Florida State

[catfan043]

Let me first say that i'm a die hard Cats fan and will be rooting for them as hard as i can on New Years Eve. Back a few years ago, the cats were not competing on national level so i decided to find a top-tier program i liked and that was FSU. Since then i have watched alot of there games and followed them pretty closely, so i thought i could give some insight on what kind of team they have for those that don't know alot about them

Offense-
-D. Weatherford 1773 passing yards, 8 td's. One of the most up and down players i have ever watched, but when he is on he is capable of big things.
-A. Smith 663 yards, 3 td's. A solid running back, but no better then what we have faced in the SEC.
- D. Fagg 707 yards, 5 td's. A deep ball threat and a very talented reciver, we need to keep somebody all over him at all times.
-G. Carr 696 yards, 3 td's. A huge reciever and is capable of going up and getting balls over top of the defenders but thats really his only strength.
-P. Parker 269 rushing yards, 3 td's, 686 receiving yards, 3 td's. Probably their biggest threat against us, he can do it all and is very quick.

Their Defense is also pretty stout but inconsistent as well, Geno Hayes is a stud though and Woodson needs to have an idea where he is at all times.

Should be a great game, i think the Cats have a great chance and a win over FSU would be huge for the program even though they are a little down right now.

[johnkyblue]

What SEC team that we played would you compare them too?

[catfan043]

Probably South Carolina

[The Old School JPS]

That's a good comparison (Florida State and South Carolina). They both have inconsistent offenses with adequate skill players and a very good receiver, and surprisingly tenacious defenses, and no one player or handful of players who stand out as head and shoulders above the others, but instead a fairly solid if not spectacular group of players on both sides of the ball. Also, neither program came anywhere close to living up to the preseason expectations of fans or pundits.

Somewhat unrelated, but: will the stadium this year look like it did in 1999, all blue save for a small sliver of orange (garnet and gold this year)? Or will it be more like it was last year vs. Clemson? I have to think that a ton of tickets were bought up by UK fans, and early. Granted, FSU will have far more fans to travel than Syracuse, and I'm sure there are plenty of affluent Seminoles fans responsible for a heck of a lot of commerce on StubHub and similar sites. Still, how predominant do you think UK fans will be at the stadium this year?

[UedK]

....................

Somewhat unrelated, but: will the stadium this year look like it did in 1999, all blue save for a small sliver of orange (garnet and gold this year)? Or will it be more like it was last year vs. Clemson? I have to think that a ton of tickets were bought up by UK fans, and early. Granted, FSU will have far more fans to travel than Syracuse, and I'm sure there are plenty of affluent Seminoles fans responsible for a heck of a lot of commerce on StubHub and similar sites. Still, how predominant do you think UK fans will be at the stadium this year?

Well, The UKAA is filling all 28,000 ticket requests by season ticket holders and you can bet that there are thousands more who pre-brought and will scramble for tickets. Last year we only had 22,000 tickets pre-ordered and you saw the sea of blue. I bet this year we have 75-80% of the crowd. I just hope we can drown out that Seminole war chant.

[poodoo]

Thanks for sharing, catfan043. Too, I already suspect that Trevard Lindley will be assigned to cover Mr. Fagg. Also, I admit that I hope their quarterback has one of his "down" days AND that we handle their running game well. Naturally, may the UK offensive line protect Andre well, especially against Mr. Hayes.

UK simply MUST WIN this bowl game and MAKE HISTORY, wiining back-to-back bowls for the first time in OVER HALF A CENTURY. Here's hoping we see an unbelievably, BLUE, LOUD crowd and a HAPPY UK team and crowd, which we saw last year. :)

[cardsnolesfan]

Figured I might as well chime in here with some input:

The key to this game, I believe, will be FSU's d-line vs. UK's O-line. A brilliant observation, I know, as that is the key to most games! However, it takes on added importance in this one, as FSU's secondary is suspect at best. If Woodson has all day to throw, the 'Noles are toast. The good news for the white hats is that the D-line is pretty stout and I believe they will be in Woodson's face most of the day. On the offensive side of the ball, there has been cause for concern in most every game for us Seminole fans. Drew is a good pocket passer, a fine QB really, and has been deadly accurate this year, but the lack of a consistent running game forces the 'Noles to pass the ball, and the opposing D knows this.

One thing that some of my fellow fans have discussed is the possibility of a letdown on the UK sideline. I know the Cats started off 6-1, something like that, and ended up in the same bowl as last year. Could this be similar to the Clemson team of last year, who came out with no fight or desire? My answer is no. My reasoning isn't a bash on the team or program, but simply put I believe that ANY bowl game for UK is considered a triumph at this point. FSU has gone to 28 straight bowls, and I see from the UK site that this is the 12th for UK, so I just can't imagine the UK players taking this for granted.

All that being said, I am an FSU fan and hope like mad that they win. I have an opportunity to go to the game, but will be spending New Year's Eve with my family, so to everyone that goes - have a great time!

Also, I am not one of those rabid fans who digest every game tape and tendency, so some of my observations may be a bit off. They are just my observations.

[Matt Dillon]

Actually, it's 26 straight bowls, but whose counting, right?

http://www.kentucky.com/295/story/247481.html

[cardsnolesfan]

Not sure how to post links, but the FSU page at CBS Sportsline says 28:

http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/teams/report/FLST/10513717

One of them's right, but 26 straight bowl appearances isn't bad, so I'm happy either way!

[Matt Dillon]

Not sure how to post links, but the FSU page at CBS Sportsline says 28:

http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/teams/report/FLST/10513717

One of them's right, but 26 straight bowl appearances isn't bad, so I'm happy either way!

It's nice to be happy.

[UedK]

Not sure how to post links, but the FSU page at CBS Sportsline says 28:

http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/teams/report/FLST/10513717

One of them's right, but 26 straight bowl appearances isn't bad, so I'm happy either way!

Good to be happy. Your noles and cards have a lot in common. Over the past nine year UL bowl record = 6Ls vs 4Ws, FSU = 5Ls vs 4Ws.

UK's recent bowl history has them batting 100% (LOL)

[uk num 1]

Thanks to everyone who commented on the things to watch for. Interesting stuff.