Re: ACC people just made FSU players mad by picking the

quozzel

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Jul 21, 2015, 11:00 AM

> If we want to be the best, we have to beat the best.
> I have no doubts we can do that, even though I think
> FSU will be a great team. I think we will be better,
> and not just because of Watson.

Will FSU be a great team? I dunno. On paper they are. They've recruited better than any team not called Alabama over the last five years...and because of the disproportionate value of quarterbacks, they've actually recruited substantially better. Alabama just hasn't gotten great QB's and it's the one thing that's really limited the Tide. Lane Kiffin is trying to change that but I think everybody knows he'll either bolt or have his larynx physically ripped out by Saban when on the sideline in a fit of rage before that happens. On the other hand, Jimbo has landed great QB after great QB.

Usually. This looks like an...odd year for them. Having Dalvin Cook suspended for a stretch won't be a help. And Jimbo runs a really, really complicated pro-style system that looked awfully clunky at times last year...and that was with a bunch of veteran receivers, four seniors on the OL, All-American TE Nick O'Leary, and Famous Jameis - who, whatever else you care to say, was one of the smartest and best passing QB's in the nation on the field, despite his tendency to force things.

You can check out the Seminole Spring Game on youtube. To say they didn't look good is putting it mildly; they got some work to do. They'll undoubtedly tighten up quite a lot before the season...but do they have a QB?

FSU also had a bunch of problems on D last year. Losing DC Jeremy Pruitt to UGA hurt them a lot; Charles Kelly impressed nobody last year, and bad as the FSU offense looked in the Spring Game, their D still busted enough it was almost comedy gold as well.

Yeah, yeah. Spring Games. But there didn't look to be coherent units on either side of the ball. The talent was obvious. But compared to the machine-like polish you see out of teams like Auburn, Oregon, and yes, Clemson, they also looked a mile off. They looked flat-out disjointed.

They also say, if you've got two QB's, you often have no QB. FSU doesn't just have a two-way contest going, they have a three-way contest, and it's not lining up well for them. Sean Maguire looked bad - like, really bad - in Spring, throwing pick after pick and making bad decision after bad decision. Combined with his lack of mobility, I think that's what prompted Jimbo to go after Everett Golson. There's also a third QB, freshman JJ Cosentino, who has size and can supposedly run (at least in a straight line) and has a battleship cannon (not merely a Howitzer), for an arm, and can kill unlucky mascots or ball boys or little old ladies in Row Z with errant throws, but while he looked better than Maguire he's kind of a statue in the pocket and obviously doesn't have the escape ability Winston did. Cosentino looks a lot better than, say, Connor Mitch (who looked wretched in Carolina's Spring Game...the Coots got problems, folks), but is Cosentino ready to roll yet? Dunno. Especially behind a rebuilt O-line.

Golson will come in and expect to start. He also doesn't know the offense yet and has precious little time to get it down.

Maguire has paid his dues and will expect to start. I also don't think he's talented enough. He's a big downgrade from Winston.

Cosentino is talented enough he might beat out both, but he's raw enough he'll make mistakes...and if you bench a senior who transferred in for one last chance at the NFL, and a redshirt junior who patiently waited his turn behind Famous Jameis, what message does that send, and how will those two react? How will the team react? How patient will the fan base be? How will the media react? FSU is radioactive enough already; there will be knives out for them if they stumble.

"Pressure" may not adequately convey the situation the new starter is going to be under. And that offense is tough to run at the best of times. Add in a defense that has its own problems and stuff could get interesting quick. Their schedule looks easy early but it gets much tougher late; they come to Death Valley the week after they face Paul Johnson's Cut-Block Crew down in Bobby Dodd.

They may get it together. But Jimbo's got his own off-the-field, uhm, distractions going (besides the fact that his players keep punching the womenz, his own wife just cuckolded him with a Gator wide receiver and they're going through a...messy divorce), so...I dunno. The ingredients for Epic Meltdown all seem to be in place, too.

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I am an FSU grad living in SC and pull for Clemson and a couple of other ACC teams because we need to support good programs and encourage the others to get better.
Here's the deal, As Clemson gets better and if they can press through tough games and find a way to win, when they are in a bad situation, they will keep getting stronger and be a threat to any level team they play.
That is what Fisher does so well. He knows how to get the right leaders and talent with the emphasis on leaders.
Say what you will about FSU's problems off the field (with a few players ) they know what real pressure is and adapt to their situation with a very serious and intense desire to win.
If I see a breakdown in past Tiger teams it is because they get discouraged and lose focus when they find themselves in a tough spot. That is where coaching and the team leaders must come through and make winners out of the discouraged or doubters.
I will be there for the FSU game this year and while I will always be a dedicated Seminole, the way I see it, I can't really lose as a fan and an ACC supporter. So Here is to an incredible game and to the winner, this oughta ( my Texas roots just leaked through, sorry ) be a wild one !

ACC people just made FSU players mad by picking the