Florida State’s season somehow got worse in Week 3.
The Seminoles lost 20-12 to Memphis on Saturday to drop to 0-3 on the season. What could go wrong did go wrong for FSU as the Seminoles committed three first-half turnovers and were lucky to be within 10 points of the Tigers at the break.
FSU crawled back into the game and were spared an embarrassing moment when Memphis missed a 55-yard field goal with less than three minutes to go. The Tigers were set to punt earlier in the drive, but K.J. Kirkland lined up offside. That gave Memphis just three yards to get a first down, and the Tigers converted for a first.
However, Florida State wasn’t able to anything when it took over. D.J. Uiagalelei was sacked on the first play of the drive and sacked again on third down. Memphis’ defense kept sending defenders after Uiagalelei as it clearly wasn’t fazed by the passing threat.
The Seminoles then decided to punt on 4th and 32 with two timeouts remaining instead of trying for the first down.
Given the way the game unfolded, that was probably the right tactical decision. And FSU got the ball back with 46 seconds left. But the situation unfolded about as predictably as you could expect and Florida State’s Hail Mary attempt as time expired fell incomplete.
Uiagalelei has struggled mightily
Simply put, the transfer of DJ Uiagalelei has not worked out. Florida State’s quarterbacks struggled after Jordan Travis suffered his fateful season-ending injury in 2023 and it was clear that FSU wanted to sign a QB for 2024.
Uiagalelei arrived after having the best season of his career at Oregon State in 2023. He averaged 8.4 yards a throw — a career-high — and threw 21 TD passes on just 315 attempts.
However, Uiagalelei completed just 57% of his passes and hasn’t completed more than 62% of his passes in any of the three seasons where he’s attempted over 300 passes. He has serious limitations as a passer, and those have been on full display so far this season.
At one point in the first half, Uiagalelei was 5-of-6 passing for seven yards. The one incompletion was an interception that led to a Memphis touchdown.
Will coach Mike Norvell and FSU’s coaching staff look at a change? Florida State has way more issues than simply at quarterback. And Uiagalelei’s backup is Brock Glenn. He got playing time after Travis’ injury a season ago. The addition of Uiagalelei was a clear sign that FSU wasn’t comfortable heading into 2024 with Glenn as the presumptive starter.
Whoever plays quarterback going forward will also need better protection up front. Memphis’ habit of blitzing late came as it knew it could easily pressure Uiagalelei often.
