FSU Football’s Best 15 Games Of The Last 40 Seasons: No. 6

Here’s a look at one of the best 15 games over the last 40 seasons of FSU football.

For the four decades, two men have led FSU football: Bobby Bowden and Jimbo Fisher. Over that span, the Seminoles have gone from a football program that seemed to be just weeks from being cancelled to one of the top teams in the country and a known brand across the country and all over the world.

There has been everything from big road wins that set the tone for FSU football’s “play anyone at anytime” attitude to rivalry wins against Florida and Miami. The 34 seasons with Bowden at the helm saw two national titles won and one of the greatest dynasty eras in the history of the sport take place. The last six seasons under Fisher have seen the ‘Noles bring another title to Tallahassee and restored FSU football’s place as one of college football’s elite teams.

Of all the games over the past four decades, which are the ones that meant the most to where FSU football is today? Let’s take a look at the best games over the past 40 seasons the ‘Noles have taken the field.

No. 6 – Florida State 28 Miami 10 (October 9, 1993)

If there are two words that strike fear in the hearts of every single FSU football fan, they are these: Wide Right. Even with plenty of qualified kickers over the last 15 years (from Lou Groza Award winners like Sebastian Janikowksi, Graham Gano and Roberto Aguayo to name a few), there is still that moment when the kicker comes on to the field for the Seminoles that has fan getting a little bit more nervous than other schools.

It starts in the 1991 season, when Gerry Thomas pushed a kick wide in the final moments of a 17-16 loss to the Miami Hurricanes in what was effectively a national championship play-in game. The following season…against the same team…it was Dan Mowery who this time couldn’t connect and FSU football was again the bridesmaid in their battle with the ‘Canes. As the 1993 season came around, the ‘Noles were the top ranked team in the land and welcomed the Hurricanes to Tallahassee. Having not beaten their rivals since 1989, Miami had played in three of the previous four bowl games that decided the national champion and weren’t ready to give their in-state foes the keys to that car just yet.

Fortunately for FSU football, this game was nowhere even close to coming down to a final field goal attempt: the Seminoles had this game locked up long before the fourth quarter. Sean Jackson put FSU football on the board with a touchdown run, the Matt Frier added to that when he hauled in a 72 yard touchdown pass from future Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward, putting FSU in the driver’s seat before the first quarter had come to an end. Ward would add a short touchdown run, then the FSU defense took over and suffocated the ‘Canes. FSU football would recover one of the two fumbles they forced, and the final nail came when safety (and Miami native) Devin Bush returned an interception 40 yards for the final score. The demons had finally left the building for Bowden and FSU football.

FSU football would stay in control of the top spot in the polls for much of the season, giving it up for one week following a loss to Notre Dame. The Seminoles would bounce back and make it to the Orange Bowl, where a 22-yard field goal by freshman kicker Scott Bentley (the top recruit in the nation at that position and the cover boy for Sports Illustrated’s preview edition that year) gave the Seminoles and Bowden their first national championship.