Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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GAME PREVIEW: FLORIDA STATE ON PAPER BY DAN MURPHY The run game has been the weakest link for Flor- FLORIDA STATE RUNNING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME RUN DEFENSE ida State this season. The Seminoles average 118.1 yards per game on the ground, which puts them at 99th in the country. Quarterback EJ Manuel's speed and size (6-5, 245 pounds) make him a tough dual threat to bring down. He and leading rusher Devonta Freeman are the team's two main weapons out of the backfield. Freeman ran for 531 yards on 107 attempts this season. Notre Dame has slipped down to the nation's 58th-best run defense, allowing 147.1 yards per game. The month-long break should help some key run stoppers heal for the Irish. Junior linebacker Manti Te'o leads the team in tackles with 115 and should have no problem with his lingering ankle injury against Florida State. Freshman defensive end Stephon Tuitt also adds depth to the defensive front with his return after missing the final two games of the regular season with an illness. Advantage: Notre Dame VFLORIDA STATE PASSING GAME S. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE Manuel does a good job spreading the ball across the field in Florida State's attack. Five different Seminole receivers have at least 25 receptions this season. Freshman speedster Rashad Greene leads that bunch with 33 catches for 497 yards and six touchdowns despite missing four games with an Achilles' injury. Redshirt freshman Clint Trickett has also played in nine games at quarterback. He started two games earlier in the year, but has not played since Nov. 3. Both Trickett and Manuel have dealt with a good deal of pressure, with Florida State's opponents averaging three sacks per game this season. If Notre Dame can create some havoc with the pass rush, its veteran secondary should be able to keep the Seminoles from any big plays. At least three Irish defensive backs will be playing their final college game in Orlando, Fla., and that experience can be a big factor. Fifth-year safety Harrison Smith had three interceptions in last year's bowl win over Miami. Advantage: Notre Dame V NOTRE DAME RUNNING GAME S. FLORIDA STATE RUN DEFENSE Despite an 8-4 record, Florida State outscored its opponents by an average of two touchdowns this season. Most of that credit goes to the country's fourth-best scoring defense (15.2 points allowed per game). Fast and physical defenses have been the Semi- noles' calling card for a long time, and this is one of their better ones. Only Alabama has given up less than Florida State's 81.8 rushing yards per game this season. The defense is led by linebacker Nigel 38 JANUARY 2012 Freshman wide receiver Rashad Greene was Florida State's leading pass catcher during the regular season with 33 receptions for 497 yards and six touchdowns despite missing four games due to injury. PHOTO BY ROSS OBLEY/COURTESY FLORIDA STATE Offense Pos. No. Name WR 7 TJ Jones 81 John Goodman WR 9 Robby Toma 7 TJ Jones LT 70 Zack Martin 72 Nick Martin LG 66 Chris Watt 51 Bruce Heggie 55 Mike Golic Jr. 76 Andrew Nuss C RG 78 Trevor Robinson 65 Conor Hanratty RT 75 Taylor Dever TE 80 Tyler Eifert or 82 Alex Welch 18 Ben Koyack Bradham (77 tackles, including nine for loss) and Berlin, Germany, import Bjoern Werner. The versa- tile sophomore has six sacks to go with eight pass breakups and an interception from his defensive end position. Irish juniors Cierre Wood and Theo Riddick will get the majority of the work in the run game. Rid- dick has moved to the backfield after senior Jonas Gray went down Nov. 19 with a season-ending ACL injury against Boston College. The Irish struggled in their season finale without Gray, gaining only 57 yards on the ground against another tough defense in Stanford. Wood ran for 1,042 yards this season, but had his worst showings on the big stage against the Cardinal and USC earlier in the year. Sophomore quarterback Andrew Hendrix could add another wrinkle to the Irish run game if he sees significant playing time. Advantage: Florida State V NOTRE DAME PASSING GAME NOTRE DAME DEPTH CHART Ht. Wt. Cl. 5-11 187 So. 6-3 207 Sr. 5-9 185 Jr. 5-11 187 So. 6-4 303 Jr. 6-4¼ 280 Fr. 6-3 310 Jr. 6-5 280 So. 6-3 295 Sr. 6-5 303 5th-Sr. 6-5 311 Sr. 6-5 315 Fr. 6-5 301 5th-Sr. WR 3 Michael Floyd 87 Daniel Smith QB 11 Tommy Rees TB 20 Cierre Wood Pos. No. Name PK 97 David Ruffer 40 Nick Tausch KO 27 Kyle Brindza 97 David Ruffer 35 Ben Turk P 27 Kyle Brindza 6 Theo Riddick 74 Christian Lombard 6-5 301 So. 6-6 249 Jr. 6-5 253 Fr. 6-4 245 So. 6-3 224 Sr. 6-4 215 So. 6-2 215 So. 12 Andrew Hendrix 6-2 220 So. 6-0 215 Jr. 5-11 198 Jr. Ht. Wt. Cl. 6-1 193 5th-Sr. 6-0 190 Jr. 6-1 219 Fr. 6-1 193 5th-Sr. 5-11 196 Jr. 6-1 219 Fr. S. FLORIDA STATE PASS DEFENSE Irish head coach Brian Kelly swiftly put an end to any quarterback debate before bowl practice Defense Pos. No. Name DE 90 Ethan Johnson or 19 Aaron Lynch NG 9 Louis Nix III or 98 Sean Cwynar DE 7 Stephon Tuitt Cat 45 Darius Fleming 1 Ishaq Williams Will 48 Dan Fox 8 Kendall Moore Ht. Wt. Cl. 6-4 300 Sr. 6-6 265 Fr. 6-3 326 So. 6-4 285 Sr. 6-6¼ 295 Fr. or 44 Carlo Calabrese Mike 5 Manti Te'o Dog 55 Prince Shembo 58 Troy Niklas S S 22 Harrison Smith 15 Dan McCarthy CB 12 Robert Blanton 23 Lo Wood or 17 Zeke Motta CB Special Teams Pos. No. Name H 50 Ryan Kavanagh 35 Ben Turk LS 50 Ryan Kavanagh or 60 Jordan Cowart PR 81 John Goodman Ht. Wt. Cl. 6-3 200 Sr. 5-11 196 Jr. 6-3 200 Sr. 6-2 215 Jr. 6-3 207 Sr. KOR 34 George Atkinson III 6-1¼ 200 Fr. 28 Austin Collinsworth 6-1 200 So. BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 50 Chase Hounshell 6-4¼ 265 Fr. 6-2 255 Sr. 6-5 255 Fr. 6-3 240 Jr. 6-1 245 Jr. 6-2 255 Jr. 6-1 242 So. 6-2 250 So. 6-6½ 250 Fr. 6-1 200 Sr. 5-10 195 So. 6-2 214 5th-Sr. 6-2 205 Sr. 26 Jamoris Slaughter 6-0 198 Sr. 6-2 215 Jr. 28 Austin Collinsworth 6-1 200 So. 4 Gary Gray 5-11 195 5th-Sr. 2 Bennett Jackson 6-0 185 So.