# 2019 Florida State Seminoles football team

The 2019 Florida State Seminoles football team represented Florida State University during the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Seminoles played their home games at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida, and competed as members of the Atlantic Division in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Florida State was initially led by second-year head coach Willie Taggart. On November 3, 2019, Taggart was fired after losing to Miami (FL) and falling to 4–5 on the season and 9–12 overall. Defensive line coach Odell Haggins was named interim head coach for the remainder of the season, for the second time during his tenure with the program. The Seminoles ultimately finished the season with a 6–7 record, completing consecutive losing seasons for the first time since the 1975 and 1976 seasons. This was the first season since 1976 that Florida State was not ranked in either of the major polls. Running back Cam Akers went on to be selected in the second round of the NFL draft.

## Preseason
### Coaching changes

In December 2018, the school hired Kendal Briles to be the new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, replacing Walt Bell, who left to take the head coaching job at UMass. Briles spent the 2018 season as offensive coordinator at Houston. In January 2019, the school hired alum Ron Dugans to coach wide receivers. In February 2019, the school fired offensive line coach Greg Frey and hired Randy Clements to the same position; Briles and Clements previously worked together on the Houston staff.

### Player news

Quarterback Deondre Francois was dismissed from the team in February 2019 after Francois' girlfriend posted a video to Instagram which alleged domestic abuse. Francois had been the starting quarterback for the Seminoles during the 2016 and 2018 seasons (an injury sustained in the first game of 2017 sidelined him for most of that season), and was set to be the starter again as a senior.
In March 2019, former Wisconsin quarterback Alex Hornibrook announced that he was transferring to Florida State for his final season of eligibility as an NCAA graduate transfer. In August 2019, Jordan Travis, a transfer quarterback from Louisville, was granted a waiver by the NCAA to be immediately eligible to play.

### Recruiting

Florida State's 2019 recruiting class consisted of 21 recruits. The class was ranked 21st in the nation and second in the ACC according to the 247Sports.com Composite. This represented the lowest-ranked class for the school since 2007.

### Spring game

The 'Garnet and Gold Game' was held on April 6 with the Gold team, led by James Blackman, victorious over the Garnet team by a score of 27–21.

### Preseason media poll

In the preseason ACC media poll, Florida State was selected to finish third in the Atlantic Division. Wide receiver Tamorrion Terry and defensive tackle Marvin Wilson were named to the preseason All-ACC team.
Media poll (Atlantic Division) :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Clemson | 1209 (171) |
| 2 | Syracuse | 913 (2) |
| 3 | Florida State | 753 |
| 4 | NC State | 666 |
| 5 | Boston College | 588 |
| 6 | Wake Forest | 462 |
| 7 | Louisville | 253 |

### Award watch lists

| Award | Player | Position | Year |
| Lott Trophy | DeCalon Brooks | LB | SO |
| Maxwell Award | Cam Akers | RB | JR |
| Bednarik Award | Marvin Wilson | DT | JR |
| Doak Walker Award | Cam Akers | RB | JR |
| Biletnikoff Award | Tamorrion Terry | WR | SO |
| Mackey Award | Tre' McKitty | TE | JR |
| Butkus Award | Dontavious Jackson | LB | SR |
| Outland Trophy | Marvin Wilson | DT | JR |
| Bronko Nagurski Trophy | Marvin Wilson | DT | JR |
| Ray Guy Award | Logan Tyler | P | SR |
| Wuerffel Trophy | DeCalon Brooks | LB | SO |
Listed in the order that they were released

## Schedule

Florida State's 2019 season was set to begin with a non-conference neutral site game at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Florida, against Boise State of the Mountain West Conference, though the game was relocated to Tallahassee due to Hurricane Dorian. In ACC play, the Seminoles played the other members of the Atlantic Division as well as Virginia and Miami from the Coastal Division. To end the year, Florida State played on the road against rival Florida of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 31 | 12:00 p.m. | Boise State* | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ESPNews | L 31–36 | 50,917 |
| September 7 | 5:00 p.m. | Louisiana–Monroe* | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ACCN | W 45–44 | 52,969 |
| September 14 | 7:30 p.m. | at No. 25 Virginia | Scott StadiumCharlottesville, VA (Jefferson-Eppes Trophy) | ACCN | L 24–31 | 57,826 |
| September 21 | 3:30 p.m. | Louisville | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ESPN | W 35–24 | 46,530 |
| September 28 | 7:30 p.m. | NC State | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ACCN | W 31–13 | 60,351 |
| October 12 | 3:30 p.m. | at No. 2 Clemson | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC (rivalry) | ABC | L 14–45 | 80,500 |
| October 19 | 7:30 p.m. | at Wake Forest | BB&T FieldWinston-Salem, NC | ACCN | L 20–22 | 24,782 |
| October 26 | 3:30 p.m. | Syracuse | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ESPN2 | W 35–17 | 50,517 |
| November 2 | 3:30 p.m. | Miami (FL) | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL (Florida Cup/rivalry) | ABC | L 10–27 | 63,995 |
| November 9 | 12:00 p.m. | at Boston College | Alumni StadiumChestnut Hill, MA | ACCN | W 38–31 | 37,312 |
| November 16 | 12:00 p.m. | Alabama State* | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ACCRSN | W 49–12 | 52,857 |
| November 30 | 7:30 p.m. | at No. 8 Florida* | Ben Hill Griffin StadiumGainesville, FL (Florida Cup/Sunshine Showdown) | SECN | L 17–40 | 89,409 |
| December 31 | 2:00 p.m. | vs. Arizona State* | Sun BowlEl Paso, TX (Sun Bowl) | CBS | L 14–20 | 42,412 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP PollAll times are in Eastern time |||||||
* ↑ The game against Boise State was originally scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET at TIAA Bank Stadium in Jacksonville, but was moved over safety concerns related to Hurricane Dorian.

## Game summaries
### Vs. Boise State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Broncos | 6 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 36 |
| Seminoles | 21 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 31 |

### Louisiana–Monroe

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Warhawks | 0 | 7 | 14 | 17 | 6 | 44 |
| Seminoles | 14 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 45 |

### At Virginia

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Seminoles | 0 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 24 |
| No. 25 Cavaliers | 3 | 7 | 0 | 21 | 31 |

### Louisville

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cardinals | 0 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 24 |
| Seminoles | 21 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 35 |

### NC State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Wolfpack | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 13 |
| Seminoles | 3 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 31 |

### At Clemson

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Seminoles | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| No. 2 Tigers | 14 | 14 | 14 | 3 | 45 |

### At Wake Forest

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Seminoles | 0 | 14 | 0 | 6 | 20 |
| Demon Deacons | 6 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 22 |

### Syracuse

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Orange | 0 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 17 |
| Seminoles | 13 | 8 | 14 | 0 | 35 |

### Miami (FL)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hurricanes | 7 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 27 |
| Seminoles | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 10 |

### At Boston College

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Seminoles | 3 | 7 | 14 | 14 | 38 |
| Eagles | 7 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 31 |

### Alabama State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hornets | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 12 |
| Seminoles | 14 | 7 | 14 | 14 | 49 |

### At Florida

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Seminoles | 7 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 17 |
| No. 8 Gators | 7 | 23 | 7 | 3 | 40 |

### Vs. Arizona State (Sun Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Seminoles | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 14 |
| Sun Devils | 3 | 6 | 0 | 11 | 20 |

## Honors

Weekly awards :
| Player | Award | Week Awarded | Ref. |
| Cam Akers | ACC Running Back of the Week | Week 2 Week 4 Week 9 | |
| Marvin Wilson | ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week | Week 4 | |
| Alex Hornibrook | ACC Quarterback of the Week | Week 5 | |
| Cyrus Fagan | ACC Defensive Back of the Week | Week 5 | |
| Amari Gainer | ACC Rookie of the Week | Week 5 | |
| Hamsah Nasirildeen | ACC Defensive Back of the Week | Week 9 Week 11 Week 12 | [40][42] [43] |
| Tamorrion Terry | ACC Receiver of the Week | Week 11 | |

### All-ACC

The Seminoles had six players selected to the All-ACC team, with four defensive selections and two offensive selections.
* Marvin Wilson (first team)
* Cam Akers (second team)
* Tamorrion Terry (second team)
* Hamsah Nasirildeen (second team)
* Asante Samuel, Jr. (Third Team)
* Stanford Samuels III (Honorable Mention)

## Players drafted into the NFL

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
| 2 | 52 | Cam Akers | RB | Los Angeles Rams |