Could Florida State’s Hidden Edge Spark a Stunning Rebound?

College football seasons are messy — full of surprises, heartbreak, and the occasional eyebrow-raising upset. Last week, I barely made the grade with a 1-2 record, thanks to some wild twists in the Alabama-Georgia saga — who knew the Crimson Tide would be the stumbling block yet again? Tonight’s prime-time showdown between Miami and Florida State promises to be another whipsaw test: Are these teams true contenders or just cleverly disguised pretenders? Miami’s defense has been nothing short of stingy, but their quarterback leaves me wanting more. Florida State, on the other hand, has had a roller-coaster ride — stunning wins cluttered with some head-scratching losses. If you think this game’s just about points on the board, think again. It’s a high-stakes battle with playoff dreams hanging in the balance — and I’m leaning toward the Seminoles despite the odds. So, buckle up—this one’s going to be a doozy! LEARN MORE.

Miami vs. Florida State, 7:30 ET

I didn’t have an amazing week for College Football last week as I went just 1-2. My Saturday plays split with me getting the Alabama and Georgia game wrong. Perhaps I put too much stock in Alabama getting beaten by Florida State. Georgia looked good until they faced the Crimson Tide, which seems to be their Achilles heel. It almost always is a wild football season, but this year has been really difficult to figure out who is good and who is a pretender. Tonight, we have the game of the week as Miami takes on Florida State, and we will see if either is a contender or pretender.

The Miami Hurricanes are ranked as the fourth-best team in the country, and they look really good to start the year. They started the game with one of the hardest matchups that you could get, as they had to face Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish love to pound the ball on the ground, and Miami was prepared for that offense. They held Notre Dame to just 93 yards on the ground, including limiting Jeremiyah Love to just 33 yards on 10 carries. The next three games have also shown the defensive prowess of the squad, with them allowing just 22 combined total points to the three opponents. Last week, they faced Florida, and the Gators lost the game 26-7. Carson Beck, the quarterback for Miami has been acceptable under center, but I think he still needs to improve if the title hopes are real for the Hurricanes. He is completing 73% of passes, but has three interceptions and only seven touchdowns. They have a strong ground game, and that should do well against Florida State who just allowed 211 rushing yards and four touchdowns to Virginia last week.

Speaking of Florida State, they dropped from eighth in the nation to 18th. The Seminoles opened the season with a very impressive 31-17 win over Alabama. As mentioned, I picked Georgia last weekend, so that probably gives you my interpretation of what I feel about Alabama. However, it was still a tough opening game, and they responded to the challenge. The next two games were jokes as they won the two games by a combined 143-13. The offensive numbers will clearly be a bit inflated as a result of those wins. Sure, they deserve some credit, but the truth is Kent State and East Texas AM are both unimpressive squads. Last weekend Florida State dropped a game to Virginia. That one went into double overtime, and the Seminoles really couldn’t stop anything. This was truly a back-and-forth battle between these two teams, with leads changing and both offenses stepping up. Ultimately, the Seminoles threw an interception, and the game was over with Virginia winning. Florida State’s passing game wasn’t quite as crisp as usual, but they got basically anything they wanted on the ground.

If Miami loses this game, it still has a strong possibility of making the College Football Playoffs. If Florida State loses, its playoff chances are pretty much over. I’m not sure I love the idea of Miami going on the road to take this game. Beating Notre Dame is one thing, but the game was at home. I do prefer the defense for the Hurricanes to that of Florida State. However, I think the Seminoles are getting too many points. I’m going to take them even though I think Miami wins by 3.

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