Florida State Football Preview 2025: The Seminoles Hit the Refresh Button
What happened to Florida State? This isn't actually all that hard.The program got caught in an all-time bad break perfect storm at the end of 2023 to miss out on the CFP, made worse by a 63-3 Orange Bowl loss to a Georgia team that could've put up 80+ if it tried, and …Because there wasn't enough horrible luck for that Seminole team, it was the last year of the four-team playoff.And the hits just kept onnnnnnnn coming.
X CFN, Fiu | CFN Facebook | Bluesky Fiu, CFN Florida State Offense BreakdownFlorida State Defense BreakdownSeason Prediction, Win Total, Keys to SeasonAfter suffering the most brutal of gut punches, Florida State seemingly had a good enough team returning to quickly get back on track. Fully motivated, it all instantly fell apart after a last-second loss to Georgia Tech in Ireland. From there, the bad vibes never went away.
Oh, and 2024 Florida State played a way harder schedule than it did the year before.That 2023 team was great, starting with a dominant win over Jayden Daniels and a strong LSU team in the opener, but lost in history was how FSU slipped by Clemson because Dabo's 19th-string kicker biffed the game-winning field goal try in regulation. Also forgotten was that the LSU win and the ACC Championship victory over Louisville were the two victories over teams that won ten games.
In all, the 2023 team played seven games in the regular season against teams that went bowling. The 2024 team played 11 - Charleston Southern was the lone outlier - including five that won ten games or more. Three of those were against CFP teams, and one was against a Notre Dame squad that played for the national title.That doesn't mean Florida State should've lost to Boston College by 15, or to North Carolina by 24, or to Florida 20, all at home.
And now this becomes a wildly interesting experiment. From 12-1, to 1-11, to almost completely starting over, at least with the starters, FSU is loaded with upperclassmen, it's totally reliant on new guys, and that might be exactly what the program needs.There should be between 11 to 15 new starters for the opener against Alabama who weren't part of the 2023 fun or the 2024 pity party. Getting Gus Malzahn as the offensive coordinator was a coup, there's a new defensive coordinator, and overall, the refresh should get everything going again.
It might be one of those Mike Tyson "everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth" things with Alabama to kick things off, but there's talent, along with decent depth on the way to a bowl. Remember, FSU has only been to three or those since 2017.And there's an expanded playoff this time around, just in case head coach Mike Norvell makes it three double-digit winning seasons in four years. But that only happens if he gets a lot more out of his … Florida State Offense BreakdownFlorida State Defense BreakdownSeason Prediction, Win Total, Keys to Season
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Fox Sports
4 hours ago
- Fox Sports
2025 College Football Predictions: 10 Matchups that will Shape the Regular Season
Every week, it feels like the college football season is getting just a little closer and closer. I truly can't wait for what's in store for the 2025 regular season. So, I decided to look at the schedule for the regular season again and try to pinpoint which 10 games will have the most impact. These aren't necessarily the 10 best games, although some look to be epic. Rather, they're the 10 games that I think will shape how we view the season and might have the biggest impact on the College Football Playoff. There are plenty of games early in the season that will certainly have some sway in how things get determined in 2025, with a couple of monster matchups taking place in Week 1. Let's start off our list with the one that I'll call for FOX. Texas vs. Ohio State (Week 1) It's a rematch of one of the CFP semifinal games, with Ohio State winning that game en route to a national championship. Both teams look poised to make another deep run in 2025. In fact, there's a chance that Texas and Ohio State might be the top two-ranked teams in the country entering Week 1. At worst, I think this will be a No. 1 vs No. 3 matchup. Not only will this be a monster matchup, but this will also be the first start of the Arch Manning era for Texas. This is his team and program, and he'll get a chance to prove what he's made of on the road against the defending champs. That's pretty awesome. We also don't know who Ohio State's quarterback will be. Is it going to be Julian Sayin? He's incredibly talented and I've enjoyed watching him when I've seen him practice. The Buckeyes will also have new playcallers on both sides of the ball (Brian Hartline and Matt Patricia). As for the coaching battle, Steve Sarkisian has gotten the Longhorns back to where they've wanted to get to for the last decade. He's done a remarkable job, and he's a top-five coach, but it's time for him to take a step forward. He's going against a top two or three coach in Ryan Day, who has to feel he is entering the season with the monkey off his back. That might be beneficial to Ohio State. LSU vs. Clemson (Week 1) Another Week 1 matchup that I think will feature two teams ranked in the top 10. Brian Kelly needs to win this game for LSU. Kelly went all in on the portal this offseason and is returning his quarterback, Garrett Nussmeier. But Kelly has gone 0-3 in season openers during his time in Baton Rouge, and LSU fans need to see this program progressing. It's fair for us to ask when the breakthrough is going to happen for Kelly at LSU. I do think we'll see that this year. Yet, I actually feel better about Clemson between these two teams. Dabo Swinney has bet on himself over the last few years, and it feels like Clemson has reloaded for another run. I've got Cade Klubnik as my No. 1 quarterback entering the season and that defense is really talented. There's also the conference element to this game. If LSU wins this matchup, and Clemson goes on to dominate the ACC en route to a conference title, the SEC will argue that the ACC should only get one CFP participant. But the SEC also needs a giant non-conference win after how the CFP and bowl season played out for the conference last winter. Michigan vs. Oklahoma (Week 2) Michigan needs a bounce-back season in Sherrone Moore's second season after going 8-5 a year ago. The defense was fine last year, the offense was not. We know the Wolverines got Bryce Underwood, who was one of the most sought-after recruits in a long time, and this might be his first major start. This is also right before Moore will serve his self-imposed suspension. Brent Venables also needs a bounce-back season at Oklahoma. Everyone was excited when Venables was hired to be the Sooners' next head coach, but now they need something on the field to feel good about. Oklahoma was able to poach quarterback John Mateer and offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle from Washington State, who I expect to help the Sooners take a step forward. But the Wolverines' defense is going to be outstanding, and defensive coordinator Wink Martindale figured things out late last season. The winner of this game will really get a big boost ahead of conference play, and this game could also help establish the perception of the depth between the Big Ten and SEC. Texas A&M vs. Notre Dame (Week 3) This was a great game in College Station last season. We all believe in Marcus Freeman, who led Notre Dame to a national championship game appearance last season. This feels like a program that can compete at the highest level and potentially win a national championship. I'm bullish on them this season. A win against A&M likely gets Notre Dame back into the CFP with how its schedule looks after Week 3. If it loses this game, it's another September loss for Freeman. Notre Dame lost three games at home in September over his first three seasons as head coach. I also really like Mike Elko and his fit at Texas A&M. He gets College Station and I think he'll work out at Texas A&M. But he'll have to win games like this one to prove that he's the guy for the Aggies. A rematch of the Big Ten Championship Game. I think this game is bigger for Penn State than Oregon. I've repeated over and over again that it's time for Penn State to beat someone it's evenly matched with or upset a team with more talent than it has. James Franklin has done a perfect job at winning the games he's supposed to win, which is a talent that shouldn't be underrated. But he and Penn State have to win those matchup games, where you have to beat a team that has equal talent to you. The Nittany Lions got close to doing that last year, playing Ohio State, Oregon and Notre Dame close. If Penn State can win this game, that would announce to everyone that this group is ready for the big stage and potentially make a run for a title. From an Oregon perspective, this is Dan Lanning's first opportunity to show what his squad is made of after getting blown out by Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. There isn't any shame in losing to that Ohio State team, but Oregon has to show that it has turned the page and can continue to play at a high level. If it can win at Penn State, which I think is the toughest place to play in the Big Ten, that would be saying something for Oregon. USC vs. Illinois (Week 5) This is a sneaky, under-the-radar one. This game is important for Illinois because the game gives them an opportunity to show they can be this year's Indiana. Both teams could be 4-0 entering this game. If Illinois wins this game, it'd likely be 5-0, with its game against Ohio State as its only difficult game remaining. That Ohio State game doesn't look as daunting if Illinois handles business against USC. Bret Bielema is building something very special at Illinois. However, they're going to have to fight the chance of being a former afterthought that turns into the apple of everyone's eye. Illinois doesn't have the talent to blow everyone out, but Bielema is building something very sustainable. As for USC, it's pretty obvious: Lincoln Riley needs to stack some good wins. He did great early in his tenure at USC, but things got shaky over the last couple of years. If USC loses this game, it's staring right down the barrel of another possible 7-5 season. USC has one of the best recruiting classes in the country for 2026, so it's building momentum off the field. Now, it needs to build momentum on the field, too. Alabama vs. Georgia (Week 5) This is an obvious one. This game is really always a great game. They could play it in a parking lot, and it would be a great game with high stakes. The winner of this game will likely be in the SEC Championship Game. Then, you get into the implications for both teams. Is Alabama back at the level it was at with Nick Saban? This is a huge early test for Kalen DeBoer in Year 2, and Alabama's schedule after this game is manageable. For Georgia, if it loses this game, we'll wonder if the Bulldogs are slipping. It'd mark two straight losses to Alabama, with a loss in the CFP quarterfinals sandwiched between that. Penn State vs. Ohio State (Week 10) This is likely another top-five matchup, which will present another opportunity for James Franklin to get a marquee win. If Penn State doesn't beat Oregon in Week 5, there will be a ton of pressure on Franklin and the Nittany Lions when they head to Columbus, especially in a year where the Buckeyes are breaking in a new quarterback and coordinators. This is also the most experienced and talented team Franklin has had in his tenure at Penn State. It's a big opportunity for Drew Allar to show what he's made of. The loser of this game will be in a precarious spot in the Big Ten title race. We'll see how it plays out, but Penn State needed a wild loss from Ohio State against Michigan to reach the Big Ten Championship Game last season. LSU vs. Alabama (Week 11) As I got to the later weeks of the season while making this list, I started predicting some outcomes from earlier games. Most of us probably think that Georgia will beat Alabama in Week 5. I think Clemson will beat LSU in Week 1. If those two results happen, the LSU-Alabama matchup in Week 11 will be a monster game with CFP implications. I don't know if the loser of this game can still make the CFP if it also lost its game earlier on this list. It could be a battle for the third or fourth CFP spot among SEC teams. And as I touched on with both teams' inclusions earlier on this list, this is a high-stakes game for both coaches. Brian Kelly needs as many high-profile wins as he can get, and you have to think that Kalen DeBoer doesn't have that long of a runway at Alabama. The way things finished for DeBoer in Year 1 wasn't very Alabama-esque. Ohio State vs. Michigan (Week 14) This game was obviously going to make the list. It's a battle between the last two national championship winners. You've got the backstory of how this game finished last year, with Michigan trying to plant the flag at The Shoe before a fight broke out. Even though Ohio State got its national championship, it still has to listen to Michigan say, "Well, you didn't beat us, and we won our national championship going 15-0." This year's game is going to be epic. Can Michigan actually win a fifth straight game against Ohio State? Thinking back to the COVID year, I didn't think Michigan was going to win The Game for the foreseeable future. Somehow, it's won four in a row. There are some games that were certainly worthy of being mentioned on this list, but these are the 10 that I feel will truly shape the 2025 college football regular season. Maybe I'll touch more on those games at a later date. Joel Klatt is FOX Sports' lead college football game analyst and the host of the podcast " The Joel Klatt Show. " Follow him at @joelklatt and subscribe to the "Joel Klatt Show" on YouTube . Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily. recommended Get more from College Football Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Miami Herald
4 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Florida State Football Preview 2025: Seminoles Season Prediction, Win Total Projection, Top Players
Florida State Seminoles Key to the Season Get better offensive line were 134 FBS teams last season, and 133 of them allowed fewer than four sacks per game. Florida State is the one team that didn't. In 2023, the Noles allowed 1.79 sacks per four teams allowed more tackles for loss, only five teams were worse at running the ball, and all this from an attack that was among the best in the country at cranking out big runs just two seasons starts with this. More time to work, longer drives, and a more productive defense, so … X CFN, Fiu | CFN Facebook | Bluesky Fiu, CFN 2025 Florida State PreviewFlorida State Offense BreakdownFlorida State Defense Breakdown Florida State Seminoles Key Player Luke Petitbon, C enough versatility to figure out the other four spots up front, but Petitbon has to be a true leader for the completely rebuilt line. An All-ACC blocker for Wake Forest, the 6-2, 303-pound veteran of four seasons has to be the steadying force for an offense that changes out just about everyone. Florida State Seminoles Top Transfer, Biggest Transfer Loss Top Transfer In: Duce Robinson, WR passing game didn't work. The quarterbacks didn't have time, the rushing attack failed to help the cause, and the receivers weren't able to show off. There were plenty of talent losses, but getting Robinson from USC makes up for wasn't a volume catcher in his first two seasons, but he made huge things happen, averaging over 19 yards per grab. Top Transfer Out: Patrick Payton, EDGE Sr.A future NFL starter, Payton was a key part of the defense over the last three years with 110 tackles, 16 sacks, and 32 tackles for loss. FSU was able to find a few nice options up front to pick up the slack, but they don't have anyone like Payton, who's now off to LSU. Florida State Seminoles Key Game Alabama, Aug. 30After going 1-11 in its last 12 games against FBS teams, no team in college football needs a big Week 1 showing more desperately than Florida State. Pull this off, and everything last time these two met, the hype was high for a good Seminole team coming off a big 2016. Bama hurt quarterback Deandre Francois in a season-opening 24-7 win, and the FSU program wasn't good at football again until 2022.- 2025 Florida State Schedule Breakdown Florida State Seminoles Top 10 Players 1. Darrell Jackson, DT Sr. 2. Duce Robinson, WR Jr.3. Jeremiah Wilson, CB Sr. 4. Shyheim Brown, S Sr.5. James Williams, EDGE Jr.6. Tommy Castellanos, QB Sr.7. Luke Petitbon, C Sr.8. KJ Kirkland, S Soph.9. Stefon Thompson, LB Sr.10. Elijah Herring, LB Sr. Florida State Seminoles 2024 Fun Stats - First Half Scoring: Opponents 167, Florida State 82- Fumbles: Florida State 22 (lost 9), Opponents 9 (lost 2)- Interceptions Thrown: Florida State 13, Opponents 4 Florida State Seminoles 2025 Season Prediction, Win Total, What Will Happen Really, is Florida State back to where it's supposed to be?There's talent, and things will be far better than they were last year, but it won't be 2023. This year's schedule is far more difficult than that, but it's not quite as tough as last year's, when FSU played five teams that finished with ten or more Alabama opener is an obvious problem, but the Noles should be, at worst, 3-1 when Miami comes to town. There's a real shot at a 6-2 record, and maybe 7-1 with a little luck before going to Clemson. Clemson, NC State, and Florida - FSU closes with three road games in the final four put the win total a tad too low, just because of all the turnover. This should be a 7-to-8-win team, and at the very least, it should get back to a bowl game for the third time in six The Florida State Win Total At … 6.5Likely Wins: East Texas A&M, Kent State, at Stanford, Wake Forest50/50 Games: at Florida, Miami, at NC State, Pitt, at Virginia, Virginia TechLikely Losses: Alabama, at Clemson 2025 Florida State PreviewFlorida State Offense BreakdownFlorida State Defense Breakdown © 2025 The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.
Miami Herald
4 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Florida State Football Preview 2025: The Seminoles Hit the Refresh Button
What happened to Florida State? This isn't actually all that program got caught in an all-time bad break perfect storm at the end of 2023 to miss out on the CFP, made worse by a 63-3 Orange Bowl loss to a Georgia team that could've put up 80+ if it tried, and …Because there wasn't enough horrible luck for that Seminole team, it was the last year of the four-team the hits just kept onnnnnnnn coming. X CFN, Fiu | CFN Facebook | Bluesky Fiu, CFN Florida State Offense BreakdownFlorida State Defense BreakdownSeason Prediction, Win Total, Keys to SeasonAfter suffering the most brutal of gut punches, Florida State seemingly had a good enough team returning to quickly get back on track. Fully motivated, it all instantly fell apart after a last-second loss to Georgia Tech in Ireland. From there, the bad vibes never went away. Oh, and 2024 Florida State played a way harder schedule than it did the year 2023 team was great, starting with a dominant win over Jayden Daniels and a strong LSU team in the opener, but lost in history was how FSU slipped by Clemson because Dabo's 19th-string kicker biffed the game-winning field goal try in regulation. Also forgotten was that the LSU win and the ACC Championship victory over Louisville were the two victories over teams that won ten games. In all, the 2023 team played seven games in the regular season against teams that went bowling. The 2024 team played 11 - Charleston Southern was the lone outlier - including five that won ten games or more. Three of those were against CFP teams, and one was against a Notre Dame squad that played for the national doesn't mean Florida State should've lost to Boston College by 15, or to North Carolina by 24, or to Florida 20, all at home. And now this becomes a wildly interesting experiment. From 12-1, to 1-11, to almost completely starting over, at least with the starters, FSU is loaded with upperclassmen, it's totally reliant on new guys, and that might be exactly what the program should be between 11 to 15 new starters for the opener against Alabama who weren't part of the 2023 fun or the 2024 pity party. Getting Gus Malzahn as the offensive coordinator was a coup, there's a new defensive coordinator, and overall, the refresh should get everything going again. It might be one of those Mike Tyson "everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth" things with Alabama to kick things off, but there's talent, along with decent depth on the way to a bowl. Remember, FSU has only been to three or those since there's an expanded playoff this time around, just in case head coach Mike Norvell makes it three double-digit winning seasons in four years. But that only happens if he gets a lot more out of his … Florida State Offense BreakdownFlorida State Defense BreakdownSeason Prediction, Win Total, Keys to Season © 2025 The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.
