FSU football: Where have Noles made biggest improvements?

FSU football fans began the season wanting to see improvement on the field. Expectations were super low, with hopes of winning 5-7 games and making a bowl game.

The message to recruits was similar, expect improvements, but they may not show up in the wins column. That is what we got with the first game of the season against Notre Dame. FSU went into that game as a touchdown underdog and took the Fighting Irish into overtime before losing on a last-second field goal.

The thought was they didn’t play a clean game at all with three turnovers and nine penalties but still had an opportunity to win the game. The program seemed to be heading in the right direction, with the players giving tremendous effort and showing the ability to overcome a double-digit deficit.

That was something FSU football fans had not experienced in years since the team would fold once adversity struck in recent years. The next game against Jacksonville State undid all of the goodwill built up in the offseason and the Notre Dame game.

The worst loss in FSU football history, followed by a blowout loss against Wake Forest. It seemed possible the Noles would only win one game all year, but things seemed to click for the Noles as they roared back in the second half against Louisville.

It was another loss that put the Noles at 0-4 for the first time since the early 70s. However, in the second half of that game, we could see tangible improvements since the Notre Dame game.

We’ve seen steady progress since, culminating in back-to-back wins for the first time since the 2019 season. Let’s look at where we’ve seen the most improvements at mid-season compared to last year.