Best FSU Football bowl game for January 3rd: 2005 Orange

FSU football isn’t playing in a bowl game this season, so we’re taking a look back at some of the best postseason games for the Seminoles by date.

Over the course of the 72 seasons that FSU football has taken the field, there have been plenty of years in which the Seminoles have been slumping at the end of the regular season – heck, you don’t have to look further than the 1-4 way the Noles ended last season to see it take place live and in living color.

In the middle part of last decade, the Seminoles found themselves beyond slumping in the month of November – only to find themselves pulling off one of the best upsets in recent history for the program and almost doing the same thing in the postseason.

It was also the final time that two of the most iconic coaches in the history of the game would meet on the field of play – well, one iconic coach for the Seminoles and another coach for the other side whose image would be tarnished later after allegations involving a major scandal that took place at his program.

Here’s a look at the best FSU football bowl game the program has played on January 3rd.

2005 Orange Bowl – Penn State 26 Florida State 23 (3 OT)

For the first two months of the season, the FSU football team looked like it was destined to make it back into the top 10 and a BCS bowl game entering the month of November with a 7-1 record. But when the month was over, the Noles would be 7-4 and out of the polls as they headed to the first ACC Championship Game against a top five Virginia Tech team.

When the final seconds ticked off in Jacksonville, the Seminoles had shocked the Hokies and punched their ticket to the Orange Bowl for the third time in a six season period. On the other side would be a Penn State team that was two points away from being unbeaten and possibly playing for a national title one season after having a losing record.

FSU Football overcame an early touchdown by the Nittany Lions after Willie Reid returned a punt to the end zone for the second straight game and Drew Weatherford found Lorenzo Booker for the score – but Penn State would hold on to a one point lead after a late touchdown, a lead that would extend into the fourth quarter.

In the final frame, Penn State would get a safety after Weatherford was called for a penalty in the end zone. The Seminoles would tie the game when Gary Cisemesia nailed a 47 yard kick and the game would go into overtime when Penn State missed a short attempt with less than a minute to go.

In extra football, the teams exchanged missed kicks in the first overtime and short touchdown runs in the second to stay tied. In the third overtime, Cisemesia couldn’t connect and the Nittany Lions ended the over four hour game with a 29 yard field goal that gave Joe Paterno his seventh victory over close friend Bobby Bowden as head coach.

Penn State dominated the game in terms of yardage, but the Seminoles came up with three sacks and an interception to keep them in the game – as the Nittany Lions evened the series with FSU football at 1-1-1 all time, with all contests being played in a bowl game that included the 1990 Blockbuster Bowl played in the same Miami Gardens stadium.