FSU Football: Top 5 wins during Jimbo Fisher era

No. 1 – January 6, 2014 vs. Auburn (W 34-31)

After dominating for the entire season – trailing just once all year – the Seminoles were a double-digit favorite over the SEC champion Tigers, who had won two regular season games over Georgia and Alabama based on two of the year’s craziest plays. Florida State was in the driver’s seat for an easy win – until the game kicked off.

After FSU scored the game’s opening points, the Tigers rattled off the game’s next 21 points and were looking like they were not just going to win the game – but embarrass the Seminoles in the process. Then, the most important play of the season took place when Karlos Williams ran a fake punt for a FSU first down.

That trick play kept the drive alive and allowed the Noles to get a much needed touchdown, as Devonta Freeman would eventually punch it in from three yards out to cut the deficit to 11 points with one half of football to play. That number would go down to one after the third quarter.

After Auburn connected on a fourth quarter field goal with less than five minutes to go, freshman kick return Kermit Whitfield went 102 yards to give FSU football the lead again. The Tigers got into the end zone with 79 seconds left – more than enough time for Winston and the Florida State offense.

Winston found Rashad Greene for a 49-yard reception on the second play of the drive that gave the Seminoles some life. The offense would work their way inside the 10-yard line and then be aided by a pass interference penalty.

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On the next play, Winston threw up a jump ball that Kelvin Benjamin went up and got over the much smaller Chris Davis – and the Florida State Seminoles were the 2013 national champions of college football. Just four seasons after the “lost decade” of FSU football, the Noles were back on top of the world.