ChantRant

Menelik Watson has played exactly eight games of football

Since FSU's latest OL commitment is so new to football, not much is known about him. But back in December 6'-6" 320 lb. Menelik Watson revealed to an Auburn site details about his background, including:

• He was introduced to football last August at Saddleback CC in California. His coach wanted to get him in the lineup by the fourth game on the schedule. Watson did it, making his debut on Sept. 24th. It was the first of eight games he'd play in his incredibly brief football career.

• Saddleback's ground game improved dramatically with Watson in the lineup, going from 120.7 ypg before his first game to 153.9 ypg the rest of the season.

• Menelik's first sport was basketball. His play at an academy in Spain led to a scholarship at Marist College in New York, where he played in 29 games in the 2010-11 season.

• When he decided to try football last year, he worked out with NFL players before going to Saddleback. During those workouts Watson said he ran a 4.72 40 -- in tennis shoes.

No letdown as Noles whack Wake 75-52

by Bill from Tampa

In several ways Wednesday night's game against Wake Forest was more of a trap game for Florida State than the Maryland game was. The Seminoles had just come off of a dramatic win over Duke, traveled back home only to return to North Carolina a few days later, were playing an improved over last season but still struggling Demon Deacon team, and could have been looking ahead to having the next seven days off before its next game.

And the game seemed to start out that way with the 'Noles playing sluggish trailing 7-2 early, unable to make baskets and several turnovers or near turnovers. Nearly ten minutes into the half FSU was just 5 of 17 from the floor.

Leonard Hamilton called it "not so much a lack of effort but a lack of focus on offense."

Florida State found that focus however, eventually cruising to a 75-52 win to improve to 14-6, 5-1 and still tied for the conference lead.

2012 ACC schedule beginning to leak out

Georgia Tech players are tweeting and otherwise telling friends on campus that the Jackets will play Virginia Tech on Labor Day in Blacksburg -- the marquee Monday night game FSU and Miami played in the past. Tech players say it's offical from the league and they learned it today in a team meeting. Can the rest of the schedule be far behind?

You can scratch JC lineman Will Latu off your signing day wish list

The Tampa Bay Times reports that the number one JC offensive lineman, Will Latu, has only two teams left on his list, and one of them isn't FSU. Oklahoma and Utah are Latu's choices. At the risk of sounding like sour grapes, Latu might've been too much of an academic risk -- if he qualified in the first place. A few weeks ago Auburn stopped recruiting the former Tampa Gibbs OL because of doubts about whether he'd graduate from College of the Canyons (California) in time for summer workouts.

That leaves giant Menelik Watson (Saddleback College, CA) as the Noles best hope to join Daniel Glauser as an OL newcomer. Watson, who's from the UK and has played football only one year, tripped to Auburn last weekend and is supposed to visit Oregon and Rutgers before deciding on a school.

Coach Lawrence Dawsey has one word for WR Rashad Greene: Special

The most valuable returning player on the Noles offense, after E.J., is arguably Rashad Greene. The true freshmen was the most electric player in 2011, with flashes of some of the great receivers in Seminole history. And it's only after the season we get the full story on Greene's recruitment, his first year in Garnet & Gold, and even how his academics are going. Despite a few factual errors, it's a terrific read. Make that a real "feel good" read about a talented guy that makes Nole fans more than a little excited about the 2012 season.

No offense, but lack of offense was apparent right from the start in 2011

It took just a minute and 20 seconds into the season to discover FSU's 2011 BCS hopes had an Achilles heel. In fact, it showed up on the very first running play of the first series of the first game.

At 13:40 of the first quarter, on second down and ten after an incomplete pass, Ty Jones takes a handoff. Led by Lonnie Pryor, he rushes toward the middle of the LOS where he meets a solid wall of blockers and defenders. Jones bounces to his right, off balance because he either trips or is tripped up by a defender on the ground. Meanwhile, right tackle Zebrie Sanders has fired off the line to engage a Louisiana Monroe corner. But the defender effortlessly slips around the larger Sanders and nails Jones before he can regain his balance.

Result: One yard of forward progress, though Jones is driven back three yards by the corner and two other Warhawks running free in the backfield.

It wouldn't go much better on the second possession, just 11:03 into the opening quarter. With good field position at ULM's 44, Jones takes a first down handoff and gets two yards through the middle. On second down Jones can manage only a yard running left. With third and seven, E.J. fades to pass, is pressured, can't find a receiver and the Noles punt. A scoring opportunity wasted. And FSU, obviously determined to prove what it could do on the ground, was denied.

And so it went through most of the afternoon. And though FSU won handily, the final stats were bittersweet. A mid-major defense that was 67th in stopping the run the season before (allowing more than 159 ypg), held FSU, a team predicted to finish in the top ten, to 92 total yards rushing (ULM had 99). Seminole running backs gained just 77 net yards, including a loss of one yard and two rushes for no gain. E.J. was sacked twice for six yards lost.

The Achilles heel (duh) was the offensive line. Yes, injuries were a major part of the problem. But the lack of solid backups can't be overlooked.

Too many recruits couldn't measure up to Rick Trickett's mold of a sleek and mean O-lineman, even though he thought enough of them as prospects to recruit them. Signing OL was another problem. Some years during Trickett's five seasons, there just weren't enough offensive linemen in the class.

Other questions loomed in 2011. Jacob Fahrenkrug looked to be a valuable newcomer to replace the departed Ryan McMahon. We heard promising comments from coaches about Fahrenkrug's development during spring and fall practice. He supposedly picked up the system so well, he’d be the starting center against ULM. Yet if you look at a DVD of the game, Andrew Datko -- not Fahrenkrug -- is clearly making the line calls. Of course, that lineup experiment didn’t last long. Fahrenkrug was shifted to guard, though didn't do much to help the OL's overall effectiveness.

Snaer's 3 at the buzzer clocks Duke

by Bill from Tampa

Obviously Florida State wanted to end the game right then and there. The Seminoles seemed determined that there was not going to be an overtime.

Just four plus seconds remained on the clock.

Luke Loucks pushed ball up the floor. Bernard James set the pick allowing Loucks to easily get past the defense. Loucks then found Michael Snaer who calmly stroked the the three ball from the right wing. And as the buzzer sounded, the ball found the bottom of the net.

Pandemonium erupted on the Seminole bench with players rushing the floor swamping Snaer. Leonard Hamilton simply nodded his approval as his team had just knocked off the fourth ranked team in the country, 76-73, ending a 45 game home winning streak for the Blue Devils. In addition, Duke had not lost to an unranked opponent since 2007.

Well, that might just change for the Seminoles who in the span of a week went 3-0 and demolished the Tar Heels by thirty three points. At the very least it is a certainty that the 'Noles will pick up more than one vote under the Others Receiving Votes column as they did in last week's poll.

Clemson, new Daddy Warbucks of the ACC

Think coaches salaries are getting out of hand? Clemson is just getting started. Word is that the big orange paw will be writing a check for $800,000 a year to new D.C. Brent Venables, who just jumped off the Sooner wagon. That's on top of Chad Morris hitting the jackpot for $1.3 million -- annually for six years. Whew, two coordinators raking in over $2-mil combined. By comparison, Mark Stoops recent raise brings him to $575,000.

Looks like Clemson's coaching payroll will outstrip FSU's as the biggest in the ACC and one of the richest in all of Div. 1. Morris alone is now the nation's highest paid assistant, taking sole possession of the title since Gus Malzahn chose relative obscurity at Arkansas State.

Clemson can afford to up the ante because of increased revenue from the new TV contract, and because of the millions in reserve in its IPTAY program. The Clemson booster group has been around since 1934 (IPTAY originally meant "I Pay Ten A Year") and raises enough dough that it can even chip in $1.25 million for non-atheletic scholarships.

Clearly Dabo Swinney can spend like there's no tomorrow because Clemson fans give like there's no bigger priority than Tiger football.

In the last 3 games the Noles have outscored ACC opponents 250 to 200

Noles muscle past Maryland, 84-70

by Bill from Tampa

After the thirty three point pasting of North Carolina on Saturday, the question was how would Florida State come out and play against Maryland particularly on offense?

That question was answered with another very solid offensive game, beating the Terrapins 84-70 on Tuesday night.

Perhaps the Seminoles have finally found their offensive stride as FSUused a variety of ways to score. The 'Noles were very efficient in the half court scoring 42 points in the paint, 17 from offensive put backs, and 11 fast break points. The defense kicked in as usual with 19 off of 15 Maryland turnovers.

That efficient offense was reflected in the 48% shooting from the floor. Add to that a stellar 20 of 23 from the free throw line. Screening to open up shooters or lanes to the rim was especially well executed.

Defensively it was not quite the gem the UNC game was. Maryland became just the third team in well over one hundred games to shoot 50%. However, several baskets were scored near the end of the game when the outcome had long since been settled making the final score look closer than it actually was.