The high preseason praise of both these teams, as portrayed in their preseason rankings, generates buzz leading up to kickoff. But this game has a few more factors contributing to the deserved hype. A major storyline heading into Saturday night's bout is the history between head coaches Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher. Back in good ol' Baton Rouge, Louisiana circa 2003, head coach Nick Saban and offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher led the LSU Tigers to a "split-National Championship," the greatest example of why the College Football Playoff is far superior to the BCS. Anyway, Saban and Fisher have never faced off against each other as head coaches; although in 2007 Saban's Tide lost to Florida State with Jimbo Fisher as the offensive coordinator. Fisher has obviously proven himself to be an elite head coach in today's college football landscape, and beating the best is a great way to maintain your presence in the discussion. It would be especially impressive for Jimbo to pull this off, as Nick Saban is 10-0 as a head coach while playing against his former assistant coaches. The odds are stacked against ya there, Jimbo.
Non-conference games obviously mean a little less in the long run, but right now the great debate of college football is which conference should be considered the best. In recent years, the ACC has certainly challenged the SEC's undisputed label as the King. The general argument is that the SEC's depth isn't what it's cracked up to be. Alabama is undoubtedly amazing, but the variety in the arsenal of the conference as a whole is being questioned. The ACC has won two of the last four National Championships, has produced two of the last four Heisman Trophy winners, and has been represented by one of its teams in all three College Football Playoffs (FSU and Clemson). In that same timeframe, Alabama alone (no other SEC squad) has won one National Championship, produced one Heisman Trophy winner, and has appeared in all three College Football Playoffs. So realistically, the argument is Alabama against the top tier of the ACC. But what better way to settle that than Alabama playing the ACC's presumed top dog?
So enough about all the storylines, how do these two teams matchup? In the simplest terms, Alabama and Florida State are extremely similar. They both have well-established head coaches, reputations as blue-chip programs, monster defenses, and talented sophomore quarterbacks. That's what I want to talk about the most; the talented young quarterbacks who have to take on massive leadership roles. Deondre Francois and Jalen Hurts both had great freshman seasons. The Seminoles as a whole didn't quite have the résumé that Alabama did in 2016, but Francois still threw for 3,350 yards and 20 touchdowns with seven interceptions. Jalen Hurts, who gave his team the lead with barely any time left in the National Championship before his defense blew it, threw for 2,780 yards and 23 touchdowns with nine picks.
Both Francois and Hurts performed impressively, especially for freshmen starting for such significant programs. But starting Saturday, the pressure is on for these two. Both teams' expected success is heavily contingent on their maturation since last season. I think Francois is better than Hurts in regards to raw talent, but I think Nick Saban and Jalen Hurts compliment each other more than girls do on each other's Instagram posts. I'm not even trying to pull the old "he's not good! He's a system quarterback!" on Jalen Hurts. I like Jalen Hurts, and he's a great athlete who can get the job done. It is in fact possible to be a good quarterback that just so happens to play in a good system.
Deondre Francois' alleged biggest problem on Saturday will be his offensive line containing pressure from Alabama's front seven. The 'Noles O-line has been catching a lot of heat as one of the teams' biggest weaknesses, but they return a few starters who played pretty damn well against Michigan's beastly front seven in the Orange Bowl last year. Francois' biggest problem on Saturday will absolutely be Alabama's secondary. This is hands down one of the best defensive back units in the country, featuring Minkah Fitzpatrick, Anthony Averett, and Ronnie Harrison.
Alabama's loaded defensive backfield will obviously present Francois and the Seminoles with some challenging obstacles through the air attack. This is a huge opportunity for the Florida State running backs to step up. The running game will be key in beating this Alabama defense, and the 'Noles are plenty capable of doing some damage on the ground. Dalvin Cook was obviously a huge loss, but FSU should have plenty of faith in junior Jacques Patrick and freshman Cam Akers. And let's not forget, despite averaging 1.8 yards per carry and only five rushing touchdowns in 2016, Deondre Francois is athletic enough to do damage in some capacity with his feet. That is, if Jimbo draws up a scheme for him to do so.
Switching to the Alabama offense, they've certainly got numerous lethal weapons. I've talked about Jalen Hurts, and he will have plenty of assistance in the backfield. The spawn of Mark Ingram/Eddie Lacy/Derrick Henry that we know as Bo Scarbrough will be joined by Damien Harris. Much like Florida State, the Crimson Tide have a running back duo that should give defensive coordinators anxiety attacks. To top off what 'Bama is capable of on the ground, Jalen Hurts has an elite target in junior wide receiver Calvin Ridley. Ridley had 161 receptions for 1,814 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2016.
So Alabama's offense is prettayyy, prettayyy, pretty good.
But so is Florida State's defense, which is highlighted by Derwin James, one of the single best defensive players in the country. James is also joined by junior d-back Tavarus McFadden, who was tied for the most interceptions in the country last year with eight. The 'Noles defensive line will be anchored by senior d-tackle Derrick Nnadi, who stands at 6'1" and 312 pounds. Nnadi will really have to put his leadership on display in order to get his surrounding cast to stop the Alabama run game.
I absolutely love the big time opening weekend games that take place at a neutral site, and Atlanta is a perfect neutral site for Alabama and Florida State. Atlanta is 202.2 miles from Tuscaloosa, AL and 261.5 miles from Tallahassee. The fan advantage should be a stalemate in this one, which truly makes the neutral site fulfill its purpose. Alabama is currently a seven point favorite according to Bovada, but that is subject to change from the moment I'm writing this. I think Florida State is the safe bet on the spread, especially because I think they'll come out on top by four. Perhaps my prediction is heavily influenced by my ACC bias, and my life mission of proving that the SEC isn't as far ahead of everyone as they once were. So for now, that's it. See you ladies and gentlemen on Saturday night. Party at the moon tower.
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