College Football
Florida State Seminoles 2018 Season Preview
Florida State entered 2017 with high hopes that quickly spiraled out of control. FSU was locked in a competitive game with Alabama when Deondre Francois suffered a season ending injury in the fourth quarter. From there, the Seminoles seemed to flounder through the season, ending with their head coach Jimbo Fisher leaving for Texas A&M, and barely finishing 7-6. Despite the catastrophic season, Florida State looks to rebound in 2018 under their new head coach Willie Taggert.
New Man in Town
Willie Taggert has a respectable resume so far in his coaching career. He managed to win seven games with a Western Kentucky squad that previously had a 26 game losing streak and got them to a bowl game within two years, then left for the South Florida gig. From there, he slowly built South Florida into an American Athletic Conference contender leaving, after the Bulls posted a 10-2 mark for the Oregon Ducks job. One year into his tenure at Oregon, Taggert got the call from Florida State and here we stand. While his head coaching career is relatively short, Taggert shows some moxy and brings energy to a program that needs something to cheer for after last season.
Key Players
1. Deondre Francois
Many remember the beating Deondre Francois endured against ‘Bama last season. Make no mistake, this guy is a gamer and was a sorely missing focal point of the offense last season. Would Florida State have done THAT much better? I think they probably would have won 8-9 games at least. Francois is locked in a battle with rising sophomore James Blackman who filled in last season. Not to mention, Francois has had an interesting off season to say the least. Hopefully he can stay out of trouble and help contribute to a better 2018 season for the FSU squad.
2. Cam Akers
Watch some highlights of this dude if you don’t know about him. Cam Akers helped carry the offense last season as a FRESHMAN. The former five star did plenty in his first season by rushing for over 1000 yards and posting 7 rushing scores.. Akers looks to team up with senior running back Jaques Patrick as one if the best back field tandems in the ACC.
3. Brian Burns
Florida State loses a lot of production on defense. One bright spot returning on defense for the Seminoles is Brian Burns. Burns caused fits for teams last year and I think he can be even better heading into 2018. Look for Burns to be leaned upon as a leader for the defense early and often as the talent around him will need to grow up in a hurry if they don’t want to be a liability this season.
4. Ricky Aguayo
Florida State has had the best kicking talent almost every year this decade. From Dustin Hopkins to Roberto Aguayo, and now his brother Ricky holds the torch. Rick and punter Logan Tyler look to be the best kicking special teams duo in the ACC, if not the country. Most teams don’t want the game to be in the kicker’s hands, but I’d be willing to think FSU feels better than most with Ricky kicking.
Season Prediction (9-3, 6-2)
Virginia Tech – W
Samford – W
@Syracuse – W
Northern Illinois – W
@Louisville – W
@Miami – L
Wake Forest – W
Clemson – L
@NC State – W
@Notre Dame – L
Boston College – W
Florida – W
Thoughts
I believe Florida State will do better than their 7-6 mark from last year. This could be a generous prediction, as I do think some of the wins I posted could be potential trap games (@Syracuse, Wake Forest, Boston College), but the FSU squad could one up me and beat Notre Dame or Miami! I think the ceiling for the Seminoles will be about 10 wins with their talent. However, I could also see the defense struggling early on and maybe making a late season run. I don’t see FSU dethroning Clemson just yet, but do think the rivalry game will be close as usual. Make no mistake…FSU will be back contending for the crown at some point.
What are your expectations for Florida State this year? Will the Seminoles make some noise in the ACC or are they a year or two away?
