ATLANTA — Florida State can run with Alabama.
The Seminoles are that fast. Now, the challenge in the aftermath of the 24-7 loss in the No. 1 vs. No. 3 showdown at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday is to redirect that team speed to ensure they might get another opportunity this season. A lot of that will depend on the health of quarterback Deondre Francois, who left late in the fourth quarter because of a left knee injury and the severity is unknown. Without Francois, the Seminoles are in a little more trouble.
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Let's get back to the game first.
"We just need to rebound, get back, fix the things that we had wrong and go," Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher said after the game. "I still think we've got a great football team. I think we're very physical. I think we're very good. We've got to clean some things up, not make those momentum swings. When you play great people you can't have those, and we'll look at that and then look at the film, make the adjustments and move on.”
They are physical and good. Florida State didn’t lose to Alabama because of a lack of talent. The Seminoles were fast enough. Josh Sweat can chased down Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts down the line. Safety Derwin James flew all over the field. Freshman running back Cam Akers offered a few glimpses of what’s to come, and it looks very, very good.
Florida State didn't lose because Alabama ran their ass over. That has happened so many times to other blue bloods in neutral-site games against the Crimson Tide. Alabama had four players combine for 173 yards on 4.1 yards per carry.
Florida State lost for two reasons. They couldn’t run the ball, and the pressure eventually lead to those ill-timed hits on Francois. The Seminoles had 27 carries for 40 yards — no chance against the Tide when that happens. That was exacerbated by a special teams meltdown. A blocked field goal, a blocked punt and a fumbled kickoff led to a 13-point swing in a 17-point game.
"The big thing was the momentum swings and the special teams in the second half," Fisher said. "When you get momentum, I always talk about that all the time. Momentum is a thing we don't -— it's hard to swing, especially when you play good people."
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Florida State will get a chance to play some more people, and this loss likely will be viewed in a favorable light as the season wears on. With the exception of one 53-yard touchdown pass from Jalen Hurts to Calvin Ridley, the Seminoles held Alabama’s offense in check. This was a heavyweight ACC-SEC fight, and Florida State brought just as many energetic fans to the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
There’s no reason why Florida State can’t win the ACC and get another shot down the road, or perhaps even get some two-loss leniency from the College Football Playoff committee.
Well, there's one reason. Francois’ status will be the most-talked about topic in Tallahassee over the next few days. More than half the questions Fisher took after the game were about the sophomore quarterback who stood in and took the hits from a nasty Alabama defense until he was knocked out of the game. Fisher grabbed his quarterback on the sideline and told him he loved him. That’s the reality here.
Florida State can run with Alabama. They are on the short list of teams who don’t get completely overwhelmed by the talent gap. Ohio State and Clemson might be the only other two who can say that. That much is true, but the Seminoles might not get another chance.
Not if Francois can’t go.
"I'm definitely concerned because that’s your starting quarterback and the kind of player he is and what he has," Fisher said. "But we'll get the guys behind him and we'll rep those guys and play and we'll go on. Again, we have great people around him and do the things we've got to do."
