU-UNC game, and all you've gotta do is tell us “What Being A Seminole Means To Me."

The winner and his or her companion will enjoy Florida State's Homecoming contest sitting at the 25-yard line, pressbox side row 65. Just write or video the best entry on the topic "What Being A Seminole Means To Me."

Here are the rules. Good luck and Go Noles!

•  Entries are due by 11:59 PM EST Sunday, October 31th, 2010.

•  All entries are to be submitted via email to [email protected]

•  An entry can be either a written document or video file. No limit on the word count for written entries.

•  Winner will be announced on ChantRant @8pm Eastern Time on Monday Nov. 1.

•  All submissions become the sole ownership of ChantRant, and are subject to reposting or editing to meet format requirements. Proper acknowledgements will be given to any published work.

•  One winner will receive: 2 tickets to the FSU-UNC Homecoming Game, plus one Civic Center parking pass for the game.

•  Winner is responsible for providing proper mailing address to receive tickets and parking pass. ChantRant is not responsible for any delays caused by the postal service.

"This week I've been throwing the ball better than before": Ponder press conference audio

It's his show in this long-ish audio piece from Monday. Ponder gave the media their money's worth in discussing the state of his arm and the upcoming battle Thursday night against N.C. State in Raleigh. Apparently Jimbo trusts CP7 to be team spokesperson, far more than any other player or coach.

Is there really a quarterback controversy brewing at N.C. State? (Who knew?)

As FSU prepares to venture into one of those Thursday night horror shows against a hostile stadium and pumped up Wolfpack, a few nuggets about the buzz in Raleigh.

• An N.C. State fan tries to dampen the growing grumble about QB Russell Wilson.

• Meanwhile, the Raleigh News and Observer both praises Wilson and slams him for his questionable judgement in throwing three picks last week against East Carolina.

• Austin at Pack Pride goes inside the numbers of N.C. State to prove why the Pack is a better team than FSU faced in 2009.

• What N.C. State Coach Tom O'Brien's disclosed in this week's ACC teleconference.

• A Wolfpack writer's insight on how North Carolina's cheating scandal is more...well, scandalous than FSU's.

Florida State moves up to no. 4 in ESPN recruiting rankings

The BCS poll isn't the only one where Florida State leads all other Sunshine State teams. The Noles are up among the elite in ESPN's rankings of 2011 high school recruits. Now at no. 4 in the poll, FSU is behind only Oklahoma, Alabama and Texas.

UF and UM? They're no. 7 and 23 respectively.

The Seminole stock is up at ESPN despite not having a single 5-Star player among its 17 commitments. The network lists FSU with 10 4-Stars and seven 3-Star commits.

What, not even James Wilder? Nope, ESPN says he's a 4-Star. In fact, Wilder's not even FSU's highest ranked player among ESPNU's Top 150. That would be Karlos Williams, listed at no. 14. Wilder is no. 23.

Different story with Scout and Rivals. Wilder's a 5-Star on both. Plus, that player who many believe is a recruiting game-changer, is the third highest rated player in the nation on Rivals Top 100 and no. 6 on Scout's.

To beat Miami on a regular basis, FSU needs more Miami players

It’s been a decade since Florida State's had such a recruiting advantage over its downstate rivals. Suddenly the football gods are raining drek on UF and UM. Even upstart USF, which appeared to have a leg up at the end of 2009, is sputtering under its new coach with major name recognition.

Jimbo & Company know it’s time to strike while the recruiting iron is hot. And it’s past time for the Noles to strike gold in Miami, that sweet spot of the nation’s most fertile fields for blue chippers.

Beginning with Chuck Amato’s departure in 2000, and for most of the decade, metropolitan Miami was practically a No Man’s Land for FSU. Why? To be diplomatic, there was a cultural difference.

Post-Amato, the Noles coaching staff was mostly made up of older, Southern white men. Nothing wrong with that. Except for them, venturing into places like Carol City was as foreign as trying to recruit in Beirut. Word is, they didn’t even try. And so the number of Miami players on FSU's roster dwindled to a handful in recent years (see below).

It was only when Jimbo engineered the hire of James Coley as recruiting coordinator in 2008 that Miami was back on FSU’s map. Coley has Cuban coffee running through his veins, and can find places like Miami Northwestern without a GPS. Just what the Noles needed to re-establish a beachhead in the 305.

Sure, Amato returned in 2007, hired in part for his Miami connections. But after getting axed by his alma mater in Raleigh, “The Chest” was a broken man, as Nole fans soon discovered, who could no longer get it done in South Florida.

Now Eddie Gran has joined Coley to corral Miami thoroughbreds. And their efforts are beginning to show in FSU’s lineup. The Noles have gone from one starter who hailed from Miami (Patrick Robinson) to two this season (Xavier Rhodes and Rodney Smith). Three if you count JC transfer Mike Harris, who apparently wasn’t on FSU’s radar coming out of South Miami High in 2008.

Note that even these paltry numbers are deceiving. For example, while there were eight Miami players listed on FSU’s 2009 roster, at least three were walk-ons, and two were OL that saw little playing time under Trickett (Evan Bellamy and Brandon Davis).

Here’s a closer look at just how few Miami players (i.e., from a high school with “Miami” in its name) suited up for the Noles during the past decade (let us know if we left anybody out). Even more relevant, look at how few actually made starting lineups.

2001 - 11 players from Miami. 6 Starters or Contributors (Stanford Samuels, Bradley Jennings, Allen Augustin, Antoine Mirambeau, O.J. Jackson, Malcom Tatum)

2002 - 10 players from Miami. 6 Starters or Contributors (Malcom Tatum, Stanford Samuels, Willie Jones, Allen Augustin, Antoine Mirambeau, Ray Piquion)

2003 - 6 players from Miami. 4 Starters or Contributors (Allen Augustin, Ray Piquion, Stanford Samuels, Clifton Dickson)