College Football

FSU Football: Top 5 Keys To Victory Against Miami Hurricanes

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 11:13 p.m. ET

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Sep 24, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles quarterback Deondre Francois (12) runs the ball for a touchdown in the second half against the South Florida Bulls at Raymond James Stadium. Florida State Seminoles won 55-35. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports

FSU football will take on the Miami Hurricanes on Saturday night at 8 p.m. We look at the top five keys to victory for the ‘Noles.

It’s a huge game that both teams need to win for different reasons. Miami needs a win over FSU in a huge way, simply because FSU has dominated the series as of late.

They needs to prove they are a program on the rise, especially since this FSU team doesn’t look like the same caliber as in years past.

FSU needs this win because their other season goals are not attainable, and it would be huge to beat an undefeated Miami team at home when they are expected to lose.

It would be huge for recruiting, and could re-ignite the confidence of the FSU football program.

We take a look at the five keys to victory for the FSU football team against Miami.

Sep 17, 2016; Louisville, KY, USA; Florida State Seminoles wide receiver Auden Tate (18) scores a touchdown against the Louisville Cardinals during the second quarter at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports

Score Touchdowns In The Red Zone

The FSU offense is one of the best in the nation, and will need to score touchdowns instead of field goals on Saturday night.

The ‘Noles are actually doing a good job of this so far this season. They’re scoring touchdowns 73 percent of the time when they enter the red zone.

However, this could be even more important with a young true freshman kicker that missed three field goals last week.

Also, once the ‘Noles get across the opponents 30 yard line, Jimbo Fisher should take a four down approach with this offense.

If it is third and six or seven, call a play that would make fourth down manageable instead of having to settle for 45+ yard field goals.

Field goals are not going to win games the way the FSU defense is currently playing.

Sep 5, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles quarterback Deondre Francois (12) runs with the ball against the Mississippi Rebels during the first half at Camping World Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Run Deondre Francois

The Miami defense will be set on stopping Dalvin Cook and the run game. Cook has cooked Miami the last two years by himself, and they will be determined to force Deondre Francois to beat them with his arm.

However, Francois is a capable runner with his legs, and a running Francois would put additional stress on this Miami defense that’s playing a lot of true freshmen at linebacker.

It would also force the Miami defense to be less aggressive, and would open up the passing game which would then open things up for Dalvin Cook and Jacques Patrick.

Francois is running the ball nine times per game for a 2.74 average per carry. I’d like to see Francois get 12-15 carries on Saturday night.

Sep 5, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles defensive back Marcus Lewis (24) reacts after a penalty in the second quarter against the Mississippi Rebels at Camping World Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports

Defense Must Limit Explosive Plays

Duh! This is a no-brainer and something that I feel dumb in writing. However, the FSU defense is what it is at this point.

They are allowing teams to gain 6.98 yards per play which is insane. We saw the FSU defense allow a ton of explosive plays against UNC last week.

However, the threat of Brad Kaaya running is greatly diminished compared to other quarterbacks the ‘Noles have faced. This should be somewhat favorable to the FSU defense who have struggled mightily against mobile quarterbacks.

The ‘Noles were able to shut down the Miami running attack last year, making their offense one-dimensional in the passing attack. Brad Kaaya passed for over 400 yards, but it was in a losing effort.

Oct 1, 2016; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles defensive end DeMarcus Walker (44) and defensive end Jamarcus Robinson (11) along with defensive coordinator Charles Kelly look on during the game against the North Carolina Tarheels at Doak Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

Defense Must Get Off Field On Third Down

The FSU defense is allowing teams to convert third downs at a 43.86 percent rate. That’s entirely too high for a team with this amount of talent.

The ‘Noles allowed UNC to convert third downs at a 69 percent clip (9 of 13). That was one of the biggest differences in the game as UNC only punted ONCE the entire game.

If the FSU defense can get off the field on third down it would keep them fresh and likely give the FSU offense good field position.

The other important stat would be the average distance teams need to cover to convert the third downs. UNC was consistently in third and short situations which assisted them in converting at such a high rate.

However, winning on third down means winning on first and second down to force third and long. That’s something the ‘Noles have struggled with all season. Saturday night would be a great time to turn this trend around.

Sep 10, 2016, in Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles quarterback Deondre Francois (12) warms up prior to the game against Charleston Southern at Doak Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Glenn Beil-USA TODAY Sports

Don’t Turn The Ball Over

The FSU offense has turned the ball over four times on the season. Two of those turnovers came in the Louisville game, and they had no turnovers against UNC on Saturday.

FSU quarterback Deondre Francois is responsible for all of the FSU turnovers thus far on the season. So he’ll need to be sure to hold onto the ball with two hands in the pocket, and to be careful when handing the ball off to running backs on run plays.

The FSU offense can’t afford to give the Miami offense any extra possessions wit the way the FSU defense has been playing.

The two teams played a clean game last season with neither team turning the ball over.

Sep 24, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles head coach Jimbo Fisher looks on from the bench in the second quarter against the South Florida Bulls at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports

Conclusion

So essentially the FSU football team needs to play championship level football. The level of football that FSU fans are accustomed to watching over the past few seasons.

I’m not sure how much the FSU defense can improve over a week. Again, having Kaaya being an immobile quarterback will give them one less thing to worry about.

This could allow FSU to play a bit more man-to-man which would simplify things a bit more for this confused FSU defensive secondary.

Miami has two good running backs in Mark Walton and Joseph Yearby, so they’ll need to account for them as well.

If Miami can scored touchdowns instead of field goals, limit turnovers, and get off the field on third down they’ll have a great shot at keeping their winning streak intact against Miami.

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