FSU Football: The Seminoles Need To Stop Living Off The 2013 Title

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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After seeing the way FSU football has started the 2016 season and played for much of the last three years, the complacency following 2013 needs to end.

It was the shining moment for the FSU football program – heading to Pasadena, California and bringing home the third national title in program history. It was the capping moment to a 14-0 season, led by Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston, a boatload of future NFL players and a team that could be considered one of college football’s best in the last 25 years.

Fast forward three years later, and the Seminoles are staring at a 3-2 record through the first five games that – if they don’t play their cards right – could end up with a 6-6 finish considering the teams left on the slate.

For much of the last 32 games, the Seminoles have been living on borrowed time – and every fan of the Seminoles knows it. Too many comebacks to count – including this season’s opener against Ole Miss – made FSU football think that no matter what took place, they would comeback and get the win.

In reality, the 2013 FSU football team made it too easy. Winston, Devonta Freeman, Rashad Greene, Nick O’Leary, Lamarcus Joyner, Telvin Smith, Timmy Jernigan, Mario Edwards, Roberto Aguayo…these are just a few of the players from that team that made winning look effortless.

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That 2013 squad was theoretically challenged during a game just three times in the entire season – the first half comeback against Boston College, the Miami and game and the national title win over Auburn. The rest of the time, many starters didn’t even play the second half because the game was in control.

Complacency can be the worst thing for any sports team to deal with – and the 2016 Florida State Seminoles seem to have a bad case of it. With the exception of a few players (namely guys like Dalvin Cook, Travis Rudolph, DeMarcus Walker and a couple more), there are plenty others who act as if because it was so simply for the 2013 team, it’s going to be that way for the 2016 edition.

The same thing happened after the 1999 title, when players in future years (2002, 2003, etc.) acted and played like just going through the motions and wearing the spear on your helmet was going to be enough because it looked so easy years before. That is the attitude that gets you from a national title to 6-6 just years later if you aren’t careful.

The Seminoles have a short window to turn this around and get rid of that evil word. Wins over Miami, Clemson and Florida could salvage a season and keep FSU likely in the running for a New Years Six bowl again (yes, strange things could happen and the ‘Noles could get back in the ACC title hunt, but I’m not holding my breath).

But it’s not just about 2016. The 2017 team will be without Walker, who is graduating, and possibly both Rudolph and Cook since both will likely leave for the NFL. You don’t know what kind of player Derwin James is going to be when he gets back (hopefully the same), so it’s hard to count on him at this point – hence the window being shorter by the day.

It’s great to be proud of what took place just three seasons ago – but if not put in the right context, it could end up harming the program just as much as it helped.