Florida State originally had three participants in the 2025 Reese's Senior Bowl with defensive back Azareye'h Thomas, defensive tackle Joshua Farmer Sr., and kicker Ryan Fitzgerald.
However, Thomas was not on the roster for the Senior Bowl before the game. This was likely because NFL teams did not want him to risk an injury since he has a late first/early second-round draft grade. Nonetheless, the Seminole fan base was still able to watch Joshua Farmer and Ryan Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald got his moment to time in the Senior Bowl where the National coaching staff decided to line up for a field-goal attempt from 57 yards with the former Seminole standout.
The score was tied at 8 a piece with 3:43 left to go in the second quarter. Even though Fitzgerald had enough distance on the 57-yard attempt, he hooked the kick to the right. This was unfortunate since Fitzgerald had not missed a field goal attempt since the 2023 season.
Fitzgerald went 13 for 13 in 2024. He had an exceptional 2023 campaign as well where he converted on 19 of his 21 attempts. During the 2022 season, this is why the fan base doubted his abilities where he only made 12 of his 20 field goals.
Luckily, the talented kicker was able to redeem himself in the Senior Bowl, where he was asked to go back out there and connect on a 39-yard attempt to give the National Team an 11-8 lead with 32 seconds left to go in the third quarter. I was glad to see that he bounced back from the earlier 57-yard miss.
It has been a long journey for the talented kicker. I hope that he can have a long career in the NFL and make Florida State football fans very proud.