FSU Football: How did #Tribe19 play against Alabama State?

After FSU football’s win against Alabama State on Saturday, Chop Chat’s Sam Tschida takes a look at how the true freshmen played against the Hornets.

FSU football is going bowling once again after a nice 49-12 win over Alabama State over the weekend. While in no way was it a perfect game, it was a nice win for the home fans on Senior Day and provides a major positive before the rivalry game against the Gators in two weeks.

With a game against an FCS team comes a lot of opportunities for freshmen to get playing time, and Saturday saw a whole host of Tribe19 members see game action.

Offense

In the last two games, a total of three true freshmen have started on the offensive line for the ‘Noles. Despite missing the BC game, Dontae Lucas once again got the start against Alabama State at left guard, his eighth start of the season. However, the two true freshmen who played last week against the Eagles did not get any reps against the Hornets.

Florida State Seminoles Football

Darius Washington, the former three-star out of Pensacola who had started the last four games at left tackle, is now out for the seasons with an injury. The injury apparently requires surgery, meaning FSU is now without their second-best tackle. The only good news is that Washington can now redshirt, saving a season of eligibility.

Maurice Smith was not listed on the injury report but did not dress out for yesterday’s game. Smith has appeared in two games this season, including getting the start against BC. This move was most likely to preserve Smith’s redshirt since he can now still play against Florida and in the bowl game and still maintain a redshirt.

This made for Dontae Lucas the only true freshman to get any playing time against Alabama State. Lucas helped pave the way for 525 yards of total offense, and helped the ‘Noles offense average 9.4 yards-per-play, their highest total all season. Lucas himself played well and graded out at 65 according to Pro Football Focus.

While he is not a true freshman or member of Tribe19, Jordan Travis deserves a special shoutout. The redshirt freshman transfer from Louisville once again got snaps against the Hornets, and actually threw some passes. He went 3 of 7 for 71 yards and ran the ball four times for 69 yards.

Defense

The defense did not have a great day against the Hornets. While only allowing twelve points, the Hornets were able to drive the ball up and down the field during the second and third quarters. The ‘Noles forced several red-zone stops, but if the Hornets were to hit a few of their field goals, this game might have been a bit of a different story.

Still, only allowing 12 points, even against an FCS school, is still impressive. And with the blowout came the opportunity for a whole bunch of true freshmen to get playing time,

Akeem Dent got another start at free safety and had another stellar day despite a dropped interception. Dent had four tackles on the day, three of them solo, and had two passes defended on the day.

Elsewhere in the secondary, Raymond Woodie III and Brendan Gant also received significant playing time. Gant recorded four tackles before being ejected for targeting off an interception.

That interception went to Raymond Woodie III, and while it was not officially recorded he did make a great play on the ball. Woodie played the most snaps of his career, a total of 32, and recorded 3 tackles along with one pass defended. Woodie also graded out as one of the highest-rated players on the team with a 74.8 grading from Pro Football Focus.

In the front seven, Tru Thompson once again received a large amount of playing time in the absence of Marvin Wilson. Thompson had a great game, recording three tackles and his first career sack. Thompson also graded out as one of the top performers according to Pro Football Focus, grading out at 72.6.

On the defensive line, true freshmen Derrick McClendon and Quashon Fuller both received snaps, although neither recorded any stats. At linebacker, both Kalen Deloach and Jaleel McRae received significant playing time, with each recording a tackle.

Bottom Line

The ‘Noles are going bowling, and the true freshmen of Tribe19 are a large reason why. The future is bright with a lot of these cats, and FSU fans should be excited to watch them develop.