Florida State is almost eliminated from the College Football Playoff race.
Can you believe that? That's almost unfathomable to type in September, even after watching No. 11 Florida State suffer a 27-21 loss to N.C. State on Saturday at Doak Campbell Stadium. It's almost over before it even started at 0-2 for a team that entered the season ranked No. 3 and was considered an-almost consensus playoff pick.
MORE: What loss to Bama means for FSU
It has been a long time since the Seminoles were 0-2. How long?
FSU trailing NC State 27-16 in the fourth quarter in Tallahassee. Florida State has not started a season 0-2 since 1989.
— Kevin McGuire (@KevinOnCFB) September 23, 2017
Best-case scenario? Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher could steal a quote "Fallen" at the end of the season and say something like, "Let me tell you about the time my team's playoff hopes almost died."
There's no question Florida State is a victim of multiple circumstances. They schedule up against No. 1 Alabama in the opener and lost starting quarterback Deondre Francois in that game. They hit the field for the first time in three weeks because of the effects of Hurricane Irma.
None of that is fair, but that's life in a sport where only one two-loss team has played for a national championship — and that was back in the BCS era.
This loss wasn't quarterback James Blackman's fault. For a first-time starter, Blackman held his own, and, if anything, played better than expected after opening the game with two three-and-outs. He settled in — and even completed eight straight passes at one point — and finished 15 of 20 for 139 yards and a touchdown in the first half. He hit a fourth-and-3 pass to Nyqwan Murray for a first down that led to a later touchdown connection to Auden Tate on third-and-goal in the first half.
He dropped another 50-yard pass to Tate and a 60-yard pass to George Campbell in the third quarter. The problem is those plays led to field goals, instead of touchdowns. Still, Blackman isn't debilitating anything as far as the offense goes. It will continue to get better once it features Cam Akers full time.
This loss fell more on the defense and costly mistakes, with the former coming as the biggest surprise. FSU missed a 30-yard field goal. Blackman lost a fumble on a scramble. N.C. State's Bradley Chubb disrupted a red-zone opportunity with a sack. Derwin James interception was negated by a pass interference call. Jacob Pugh was ejected on a bizarre targeting call.
The Seminoles simply couldn't get off the field when they needed to. Ryan Finley matched Blackman with 157 yards and a touchdown in the first half, including a 71-yard touchdown pass to Jakobi Meyers. Jaylen Samuels' 14-yard touchdown reception gave the Wolfpack a 27-16 lead and drove that point home with 9:16 remaining, and the Wolfpack didn't give FSU the ball back for one last chance in the final minutes.
MORE: In ACC, it's Clemson and everyone else
It might seem like the Seminoles' ACC and College Football Playoff hopes are dead, and that's the high-percentage reaction. LSU is the only two-loss team since the start of the BCS era that had a chance to play for a national championship, and we all saw how the College Football Playoff committee treated two-loss Big Ten champion Penn State and one-loss Ohio State last season.
Where can hope be found?
That 0-2 Florida State team in 1989 won the rest of its games and finished No. 3 in the AP Poll. Fisher would be wise to find a few guys from that team to speak to this year's group right away.
The Seminoles could theoretically beat Clemson, win the ACC and be treated with amnesty, considering the Seminoles' season opener against Alabama, losing its starting quarterback and dealing with a three-week layoff because of a hurricane. If any two-loss team could be treated differently, then it would be these Seminoles — if they can get that hot.
Because that would mean Blackman somehow carried this team against some very long odds. It's almost impossible, and just as unfathomable, given the preseason expectations.
Yeah, we can't believe it either.
