Lights? Out. Football? Played. The result? Florida State football dropped its ACC opener to No. 19 SMU 27-24 on Monday, Sept. 7 at Doak Campbell Stadium.
The start of the game was delayed for over 90 minutes after a power outage occurred inside the stadium minutes before kickoff. It resulted in the game being started with no public address announcer, QB-to-coach helmet communication, and in-game replay.
Here are three takeaways from the Seminoles defeat to SMU.
Second-half defensive improvement can’t save FSU
The Mustangs out gained the Seminoles 328 to 165 in the first half, yet only led by a score of 17-10 at the break. SMU ended the game with 585 total yards to FSU’s 324, and yet only won by a field goal thanks to two interceptions and a forced fumble.
SMU did much of its damage on third down as the Seminoles struggled to get off the field again, going 8-of-14.
The Mustangs were 5-of-8 on the down in the first half, and scored once after Jennings scrambled and found a wide-open Randy Pittman Jr. in the back of the end zone.
The second half turning point for the defense was a third and goal in the 3rd quarter where FSU got its pass rush home to Jennings, who threw a panicked ball towards the end zone that was intercepted by Nehemiah Chandler. It was one of three turnovers forced by the defense, joined by a first-half fumble forced by linebacker Mikai Gbayor.
Pressure got to Jennings more consistently in the second half, and that allowed the Seminoles to wipe away some of the first half miscues. However, FSU’s errors on third down were costly. Jennings stood in the pocket with pressure in his face and found Yannick Smith over the middle, who broke a pair of tackles and scored a 79-yard touchdown. A slip from Gbayor later in the fourth quarter allowed for an easy conversion that extended SMU’s game winning field goal drive.
Inconsistent play calling left meat on the bone, and a win on the table
The offense remains uninspiring, with a heavy dosage of runs becoming predictable and leaving the Seminoles in some tricky must have situations, which resulted in a staggering 2-of-15 third down completion rate.
Ashton Daniels was limited, and only went 12-of-23, as the Seminoles opted to keep it on the ground and out of his hands. He came up with a clutch touchdown pass to Samuel Singleton Jr in the fourth quarter, connecting with the running back for a 39-yard strike. But outside of that moment of improvisation, he was hesitant in the pocket and failed to get the ball out of his hands quick enough on multiple occasions.
Norvell did enough to get the Seminoles over the line, but a string of drives in the third quarter left the fans inside Doak booing their own team as FSU rushed into multiple quick third or fourth down situations. It brought about a tense environment that was eased by Ousmane Kromah’s game-tying touchdown in the third quarter.
Despite brief reprieves like the Kromah score, the fourth quarter resistance to throwing the football and inability to consistently move downfield drew negative reactions from the crowd and some poor drives.
FSU’s running backs are legit
While the offense as a whole remains an uninspired product, Kromah and Singleton both have produced, helping FSU total 199 yards against SMU.
Kromah rushed for over 100 yards again, with a total of 116 and a touchdown. He was again left to improvise multiple times in the backfield with the offensive line allowing pressure into the backfield. He remains FSU’s best player, and the running backs as a whole remain the best unit on the team.
Singleton’s fourth quarter touchdown catch tied the game and energized the crowd, despite a relatively quiet night to that point. He finished the game with 40 receiving yards and 24 yards on the ground.
Florida State football schedule 2026
vs. New Mexico State | 34-17 W
vs. SMU* | Sept. 7
Bye
at Alabama | Sept. 19
vs. Central Arkansas | Sept. 26
vs. Virginia* | Oct. 3
at Louisville* | Oct. 9
at Miami* | Oct. 17
Bye
vs. Clemson* | Oct. 31
at Boston College* | Nov. 7
at Pittsburgh* | Nov. 13
vs. NC State* | Nov. 21
vs. Florida | Nov. 27
Liam Rooney covers Florida State athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at LRooney@gannett.com or on Twitter @__liamrooney.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU squanders upset bid, falls to SMU 27-24 in ACC opener
About the Author
