What Went Wrong for FSU Against Louisville?
The turning point: the play call and the response.
The Turning Point: The Play Call and the Response
FSU jumped out to a 14–0 lead, and the offense looked dominant early. The Seminoles were moving the ball and had a chance to take a three-possession lead. On fourth-and-goal from the two-yard line, Mike Norvell decided to go for the touchdown instead of taking the field goal.
Going for it wasn’t what bothered me most. It was the play call.
Why not trust Ousmane Kromah to get two yards? Or give a receiver a chance to catch the ball in the end zone? Instead, FSU threw a screen to true freshman Jasen Lopez behind the line of scrimmage. Louisville stopped him for a loss and took over at its own three. On the next play, Isaac Brown ran 97 yards for a touchdown. FSU’s offense then went three-and-out, gaining just two yards.
| Team | Points | Offensive yards |
|---|---|---|
| FSU | 6 | 232 |
| Louisville | 44 | 507 |
The numbers show how far the game slipped away. After FSU took its 14–0 lead, Louisville outscored the Seminoles 44–6 and outgained them 507–232. Louisville scored 35 straight points before FSU reached the end zone again.
Even after the failed fourth down, there was time to respond. Instead, FSU’s next five possessions ended in punts. Three were three-and-outs. The offense that looked comfortable early couldn’t put together another scoring drive until the fourth quarter.
What concerned me most was how the team looked during that stretch. It felt like the effort and physicality we saw early started disappearing. Louisville deserves credit for fighting back, but FSU looked like a different team once something went wrong.
I can’t tell you what was being said inside the locker room. But watching that response makes me question the culture being built in this program. A failed fourth down shouldn’t be enough to knock a team out of its game. Neither should one long touchdown.
To me, the Florida State standard means being tough, responding to adversity, and wearing your opponent down. Friday night, I didn’t see enough of that after the early lead. Over the past few years, that toughness hasn’t shown up consistently enough.
The screen was one bad play. How FSU responded to it was the bigger problem.