McSix nights after nearly beating Notre Dame on national TV, Florida State was brutally reminded just how far from relevancy it truly is.
Jacksonville State 20, Florida State 17.
The final score is only half the story. How it happened is the other half.
JACKSONVILLE STATE WALK-OFF TOUCHDOWN! #SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/MTxkuRJgp2
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 12, 2021
Obviously, the execution of Florida State's defense there is a conversation unto itself, but a lot had to go wrong to put the Seminoles in that position in the first place.
McKenzie Milton, the medical miracle that he is, threw for only 133 yards on 31 attempts. The 'Noles did not score a touchdown in the second half.
Leading 17-7 with 10 minutes to play, Milton threw incomplete on a 4th-and-goal from the 3. Jacksonville State then went 97 yards in 11 plays to pull within 17-14. FSU then could've iced the game with a first down, but Jashaun Corbin was stuffed for a loss of one yard on 3rd-and-1 from the FSU 45. Mike Norvell elected to punt on 4th-and-2.
Jacksonville State took over at its own 17 with 1:32 to play. The drive that set up the Hail Mary was not a thing of beauty. Gamecocks quarterback Zerrick Cooper was 2-of-7 for 16 yards and also cost his team time by scrambling for two yards and going down in bounds rather than throw the ball away. But Jacksonville State's sloppiness was overcome by the complete lack of execution by Florida State's prevent defense.
As called on Florida State radio: pic.twitter.com/DPEsUnlgoi
— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) September 12, 2021
#FSU HC Mike Norvell on final play of game: “Ran a two deep man under, tried to get pressure on the quarterback. They still had one time out, so we didn’t go to immediate prevent.”
— Tomahawk Nation (@TomahawkNation) September 12, 2021
The 59-yard TD pass from Jacksonville State’s Zerrick Cooper to Damond Philyaw-Johnson was the longest game-winning TD pass as time expired in an FBS game since Sept. 16, 2017.
— Jason Starrett (@starrettjason) September 12, 2021
That day, Florida’s Feliepe Franks connected with Tyrie Cleveland on a 63-yard TD to beat Tennessee.
Florida State was 26-0 all-time against FCS opponents against Saturday, and their first loss comes to a Gamecock squad that was shutout by UAB last week.
The loss drops Florida State to 0-2 on the season, 3-8 in the Norvell era, and 21-28 since opening the 2017 season as the No. 3 team in the country.