FSU Sod Talk: Barry Smith and Ron Sellers

Florida State’s Sod Talk crowd enjoyed a terrific tandem of wide receivers this past Saturday before kickoff as Barry Smith and Ron Sellers recounted their experiences at Florida State. 

FSU Sod Talk: Barry Smith and Ron Sellers

Barry Smith

Sod Talk opened with Barry Smith taking the mic and giving the masses of FSU fans something to think about as he explained why he chose to go to Florida State. Smith was nothing but flattering toward the great Fred Biletnikoff, citing him as much of the reason he came to Florida State. Biletnikoff, who was just at the Notre Dame edition of Sod Talk, was the first consensus All-American to come from FSU.

Before coming to Florida State, Barrett Benjamin Smith attended Coral Park High School in Miami, Florida. When reminiscing on his time playing high school football, Smith said that his team ran the ball and didn’t win a lot. The need for a change couldn’t have been greater for the speedy wideout who wanted to follow in the footsteps of great wide receivers like Fred Biletnikoff and Ron Sellers.

Recounting the 1971 inaugural Fiesta Bowl against Arizona State University, Smith made mention of the fact that this was the first time in NCAA history a university had three receivers with over 100 yards in receiving yards in a single game. Smith went for 143 yards on eight catches. Rhett Dawson snagged eight catches for 108 yards. And Kent Gaydos reeled in 101 yards on a mere 5 receptions. The ‘Noles would go on to lose the game 45-38, but the fact that they were selected to participate spoke volumes about the program at the time.

The former Florida State receiver concluded with comments on current FSU standout Rashad Greene, stating, “When the game gets tight, you know who number five is going to be looking at . . . He’s a great wide receiver.” Appropriately, Greene went on to have a career night for the ‘Noles following the high praise by Smith, as he snagged a career-high 13 receptions for 136 yards and a touchdown.

Ron Sellers

As Sellers took the mic, he was greeted with a similar question as Smith when asked what made him decide to play for Florida State. The FSU legend spoke on how FSU invited his entire high school football team to FSU’s game against fifth-ranked Kentucky. He made it clear that Kentucky was the clear-cut favorite, and quite frankly many people weren’t giving FSU a chance in the game. When the dust finally settled, the ‘Noles found themselves victorious over the Wildcats. This upset win played a large role in Seller’s decision to commit to Florida State.

One of the more notable games that Sellers made mention of during his playing career at FSU was the 1967 Gator Bowl against Penn State. This game stuck out in the minds of many thanks to the gamble that Joe Paterno made and lost. With the Nittany Lions up 17-0, Paterno decided to go for it on fourth and inches from the Penn State 15 yard line. The ‘Noles defense stiffened and didn’t allow the conversion.

Just three plays after the failed fourth down, quarterback Kim Hammond connected with Sellers for the Seminoles’ first touchdown of the game. Florida State went on to hold Penn State scoreless and tie the game at 17 before time expired. The end result was a 17-17 tie that left ‘Noles fans satisfied as they felt like the real winners in the contest overcoming the 17-0 deficit.

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Sellers went on to conclude with one of the more interesting comments of the afternoon, as some may suggest that he playfully threw a little bit of shade Jameis Winston’s way in stating that, “If you don’t have a great receiver, you can’t be a great quarterback . . . He should be All-American all the time with those receivers.” The former All-American would go on to praise Winston on his performance in the second half against Notre Dame. Winston was 15-16 for 181 yards when it mattered the most in what many dubbed “The Game Of The Year” against the then undefeated Irish.

Sod Talk will commence once again on November 22nd when Boston College comes to Tallahassee to square off against the Seminoles.