It was supposed to be easy. It was supposed to be a route. Coming in to Saturday night’s opening game between the national champion Florida State Seminoles and Oklahoma State Cowboys, the writing was clearly on the wall. This game would be all about the Seminoles and star quarterback Jameis Winston. And according to the oddsmakers, FSU was strongly favored by 19 points.
But, as usual, the two teams had to play the actual game on the field. And in the end, it was nothing like anyone could have ever predicted.
Fans at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Tex. were treated to a thriller than ended with the Seminoles defeating the Cowboys 37-31.
But how did the Pokes keep the game that close? According to the stats, Winston threw for 370 yards and ran for a touchdown. The Seminoles racked up 476 yards in total offense — over 100 more than the Cowboys. The Seminoles’ time of possession was six minutes greater. And then there was the experience factor — Oklahoma State had only two players on offense with more than 10 career starts.
Photo: Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston throwing a pass during Saturday night’s opener against Oklahoma State
Photo source: Instagram
So what happened?
What happened was that the Cowboys were not afraid. They played with tremendous excitement, pride and confidence. if the coach of the year were to be named after only a single game, it would be Cowboys coach Mike Gundy.
“You don’t ever know what to expect with so many young players on the field,” said Gundy. “But we never saw any fear in any of their eyes.”
Winston, last year’s Heisman winner, had decent numbers but looked frustrated and confused at times. Afterwards, he recognized that his team needs to play better to get back to the level they performed at a season ago.
“We’ve got to get better,” Winston said. “I told our guys … we’ve got to go higher.”
Perhaps the players on FSU did not realize how tough their competition would be this season considering that they have a huge target on their back now. I know it’s a cliche, but every team they play this season will be that team’s national championship game.
And Oklahoma State gave it their best shot.
Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher knew this game would be tougher than the “experts” predicted.
“We all preached it, but I do think they felt the pressure of being No. 1. I do,” Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher said. “Now I think we can relax and go play football.”
As for this point forward, Fisher believes that his team is a work in progress.
“We’re still a work in progress,” Fisher said. “We all know that. “We have some good players but we still have to play good. It’s not about being great; it’s about playing great.”
Fisher is right. Florida State was punched in the mouth by Oklahoma State — but they stayed on their feet to pull out the victory. And after all, isn’t that the name of the game?