2018 Florida State Seminoles football team

2018 Florida State Seminoles football
2018 Florida State Seminoles football
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
	Atlantic Division
Record	5–7 (3–5 ACC)
Head coach	Willie Taggart (1st season);
Offensive coordinator	Walt Bell (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Gulf Coast
Defensive coordinator	Harlon Barnett (1st season)
Base defense	Multiple
Captain	Ricky Aguayo; Alec Eberle; Brian Burns
Home stadium	Doak Campbell Stadium
Uniform
	Seasons ← 2017 2019 →

The 2018 Florida State Seminoles football team represented Florida State University during the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Seminoles were led by first-year head coach Willie Taggart and played their home games at Doak Campbell Stadium. They competed as members of the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

2018 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Atlantic Division
No. 1 Clemson x$#^	8	–	0	15	–	0
No. 15 Syracuse	6	–	2	10	–	3
NC State	5	–	3	9	–	4
Boston College	4	–	4	7	–	5
Wake Forest	3	–	5	7	–	6
Florida State	3	–	5	5	–	7
Louisville	0	–	8	2	–	10
Coastal Division
Pittsburgh x	6	–	2	7	–	7
Georgia Tech	5	–	3	7	–	6
Miami (FL)	4	–	4	7	–	6
Virginia	4	–	4	8	–	5
Virginia Tech	4	–	4	6	–	7
Duke	3	–	5	8	–	5
North Carolina	1	–	7	2	–	9
Championship: Clemson 42, Pittsburgh 10
# – College Football Playoff champion ^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The Seminoles finished the season with a losing record for the first time since 1976, missing a bowl game for the first time since 1981.^[1] Linebacker Brian Burns went on to be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft,^[2] with defensive tackle Demarcus Christmas being selected in the sixth round.

Recruiting

Position key

Back	B	Center	C	Cornerback	CB	Defensive back	DB
Defensive end	DE	Defensive lineman	DL	Defensive tackle	DT	End	E
Fullback	FB	Guard	G	Halfback	HB	Kicker	K
Kickoff returner	KR	Offensive tackle	OT	Offensive lineman	OL	Linebacker	LB
Long snapper	LS	Punter	P	Punt returner	PR	Quarterback	QB
Running back	RB	Safety	S	Tight end	TE	Wide receiver	WR

The Seminoles signed a total of 21 recruits.

US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Robert Cooper DT	Snellville, GA	South Gwinnett High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	377 lb (171 kg)	Jun 16, 2016
Robert Cooper DT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Christian Meadows OG	Montezuma, GA	Macon County High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	330 lb (150 kg)	Jul 29, 2016
Christian Meadows OG	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Asante Samuel Jr. CB	Fort Lauderdale, FL	St. Thomas Aquinas High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	164 lb (74 kg)	Apr 13, 2017
Asante Samuel Jr. CB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Anthony Lytton CB	Upper Marlboro, MD	Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	173 lb (78 kg)	Apr 27, 2017
Anthony Lytton CB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Amari Gainer LB	Tallahassee, FL	Lawton Chiles High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	194 lb (88 kg)	May 26, 2017
Amari Gainer LB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
D'Marcus Adams WR	Daytona Beach, FL	Mainland High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Jun 14, 2017
D'Marcus Adams WR	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Christian Armstrong OT	Warner Robins, GA	Warner Robins High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	335 lb (152 kg)	Jun 25, 2017
Christian Armstrong OT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Chaz Neal DE	Wesley Chapel, FL	Wesley Chapel High School	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	253 lb (115 kg)	Jul 20, 2017
Chaz Neal DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jaiden Woodbey S	Bellflower, CA	St. John Bosco High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	204 lb (93 kg)	Dec 20, 2017
Jaiden Woodbey S	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Isaiah Bolden CB	Tampa, FL	Wesley Chapel High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Dec 22, 2017
Isaiah Bolden CB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Camren McDonald TE	Long Beach, CA	Poly High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Jan 13, 2018
Camren McDonald TE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jalen Goss OT	Valdosta, GA	Lowndes High School	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	265 lb (120 kg)	Jan 15, 2018
Jalen Goss OT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Xavier Peters LB	West Chester, OH	Lakota West High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Jan 28, 2018
Xavier Peters LB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Dennis Briggs DE	Kissimmee, FL	Gateway High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	252 lb (114 kg)	Jan 28, 2018
Dennis Briggs DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Warren Thompson WR	Seffner, FL	Armwood High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Jan 31, 2018
Warren Thompson WR	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Keyshawn Helton WR	Pensacola, FL	West Florida Tech High School	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	Feb 4, 2018
Keyshawn Helton WR	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A
Anthony Grant RB	Buford, GA	Buford High School	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Anthony Grant RB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Malcolm Lamar DE	Seffner, FL	Armwood High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Malcolm Lamar DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jamarcus Chatman DT	Rome, GA	Rome High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	266 lb (121 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Jamarcus Chatman DT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Tre'Shaun Harrison WR	Seattle, WA	Garfield High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Tre'Shaun Harrison WR	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jordan Young WR	Conyers, GA	Heritage High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Jordan Young WR	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "FSU Football Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 11, 2018. "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 11, 2018.

Preseason

Award watch lists

Award	Player	Position	Year
Rimington Trophy^[3]	Alec Eberle	C	SR
Chuck Bednarik Award^[4]	Brian Burns	DE	JR
Maxwell Award^[5]	Deondre Francois	QB	JR
Maxwell Award^[5]	Cam Akers	RB	SO
Doak Walker Award^[6]	Cam Akers	RB	SO
Doak Walker Award^[6]	Jacques Patrick	RB	SR
Outland Trophy^[7]	Alec Eberle	C	SR
Lou Groza Award^[8]	Ricky Aguayo	K	JR
Ray Guy Award^[9]	Logan Tyler	P	JR
Wuerffel Trophy^[10]	Alec Eberle	C	SR
Walter Camp Award^[11]	Cam Akers	RB	SO
Ted Hendricks Award^[12]	Brian Burns	DE	JR

ACC media poll

In the preseason ACC media poll, Florida State was selected to finish second in the Atlantic division.

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
Media poll (Atlantic)
1	Clemson	1,031 (145)
2	Florida State	789 (1)
3	NC State	712 (2)
4	Boston College	545
5	Louisville	422
6	Wake Forest	413
7	Syracuse	232

Preseason All-ACC teams

The Seminoles had two players selected to the preseason All-ACC teams, with one offensive selection and one on special teams.

Cam Akers
Ricky Aguayo

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 3	8:00 p.m.	No. 20 Virginia Tech	No. 19	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ESPN	L 3–24^[13]	79,560
September 8	7:20 p.m.	No. 9 (FCS) Samford*		Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ACCN	W 36–26^[14]	72,239
September 15	12:00 p.m.	at Syracuse		Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY	ESPN	L 7–30^[15]	37,457
September 22	3:30 p.m.	Northern Illinois*		Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ESPNU	W 37–19^[16]	65,633
September 29	3:30 p.m.	at Louisville		Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY	ESPN2	W 28–24^[17]	52,798
October 6	3:30 p.m.	at No. 17 Miami (FL)		Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens, FL (rivalry)	ABC	L 27–28^[18]	65,490
October 20	3:30 p.m.	Wake Forest		Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ESPN2	W 38–17^[19]	67,274
October 27	12:00 p.m.	No. 2 Clemson		Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL (rivalry)	ABC	L 10–59^[20]	68,403
November 3	3:30 p.m.	at NC State		Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC	ABC	L 28–47^[21]	57,600
November 10	7:30 p.m.	at No. 3 Notre Dame*		Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (rivalry)	NBC	L 13–42^[22]	77,622
November 17	3:30 p.m.	No. 22 Boston College		Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ESPN2	W 22–21^[23]	57,274
November 24	12:00 p.m.	No. 13 Florida*		Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL (rivalry)	ABC	L 14–41^[24]	71,953
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Schedule Source:^[25]

Coaching staff

Florida State Seminoles coaches

Head coach

Willie Taggart

Assistant coaches

Walt Bell – Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks
Harlon Barnett – Defensive coordinator/defensive backs
Greg Frey – Offensive line
Odell Haggins – Defensive tackle
Mark Snyder – Defensive ends
Telly lockette – Tight ends
David kelly – Wide receivers
Donte pimpleton – Running backs
Raymond woodie – Linebackers
Alonzo hamilton – Special Teams
Irele oderinde – Strength and conditioning
Mickey Andrews – Special assistant

Roster

2018 Florida State Seminoles football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
QB	`1`	James Blackman	So
RB	`3`	Cam Akers	So
RB	`4`	Khalan Laborn	Fr
TE	`6`	Tre' McKitty	So
WR	`8`	Nyqwan Murray	Sr
RB	`9`	Jacques Patrick	Sr
RB	`10`	Anthony Grant	Fr
WR	`11`	George Campbell	Jr
QB	`12`	Deondre Francois	Jr
WR	`13`	Caleb Ward	Fr
QB	`14`	Nolan McDonald	Fr
WR	`14`	Deonté Sheffield	Fr
WR	`15`	Tamorrion Terry	Fr
QB	`16`	Alex Eleyssami	Fr
WR	`18`	Warren Thompson	Fr
QB	`19`	Beau Fillichio	Fr
WR	`20`	Keyshawn Helton	Fr
RB	`22`	Amir Rasul	Jr
TE	`26`	Johnathan Vickers	Sr
WR	`28`	D'Marcus Adams	Fr
WR	`29`	D.J. Matthews	So
TE	`32`	Gabe Nabers	Jr
RB	`37`	Blaik Middleton	Jr
WR	`41`	Michael Barulich	So
OL	`51`	Baveon Johnson	So
OL	`52`	Christian Meadows	Fr
OL	`54`	Alec Eberle	Sr
OL	`59`	Brady Scott	Fr
OL	`61`	Jalen Goss	Fr
OL	`66`	Andrew Basham	Jr
OL	`68`	Jeremy Czerenda	Fr
OL	`69`	Landon Dickerson	So
OL	`70`	Cole Minshew	Jr
OL	`71`	Chaz Neal	Fr
OL	`72`	Mike Arnold	So
OL	`73`	Jauan Williams	So
OL	`74`	Derrick Kelly II	Sr
OL	`75`	Abdul Bello	Jr
OL	`76`	Arthur Williams	Sr
OL	`77`	Christian Armstrong	Fr
WR	`80`	Ontaria Wilson	Fr
TE	`81`	Alex Marshall	Fr
TE	`82`	Naseir Upshur	Jr
WR	`83`	Jordan Young	Fr
WR	`84`	Adarius Dent	Fr
WR	`85`	Tyrell Moorer	Jr
TE	`87`	Camren McDonald	Fr
WR	`88`	Tre'Shaun Harrison	Fr
WR	`89`	Keith Gavin	Jr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DB	`1`	Levonta Taylor	Jr
LB	`5`	Dontavious Jackson	Jr
DB	`8`	Stanford Samuels III	So
DL	`11`	Janarius Robinson	So
DB	`12`	A.J. Lytton	Fr
DL	`13`	Joshua Kaindoh	So
DB	`14`	Kale Meyers	Jr
DB	`15`	Carlos Becker III	Jr
DL	`16`	Cory Durden	Fr
DB	`19`	A.J. Westbrook	Sr
LB	`20`	Jaiden Woodbey	Fr
DL	`21`	Marvin Wilson	So
LB	`22`	Adonis Thomas	Jr
DB	`23`	Hamsah Nasirildeen	So
DB	`24`	Cyrus Fagan	So
DB	`26`	Asante Samuel Jr.	Fr
LB	`27`	Zaquandre White	Fr
LB	`28`	DeCalon Brooks	Fr
DB	`29`	Isaiah Bolden	Fr
DL	`31`	Kris Dixon	Jr
DB	`32`	Array Culmer	Sr
LB	`33`	Amari Gainer	Fr
LB	`35`	Leonard Warner III	So
DB	`37`	Kameron House	So
DB	`38`	Izaiah Prouse-Lackey	Sr
DB	`39`	Claudio Williams	Jr
LB	`41`	Joseph Garcia	So
DB	`43`	Joseph Schergen	So
DB	`45`	Demetrius Artis	Jr
DB	`46`	John Moschella III	Sr
LB	`48`	Armani Kerr	So
DL	`49`	Cedric Wood	So
LB	`51`	Josh Brown	Jr
DL	`53`	Ja'Len Parks	Fr
DL	`55`	Fredrick Jones	Sr
LB	`56`	Emmett Rice	Jr
DL	`58`	Dennis Briggs Jr.	Fr
DL	`59`	Xavier Peters	Fr
DL	`67`	Adam Torres	Sr
DL	`90`	Demarcus Christmas	Sr
DL	`91`	Robert Cooper	Fr
DL	`93`	Peter Osimen	Jr
DL	`94`	Walvenski Aimé	Sr
DL	`95`	Jamarcus Chatman	Fr
DL	`97`	Malcolm Lamar	Fr
DL	`99`	Brian Burns	Jr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
P	`21`	Logan Tyler	Jr
K	`23`	Ricky Aguayo	Jr
P	`30`	Tommy Martin	Fr
LS	`40`	Ken Burnham	Sr
LS	`42`	Garrett Murray	Fr
LS	`44`	Grant Glennon	Fr
LS	`63`	Tanner Adkison	So

Head coach

{{{head_coach}}}

Coordinators/assistant coaches

{{{asst_coach}}}

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: 1/1/19

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	19	RV	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Coaches	19	RV	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
CFP	Not released									—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released

Game summaries

Virginia Tech

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 20 Hokies	10	7	0	7	24
No. 19 Seminoles	0	3	0	0	3

Samford

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 9 (FCS) Bulldogs	16	7	0	3	26
Seminoles	7	14	0	15	36

At Syracuse

	1	2	3	4	Total
Seminoles	0	0	0	7	7
Orange	3	3	14	10	30

Northern Illinois

	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	0	7	6	6	19
Seminoles	14	6	3	14	37

At Louisville

	1	2	3	4	Total
Seminoles	7	0	7	14	28
Cardinals	7	14	3	0	24

At Miami (FL)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Seminoles	7	13	7	0	27
No. 17 Hurricanes	0	7	14	7	28

Wake Forest

	1	2	3	4	Total
Demon Deacons	10	0	0	7	17
Seminoles	7	14	10	7	38

Clemson

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 2 Tigers	0	28	24	7	59
Seminoles	0	0	3	7	10

At NC State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Seminoles	0	14	7	7	28
Wolfpack	10	17	10	10	47

At Notre Dame

	1	2	3	4	Total
Seminoles	0	6	7	0	13
No. 3 Fighting Irish	17	15	3	7	42

Boston College

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 22 Eagles	0	7	7	7	21
Seminoles	0	6	7	9	22

Florida

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 13 Gators	3	10	14	14	41
Seminoles	0	7	7	0	14

Post-season

All-ACC

The Seminoles had five players selected to the All-ACC team, with three defensive selections and two offensive selections.^[26]

Brian Burns (first team)
Nyqwan Murray (Third Team)
Demarcus Christmas (Third Team)
Marvin Wilson (Honorable Mention)
Tamorrion Terry (Honorable Mention)

NFL draft

Player	Team	Round	Pick #	Position
Brian Burns	Carolina Panthers	1st	16	LB
Demarcus Christmas	Seattle Seahawks	6th	209	DT

References

[1]

[2]

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[14]

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[17]

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[19]

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[21]

[22]

[23]

[24]

[25]

[26]

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