The 2023 Florida State defense might just have been the best in the nation, but even they couldn’t put the team into the playoffs in the eyes of the voter (sorry last swipe).
Despite losing five high end contributors to the NFL Draft, this team was still billed to be a worthy successor. They still had star pass rushers including a potential first round pick in Patrick Payton and Georgia’s Marvin Jones entering his opposite. They had a dynamic duo on the inside that’s been honored conference-wide. They had a veteran secondary that should only improve. Against Georgia Tech however, they showed there’s still a way to go to match last season’s output.
Up front, the Seminoles showed vulnerability defending the run, certainly the biggest takeaway from the game. Tech’s running game was able to bully-ball the way down the field, moving FSU defenders around and eating up clock. Overall, they allowed 190 rushing yards (5.3 per carry) with three touchdowns on three red zone trips, along with 336 total yards.
The Florida State defense had opportunities to make plays… and just seemed a half step slow all night. pic.twitter.com/HKjfPUujl6
— Ryan Roberts (@RiseNDraft) August 25, 2024
The Yellow Jackets were one of the best rushing offenses in the league last year and have a mobile quarterback as well, Haynes King, who ran for 54 yards on 15 carries. Suffice to say, tackling was a major issue all around. The team struggled to contain King and didn’t land a single sack. Not only that, the highly touted front made just six tackles, none for loss. Instead, it was safety Shyheim Brown who was forced to play clean up with a career-high 13 stops.
Castellanos and the rushing attack should do well exploiting this vulnerability — much like he did in last season’s near upset. He had 95 rushing yards and four total touchdowns then, along with 305 passing yards. The right side of the line saw the most success for Tech’s rushing, so now it’ll be a little bit of a chess match on how BC should attack. Will FSU be able to be tighter and set the edge or will have need to commit extra numbers? O’Brien and co. will need to prepare contingency either way on how best to capitalize. One reminder, this is a bit of a revenge game for new BC running back Treshaun Ward, who spent a number of seasons in Tallahassee. Ward has a pretty similar frame to Tech running back Jamal Haynes who put on a show.
The linebacker group was seen as an average group much like last season. In tandem with the line, this group struggled to make an impact on the game and were constantly out of position, especially with containing King. The Georgia Tech offense consistently took advantage of several shifts and motions to keep the defense out of step.
Outstanding flow and vision from Georgia Tech RB Jamal Haynes (#11). They were able to make Florida State play EW a lot… making splash plays off of pre snap manipulation, and flow. pic.twitter.com/TLxWuWf7B5
— Ryan Roberts (@RiseNDraft) August 25, 2024
As mentioned, this was a strong secondary that was adding more veteran talent. It’s a group that has good length. Unfortunately, Georgia Tech only threw the ball 16 times and their smaller receivers were able to make an impact in the short-to-mid range game. Defensive Coordinator Adam Fuller often likes to bring pressure with his defensive backs as well. In the first play of the second half, a safety came in and Tech’s running back went right around the easily blocked safety for 36 yards.
Georgia Tech did a great job varying up their run game. This concerted game plan kept the entire Seminole team out of rhythm. Lucky for BC, they can deploy a similar blueprint. It’s hard to imagine this is fixed overnight for FSU so it might come down to mashing that button until they prove they can stop it.