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Week one is almost over and has delivered plenty of storylines,
from a second being found at Michigan (1-0) to what LSU (1-0) would have look like with former NFL players, and now Florida State (1-0)takes center
stage tonight against No. 19 SMU with its first chance to make an early
statement and silence some of its naysayers.

Florida State welcomes SMU to Doak Campbell Stadium as a three-point
underdog, according to DraftKings. It’s a spread SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee
believes is favoring the wrong team. But after struggling in a 34-17 Week 0 win
over New Mexico State, Florida State has a lot to prove in its first test
against a preseason top-25 team.

“I have no idea how we aren’t a 7-to-10- point underdog,” Lashlee said.

Winning in college football is never guaranteed. Just look at how
Michigan had to find an extra second to win as more than a 20-point favorite.
 Rutgers paid more than a million dollars to lose 37-21 to UMass.

And while the Noles won week zero, the performance on the field still
left much to be desired against New Mexico State. Now, with a top-25 matchup
against SMU, Florida State has a golden opportunity to begin changing the
negative narrative surrounding the season.

If the Noles are going to pull off the upset, they won’t need just one
player to step up. Different position groups will have to play at a much higher
level. Against an experienced team like SMU, the execution and game plan will
have to be better than what the Noles showed in Week 0 if they are going to
head into the bye week at 2-0.

Secondary Under Pressure

The secondary must step up if Florida State is going to pull off the
upset over SMU.  Against New Mexico State, they allowed Trey Hedden to
complete 62 percent of his passes (26-42) for 272 yards, 2 touchdowns and an
Interception. And the degree of difficulty is about to be raised with Kevin
Jennings.

At SMU in 2025, Jennings threw for 3,641 yards while completing 66.1
percent of his passes, with 26 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Entering his 5th season of college football, Jennings is
completing 66.63 percent of his passes for 7,709 yards, with 55 touchdowns and
26 interceptions. CBS Sports’ Brad Crawford ranks him as the No. 2 quarterback
in the ACC.

“Jennings has everything needed to lead as a top dual-threat this
season,” Crawford wrote. “Jennings is dangerous because defenses must account
for his ability to extend plays, create on designed runs and deliver accurately
downfield.”

The secondary struggled on third down, allowing New Mexico to convert on
58 percent of their opportunities (10-of-17), with eight of those conversions
coming on third-and-6 or longer. Two of the ten converted went for a 33-yard
touchdown on a third-and-9, and a third-and-2 went for a 34-yard touchdown.

If the unit can’t find a way to bottle up the receivers, limit the yards
and get Jennings off the field in third-and-long situations, it could turn into
a long day for the Seminoles.

“A secondary that covers a little bit better. Just a lot of yards, a lot
of plays being made,” David Pollack said.

Pressure Up Front

In the first game of the season, the Noles caused little disruption in
the New Mexico State backfield in making Hedden uncomfortable. That may have
contributed to Hedden completing 62 percent of his passes, while New Mexico
State converted on 58 percent of its third-down opportunities.

If the Noles are going to upset the No. 19 team in the country, the
defensive line will have to find a way to get consistent pressure in the
backfield, make Jennings uncomfortable and limit the time the secondary needs
to cover SMU’s receivers.

“I didn't see a lot of guys in the trenches get in the backfield
consistently,” Pollack said.

Against New Mexico, the Noles totalled one quarterback hurry, three
sacks and four tackles for loss. The defensive line accounted for two sacks and
three of the tackles for loss, but the starting four up front combined for just
seven of the team’s 55 total tackles, one sack and one tackle for loss.

Mandrell Desir was expected to be a difference-maker up front, but he
finished with just four tackles. His brother Darryll was barely noticeable at
times and failed to create much disruption, finishing with just one tackle.

Florida State has their first opportunity this season to prove its Week
0 struggles were a one-off and not what fans should expect from this Noles moving
forward. If the Noles can create pressure up front, make Jennings uncomfortable
and limit his time to throw, the secondary should be able to tighten its
coverage, giving Florida State a chance to leave Doak Campbell Stadium with a
win.

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