# 1996 Florida State Seminoles football team

The 1996 Florida State Seminoles football team represented Florida State University in the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Bobby Bowden and played their home games at Doak Campbell Stadium. The team was selected national champion by Alderson.
Florida State completed just their third undefeated regular season, and for the second straight season, running back Warrick Dunn was a Heisman Trophy finalist.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 7 | 3:30 p.m. | Duke | No. 3 | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ABC | W 44–7 | 80,032 |
| September 19 | 8:00 p.m. | at NC State | No. 3 | Carter–Finley StadiumRaleigh, NC | ESPN | W 51–17 | 45,700 |
| September 28 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 11 North Carolina | No. 2 | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ABC | W 13–0 | 80,120 |
| October 5 | 7:00 p.m. | Clemson | No. 2 | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL (rivalry) | ESPN | W 34–3 | 76,360 |
| October 12 | 3:30 p.m. | at No. 6 Miami (FL)* | No. 3 | Miami Orange BowlMiami, FL (rivalry) | CBS | W 34–16 | 75,913 |
| October 26 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 14 Virginia | No. 3 | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL (Jefferson-Eppes Trophy) | ABC | W 31–24 | 80,237 |
| November 2 | 7:00 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | No. 3 | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA | ESPN | W 49–3 | 46,311 |
| November 9 | 12:00 p.m. | at Wake Forest | No. 3 | Florida Citrus BowlOrlando, FL (Dowdy Aviation Classic) | JPS | W 44–7 | 34,974 |
| November 16 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 25 Southern Miss* | No. 3 | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ESPN | W 54–14 | 77,280 |
| November 23 | 3:30 p.m. | vs. Maryland | No. 3 | Pro Player StadiumMiami Gardens, FL | ABC | W 48–10 | 31,989 |
| November 30 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 1 Florida* | No. 2 | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL (rivalry, College GameDay) | ABC | W 24–21 | 80,932 |
| January 2 | 8:00 p.m. | vs. No. 3 Florida* | No. 1 | Louisiana SuperdomeNew Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl, College GameDay) | ABC | L 20–52 | 78,344 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Final |
| AP | 3 (5) | 3 (5) | 3 (5) | 3 (3) | 3 (4) | 2 (13) | 2 (8) | 3 (4) | 3 (5) | 3 (5) | 3 (3) | 3 (2) | 3 (2) | 3 (4) | 2 (5) | 1 (61) | 1 (62) | 3 |
| Coaches | 3 (6) | | 3 (3) | 3 (1) | 3 (1) | 2 (22) | 2 (9) | 3 (6) | 2 (7) | 2 (5) | 2 (5) | 2 (5) | 3 (8) | 3 (7) | 2 (7) | 1 (56) | 1 (57) | 3 |

## 1997 NFL Draft

The following Seminoles were selected in the 1997 NFL draft, including four players taken in the first fourteen picks.
| Player | Position | Round | Overall | NFL team |
| Peter Boulware | Linebacker | 1 | 4 | Baltimore Ravens |
| Walter Jones | Offensive tackle | 1 | 6 | Seattle Seahawks |
| Warrick Dunn | Running back | 1 | 12 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Reinard Wilson | Linebacker | 1 | 14 | Cincinnati Bengals |
| Henri Crockett | Linebacker | 4 | 100 | Atlanta Falcons |
| Vernon Crawford | Linebacker | 5 | 159 | New England Patriots |
| Byron Capers | Cornerback | 7 | 225 | Philadelphia Eagles |