The Florida State Seminoles were looking for a huge win in Tuscaloosa against the Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday. It looked very promising when they took a 21-6 lead with just under 10 mins left in the second quarter.
After that, the floodgates opened. Alabama had streaks of 20 consecutive points and 17 consecutive points, and they eventually pulled out a 50-36 victory over FSU. This also kept an embarrassing streak of over 1,000 days since Florida State has won a game on the road.
Once they play the Central Arkansas Bears next week, the Seminoles will begin a tough ACC schedule, which is concerning considering how bad they've been in conference play since 2023. With that said, here are five takeaways from their loss to the Crimson Tide.
Tony White’s defense can't stop a nosebleed
For
the second straight game, Florida State's defense allowed nearly 600 yards of offense. They also allowed points on nine consecutive drives at one point as Keelon Russell, just like Kevin Jennings of the SMU Mustangs in Week 1, destroyed FSU with his arms and legs with nearly 400 all-purpose yards and four total touchdowns. A truly pathetic performance.
Florida State may not win a road game all season
When looking at the remainder of FSU's road schedule, it's hard to see where they can put together any wins. They still have to play the Louisville Cardinals, Miami Hurricanes, Boston College Eagles, and the Pittsburgh Panthers away from Doak Campbell Stadium, and every one of those teams is better than Florida State, and some of them are a lot better. It's going to be extremely challenging.
FSU will likely miss a bowl game for the third straight season
On top of their road schedule for the rest of the season, Florida State still has to play the Virginia Cavaliers, Clemson Tigers, and the Florida Gators at home, which are all looking like losses right now. In fact, their game against Central Arkansas is really the only one that feels like they'll win. It's going to continue to be a rough year.
The Seminoles need a change at quarterback
No disrespect to Ashton Daniels, but he's simply not the answer at quarterback for FSU. He was given the job too quickly, and he's done nothing to show that he can lead the Seminoles' offense consistently. In the coming weeks, Malachi Marshall or Kevin Sperry need to get a shot.
Mike Norvell's days are numbered
He's in his seventh season as head coach at Florida State, and Norvell is looking at his fifth losing campaign. Simply put, the Seminoles are not going to get where they need to be under his leadership. With the surrounding circumstances as it pertains to the program, that will take a while, but it's time for FSU to move on.
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This article originally appeared on FSU Wire: Five takeaways from FSU's loss to Alabama
