FSU's Challenging Start to the 2024 Season

By Jason Bolton September 10, 2024 20:33

Photo by Morgan Tencza-USA TODAY Sports

Florida State University (FSU) has been a national powerhouse in college football for decades. They boast an amazing pedigree of success, which includes multiple NCAA Division 1 football championships. However, their 2024 season has posed a unique obstacle for the mighty Seminoles, a far cry from their usual dominance. Here, we'll look at and breakdown FSU's rough start to this season, what has led them where they are, and maybe a few ideas for the road ahead.

Overview of the Season

As the 2024 season opens, FSU fans and analysts almost certainly could not have seen this coming. Two games into the season, FSU sits at 0-2 and is all alone in last place in the ACC after placing eighth each of the past two seasons. More notably, this start comes from a team grappling despite expectations of high accomplishment before the year.

Key Struggles

Uiagalelei's Inconsistency

To be frank, Uiagalelei numbers aren't terrible, but they're not enough, given the huge expectations on Uiagalelei and FSU's offense. A 30.77% third down conversion rate shows the team struggles to sustain drives, resulting in an issue with their scoring production.

Rushing Game Woes

The Seminoles have only totaled 119 rushing yards through two games and are only averaging 25 Yards Per Rush, while the absence of a traditional running game has also made it easier for opposing defenses to pressure Uiagalelei and disrupt passing attempts.

Defensive Lapses

The group yields 226.5 rushing yards per game, and opponents have taken advantage of the flaw. The inability to come through against the run has applied more pressure on the secondary, which is unrelenting for a defense collectively.

Comparative Analysis

Many other programs have the same early-season struggles, but few have a collapse as severe as FSU. It's understandable why fans and pundits alike find this upsetting, given the pronounced differential concerning their historical performances and recent successes.

Fan and Media Reactions

There has been a combination of surprise, letdown, and increasing worry among FSU's fan base and some media outlets. Fans, as could be expected from social media sites, have been vocal in their frustration and are demanding changes this instant. Meanwhile, sports commentators have been no less severe and full of second thoughts about everything from player performance to coaching decisions.

Future Outlook

Nonetheless, there's still time for FSU to turn their campaign around, but this season has arguably already been pretty far off course. However, drastic improvements are required in multiple facets of their program, particularly:

Offensive Consistency
Establish the Run
Shore Up the Defense
Mental Toughness
Strategic Shifts

On the whole, the opening to the 2024 season has not gone well for FSU, as they have found their fair share of struggles on both sides of the ball. Fans and analysts have watched the team stumble to a 0-2 start that includes underwhelming stat lines and uninspired efforts. But given that there's still a lot of football to be played, Florida State has a chance to right that wrong.

The next few weeks will be huge for FSU. How they deal with this adversity will shape not only their 2024 moot but could also affect the program's future. With such a storied past, the pressure to turn it around is enormous, and so too, in fairness, would be the potential for instant revival.

"There's going to be plenty of negativity around this program. I understand that," Coach Norvell said. "When we perform the way we just did, that's all part of it. But for our football team, you've got to stay together, and you've got to make sure that you're there for each other. We've been knocked down. We know how to get up, but we've got to go do that."

As FSU moves on, all eyes will be focused on how Coach Norvell and his players respond to such early adversity as they try to lead the Seminoles back into being one of college football's top programs. It is a long road back, but no one with the tradition and resources of Florida State should be buried this soon.