A Disappointing Upset
- Claire Lawler
- Sep 22
- 3 min read
Florida State Football vs. Virginia
On Sept. 20, the Florida State Seminoles (FSU) played against the Virginia Cavaliers. Coming off of a 3-0 win streak, FSU was looking for another easy win. Away from their home stadium, FSU had to rise above the loud environment. Virginia won the coin toss and by the end of the first quarter Virginia was up by 7 points.
Following a slow start down by 14, FSU added a touchdown to the board, making the score 14-7 Virginia. With momentum on their side, FSU dominated on the defense, which resulted in Edwin Joseph making an interception. FSU evens the score with a touchdown by Randy Pittman Jr. Following another interception in favor of FSU they scored their third consecutive touchdown. However, Virginia tied it up once more before the end of the second quarter.
“I think the refs affected the game to an extent but it was really more of a situational loss for Florida state. It was going to Virginia on a Friday night,” Sophomore Jonny Papuchis said. “I think we could've done a lot of things better and come out with the win. I meant there was a crucial part at the end of the game but it never should've gotten to that point. So they affected the game but we also lost ourselves.”
The start of the second half was underway with Virginia regaining the lead with Virginia’s Chandler Morris’ scoring his second rushing touchdown making the score 28-21 Virginia. FSU ties it up with a jump pass to 28-28. The start of the 4th quarter was underway and Virginia came out strong with a touchdown, forcing FSU to even it up to be able to go into overtime. Florida State scored an amazing touchdown on 4th down, ties the score and forces overtime with another interception.
Florida State gets a field goal and Virginia matches that to continue into a 2nd overtime. Virginia starts with the ball and Morris runs it in for a touchdown. They choose to take a 2-point conversion and a pass to Trell Harris, making the score 46-38 Virginia. This would mean that the Seminoles would have to get a touchdown and a 2-point conversion. FSU throws the ball to Duce Robinson in the endzone which results in a touchdown ruling on the field but the play goes under review due to speculation regarding Robinson's control over the ball in the end zone. After a controversial call by the ref, the play is overturned and Virginia beats FSU 46-38.
"Clearly that was a Duce Robinson TD catch in overtime and that changes the whole momentum of the game,” Junior Tucker Poppell said. “He should've caught it the first time but there wasn't enough evidence to reverse the field call.”
Throughout the whole game, the refs were making controversial calls and many opinions regarding the last play in overtime. Though this may be true, FSU was ranked number 8 in the country and after beating a top team, Alabama, in the season opener, the defense was expected to put more pressure on the quarterback in the pocket.
“The refs rigged the game,” freshman Anthony White said. “In overtime Duce's catch was complete and if they called that correctly we would have a chance at a 2-point conversion to continue the game. There were catches throughout the game that were called unfairly and overall that affected our game.”
After countless interviews with head coach Mike Norvell, FSU is ready to come out strong following their rivalry game loss against the University of Miami on Saturday, Oct. 4, with the final score 28-22 Miami. After a week of practice, the Florida State Seminoles are more determined than ever to get back on track with their upcoming game against unranked Pittsburgh on Saturday, Oct. 11.
Comments