Florida State falls 16-13 to Georgia Tech in Mike Norvell’s debut

TALLAHASSEE — The first seven minutes of Mike Norvell’s Florida State debut Saturday showed the kind of team his Seminoles can eventually become.

The final 53 minutes were a reminder of the mediocre reality he inherited.

The Seminoles jumped out to a two-score lead before reverting back to the Willie Taggart era in a season-opening 16-13 loss to Georgia Tech at Doak Campbell Stadium.

FSU (0-1, 0-1 ACC) immediately shined in some of the facets Norvell began stressing in his introductory news conference.

Florida State coach Mike Norvell talks with Georgia Tech’s Geoff Collins before the game. [ DON JUAN MOORE | Don Juan Moore ]

A commitment to special teams? Renardo Green — one of the many starters playing the game’s third phase — blew up the opening kickoff. FSU failed to block a field goal during Taggart’s two seasons. Marvin Wilson blocked two in Norvell’s first half.

A focus on turnovers through the Mission: Takeaway updates on social media? NFL prospect Asante Samuel had a pair of them in the first half, with one of his interceptions ending the Yellow Jackets’ promising opening drive.

A creative offense built for playmakers? That clicked immediately. Every snap on FSU’s opening drive gained at least 3 yards. Running back La’Damian Webb lined up outside to the right, then ran left for a jet sweep. Receiver Keyshawn Helton started wide left, motioned right before the snap and slipped through for a 3-yard touchdown catch. Then Norvell would show the same look, only to dump a screen the other way to the spot Helton vacated.

Norvell even handled the biggest wildcard — a 75-minute rain delay —well. Georgia Tech (1-0, 1-0) gained only 27 yards in its first drive after the break, and FSU followed it with a field goal. Then again, that shouldn’t be a surprise; Norvell spent time recently discussing rain delays with his team, just in case.

“I don’t know how many teams in the country have discussed the new rain delay rule,” offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham said Monday. “No little detail is going to go past him. And all that stuff is why he’s the head coach he is.”

But he’s the head coach at FSU because the ‘Noles needed a change after suffering through their worst three-year stretch since 1974-76. The program is nowhere near ready to start challenging Clemson or Florida.

And it showed for most of the final three quarters.

After the first two promising drives, the offense stagnated. James Blackman hit 6 of his first 7 passes, then missed on 15 of his next 25 —in part because his receivers dropped too many balls.

The defense was fine, but not as good as it can be or as impressive as the scoreboard suggested.

Georgia Tech quarterback Jeff Sims — the longtime FSU commit who flipped last December — sliced through FSU’s defense at times in the first game of his college career.

Georgia Tech quarterback Jeff Sims on a passing play during the first half. [ DON JUAN MOORE | Don Juan Moore ]

The Jacksonville native converted a trio of third downs by himself on one third-quarter drive, leading to a touchdown that cut FSU’s lead to 10-7. His fade to Malachi Carter in the back corner of the end zone was gorgeous and should have given his team the lead with 13:17 left. But Janarius Robinson blocked the extra point — another reminder of Norvell’s special-teams prowess.

FSU ultimately couldn’t overcome two of its years-long problems: An awful offensive line and inexcusable penalties.

Running backs had few creases to run through, with Webb and Jashaun Corbin combining for 78 yards on 19 carries. Blackman’s pocket collapsed at the end. He was sacked on back-to-back plays in the fourth quarter, fumbling on the second to set up Georgia Tech’s go-ahead field goal.

Late in the fourth quarter, a false start penalty pushed FSU back on fourth and 3. When the line leaked again, Blackman had to scramble under pressure before coming up short.

Just like Norvell’s debut.

• The game environment in the COVID-19 era wasn’t as weird as I expected. It obviously didn’t have the buzz of a primetime game against Clemson or Notre Dame, with only 17,538 fans. It felt more like a spring game which, all things considered, isn’t bad. And spectators were spread out more than they appeared to be on TV.

• Because Willie Taggart failed to sign a quarterback in either of his two classes, I thought four-star quarterback Jeff Sims would be one of FSU’s most important recruits in years. We saw why. Sims, a Jacksonville native who flipped from the Seminoles to Georgia Tech, looked the part of a future star, starting in the first game of his Yellow Jackets career.

• Asante Samuel proved why he’s a high-end NFL prospect. As if his two interceptions weren’t enough, he nearly had a third and broke up a deep ball in the second half, too.