Seminoles knock off LSU 27-21, remain unbeaten

The top-ranked Florida State Seminoles defeated #2 LSU 27-21 in front of a record crowd at Tiger Stadium. It was a somewhat sloppy game between two great teams, filled with turnovers, penalties, dropped passes, and even a weather delay with 23 seconds left in the3rd quarter.

The Seminoles jumped out to an early 10-0 lead and were poised to extend the lead to 17-0 when RB Chris Thompson fumbled the ball inside the LSU 15 yard line. LSU responded with a TDto cut the lead to 10-7. The Seminole defense who were in the face of LSU QB Zach Mettenburger all game, held for for the remainder of the half, and FSU extended its lead to 20-7 at halftime with two field goals, including an improbable 61 yarder as time expired in the half.

Neither team scored in the 3rd quarter, but after FSU QB E.J.Manuel threw two INTs in the quarter, one to SS Eric Reid,and the other to the Honey Badger, LSU found itself with the ball first and goal at the end of the 3rd quarter. Then, officials delayed the game because of lightning in the area --- aka the game froze and the teams had to restart and run the clock, hence the posted game stats on the EA website being wrong.

When play resumed, LSU RB Spencer Ware scored on a run on 4th and goal from the 1 yard line, cutting the Seminole lead to 20-14. The LSU defense then forced a fumble when WR Christian Green coughed up the ball after making a big first down catch. LSU drove into the red zone, but Mettenburger threw an interception, giving the ball back to Florida State with less than 3 minutes remaining.

A few plays later, Thompson broke free on a 50+ yard TD scamper, and with under 2 minutes left, the Noles led 27-14. LSU fought back however, and after a key screen pass to Ware on third and long, the Tigers had the ball inside the FSU red zone yet again.

LSU hit paydirt with under 1 minute left in the game, cutting the lead to 27-21. With only 1 timeout left for LSU, The onside kick was forthcoming.

The kick went about 7-8 yards, and an LSU player pounced on the ball. Referees gave the ball to Florida State, but LSU Coach cjohnchavis was emphatic that the ball grazed off of a Seminole player before the Tigers recovered. Video evidence was not available and the booth did not review the play.

The Noles ran the clock out, and escaped with a 27-21 victory. These teams will likely be favored to meet again in the SEC Championship Game at season's end.

"We didn't play our best game and had 4 costly turnovers, but we won a game in a hostile environment against a talented squad," said FSU Coach UTVOL54. "Our defense came up with huge plays when we needed them."

Florida State will hang on to its #1 ranking, with fellow unbeatens Texas and Michigan close behind.