2009 Florida State Seminoles football team

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Uniform
File:ACC-Uniform-FSU.png

2009 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Atlantic Division
No. 24 Clemson x		6	–	2					9	–	5
Boston College		5	–	3					8	–	5
Florida State		4	–	4					7	–	6
Wake Forest		3	–	5					5	–	7
NC State		2	–	6					5	–	7
Maryland		1	–	7					2	–	10
Coastal Division
No. 13 Georgia Tech * x$		7	–	1					11	–	3
No. 10 Virginia Tech		6	–	2					10	–	3
No. 19 Miami (FL)		5	–	3					9	–	4
North Carolina *		0	–	4					0	–	5
Duke		3	–	5					5	–	7
Virginia		2	–	6					3	–	9
Championship: Georgia Tech 39, Clemson 34
$ – BCS representative as conference champion North Carolina vacated 8 wins, including 4 ACC wins. Rankings from AP Poll

The 2009 Florida State Seminoles football team represented Florida State University during the 2009 college football season. The team played their home games at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida. They were members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Head coach Bobby Bowden retired at the end of the 2009 season after 34 seasons at the helm for Florida State (and 33 consecutive winning seasons). Offensive Coordinator Jimbo Fisher was named the new coach.

Previous Season

Florida State entered the 2009 season coming off a 2008 season that ended with a 9–4 record (5–3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) and a Champs Sports Bowl victory over Wisconsin. Florida State also won a share of the ACC Atlantic Division, but due to the head-to-head record versus Boston College, the Eagles represented the Atlantic Division in the Championship Game held in Tampa.

Rankings

See also: 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Final
AP	18	—	—	18	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Coaches	19	—	—	25	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Harris	Not released				—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released
BCS	Not released							—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released

Schedule

September 78:00 PMMiami (FL)No. 18

• Doak Campbell Stadium
• Tallahassee, FL (Rivalry)

ESPNL 34–38 81,077 September 126:00 PMJacksonville State*

• Doak Campbell Stadium
• Tallahassee, FL

ESPN360W 19–9 71,420 September 197:00 PMat No. 9 BYU*

• LaVell Edwards Stadium
• Provo, UT

VersusW 54–28 64,209 September 2612:00 PMSouth Florida*No. 18

• Doak Campbell Stadium
• Tallahassee, FL

ESPNUL 7–17 83,524 October 33:30 PMat Boston College

• Alumni Stadium
• Chestnut Hill, MA

ABC/ESPN2L 21–28 40,029 October 108:00 PMNo. 23 Georgia Tech

• Doak Campbell Stadium
• Tallahassee, FL

ESPN2L 44–49 76,292 October 228:00 PMat North Carolina

• Kenan Memorial Stadium
• Chapel Hill, NC

ESPNW 30–27 58,000 October 3112:00 PMNC State

• Doak Campbell Stadium
• Tallahassee, FL

RaycomW 45–42 67,712 November 77:45 PMat Clemson

• Memorial Stadium
• Clemson, SC (Rivalry)

ESPNL 24–40 76,656 November 1412:00 PMat Wake Forest

• BB&T Field
• Winston-Salem, NC

ESPNUW 41–28 33,411 November 2112:00 PMMaryland

• Doak Campbell Stadium
• Tallahassee, FL

RaycomW 29–26 66,042 November 283:30 PMat No. 1 Florida*

• Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
• Gainesville, FL (Rivalry)

CBSL 10–37 90,907 January 11:00 PMvs. No. 17 West Virginia*

• EverBank Field
• Jacksonville, FL (Gator Bowl)

CBSW 33–21 84,129

Recruits

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	40‡	Commit date
Justin Bright DB	Duncan, SC	Byrnes HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	184 lb (83 kg)	4.5	May 20, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 75
Gerald Demps DB	Valdosta, GA	Lowndes HS	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	4.6	Apr 9, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 82
Willie Downs ATH	Tallahassee, FL	Godby HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	192 lb (87 kg)	N/A	Feb 11, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Jajuan Harley DB	Tallahassee, FL	Rickards HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	4.4	Feb 13, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 76
Willie Haulstead WR	Titusville, FL	Titusville HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	4.5	May 15, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Dan Hicks TE	Oxford, MS	Oxford HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	242 lb (110 kg)	4.6	Feb 4, 2009
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 76
Dustin Hopkins K	Houston, TX	Clear Lake HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	4.6	Jun 25, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Brandon Jenkins DE	Tallahassee, FL	Florida State University School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	218 lb (99 kg)	4.7	Mar 1, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Demonte McAllister DE	Tampa, FL	Alonso HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	263 lb (119 kg)	N/A	Jul 20, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 83
Jacobbi McDaniel DT	Greenville, FL	Madison HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	267 lb (121 kg)	4.8	Feb 7, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 91
C.J. Mizell LB	Tallahassee, FL	Leon HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	212 lb (96 kg)	4.5	Feb 20, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Henry Orelus OL	Belle Glade, FL	Glades Central HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	292 lb (132 kg)	5.5	Jul 25, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 76
Aubrey Phillips OL	Olive Branch, MS	Olive Branch HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	310 lb (140 kg)	5.1	Feb 3, 2009
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 75
John Prior OL	Portsmouth, OH	Portsmouth HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	283 lb (128 kg)	N/A	Jul 12, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 76
Lonnie Pryor RB	Okeechobee, FL	Okeechobee HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	4.5	Jul 26, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Greg Reid DB	Valdosta, GA	Lowndes HS	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	4.5	Feb 3, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 85
Xavier Rhodes WR	Miami, FL	Miami Norland HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	187 lb (85 kg)	4.47	Jul 26, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 77
Will Secord QB	Frisco, TX	Wakeland HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	4.7	Feb 3, 2009
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 75
Rodney Smith WR	Miami, FL	Archbishop Carroll HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	4.53	Jul 26, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Bryan Stork TE	Vero Beach, FL	Vero Beach HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	260 lb (120 kg)	5.0	May 23, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 76
Chris Thompson RB	Greenville, FL	Madison HS	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	4.4	Feb 28, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Overall recruiting rankings:
‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Florida State 2009 Football Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 18, 2011. "2009 Florida State Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved January 18, 2011. "2009 Player Commitments – Florida State". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 18, 2011. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved January 18, 2011. "2009 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 18, 2011.

Game Capsules

Please Note:

• The records in parenthesis indicates the opposing team's record at the time Florida State played them, NOT Florida State's record.
• The USA Today Coaches Poll rankings are used through Week 7. Starting with Week 8 (the UNC game), the BCS Rankings are used.
• All pregame lines are based on what the game opened at and does not include any betting influence.

Miami (0–0)

Pregame Line: FSU −4

	1	2	3	4	Total
Miami	7	7	3	21	38
#19 Florida State	7	3	13	11	34

Miami's defense stops Florida St. to back up Harris' final TD drive

Jacksonville State (0–1)

Pregame Line: Lines are not released when an FCS team plays an FBS team.

	1	2	3	4	Total
Jacksonville State	6	3	0	0	9
Florida State	7	0	0	12	19

Florida State steals win from lower-division Jacksonville State

#9 BYU (2–0)

Pregame Line: BYU −6.5

	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida State	7	23	14	10	54
#9 BYU	0	14	7	7	28

Ponder drives Seminoles to decisive win over No. 7 Cougars

South Florida (3–0)

Pregame Line: FSU −12

	1	2	3	4	Total
South Florida	0	14	0	3	17
#25 Florida State	0	0	0	7	7

Daniels steps in for injured Grothe, lifts USF to first ever win over FSU.

Boston College (3–1)

Pregame Line: FSU −5

	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida State	3	3	7	8	21
Boston College	7	14	0	7	28

BC blows 18-point lead, barely holds off FSU.

#23 Georgia Tech (4–1)

Pregame Line: FSU −2.5

	1	2	3	4	Total
#23 Georgia Tech	14	14	14	7	49
Florida State	14	21	3	6	44

Nesbitt, Yellow Jackets hand third straight loss to Bowden's Seminoles.

North Carolina (4–2)

Pregame Line: UNC −2.5

	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida State	3	3	14	10	30
North Carolina	14	3	7	3	27

Ponder rallies Seminoles from deficit to knock off North Carolina.

NC State (3–4)

Pregame Line: FSU −7

	1	2	3	4	Total
NC State	7	14	7	14	42
Florida State	7	14	10	14	45

Florida St. edges NC State late in barnburner

Clemson (5–3)

Pregame Line: Clemson −8

	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida State	17	0	7	0	24
Clemson	6	8	7	19	40

Spiller rushes for 165 yards, touchdown as Clemson routs Florida St.

• FSU starting quarterback Christian Ponder was injured in the 4th quarter and had to leave the game. His injury required surgery and he did not return to participation until the teams non-contact drills in the spring of 2010.
• Redshirt Freshman E.J. Manuel took over for the injured Ponder, getting his first start the following week against Wake Forest.

Wake Forest (4–6)

Pregame Line: Wake −5

	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida State	14	17	3	7	41
Wake Forest	7	7	7	7	28

Thomas, Manuel help Florida State roll past Wake

Maryland (2–8)

Pregame Line: FSU −17

	1	2	3	4	Total
Maryland	0	13	0	13	26
Florida State	7	7	0	15	29

Florida State edges Maryland on last-minute TD to become bowl eligible

#1 Florida (11–0)

Pregame Line: Florida −21

	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida State	0	0	3	7	10
#1 Florida	7	17	6	7	37

Tebow accounts for five TDs in final home game as a Gator

Gator Bowl: #16 West Virginia (9–3)

Pregame Line: WVU −3

	1	2	3	4	Total
#16 West Virginia	14	0	0	7	21
Florida State	3	10	10	10	33

• The final game for Bobby Bowden, Mickey Andrews and Chuck Amato.

Bowden goes out a winner as Seminoles dispatch Mountaineers

Statistics

Team

Team Opp Scoring 338 332 Points per Game 30.73 30.18 First Downs     Rushing     Passing     Penalty     Total Offense     Avg per Play     Avg per Game     Fumbles-Lost     Penalties-Yards     Avg per Game

Team Opp Punts-Yards     Avg per Punt     Time of Possession/Game     3rd Down Conversions     4th Down Conversions     Touchdowns Scored     Field Goals-Attempts-Long     PAT-Attempts     Attendance     Games/Avg per Game

Scores by quarter

• Updated after the November 21st, 2009 Maryland game.

1 2 3 4 Total Florida State 86 81 71 100 338 Opponents 68 111 52 101 332

Offense

Passing

Name	GP-GS	Effic	Att-Cmp-Int	Pct	Yds	TD	Lng	YPA
Christian Ponder	9–9	147.70	330–227–7	68.8%	2717	14	98	8.23
E.J. Manuel	7–4	124.7	106–69–6	65.1%	817	2	43	8.11
Total	13–13	141.8	437–296–13	67.7%	3147	16	98	8.22
Opponents

Rushing

Name	Games Played	Carries	Yards	Fumbles Lost	YPC	TD	Long	Avg/Game
Jermaine Thomas	11	163	832	0	5.1	9	54	62.73
Ty Jones	6	51	251	0	4.9	5	47	41.83
E.J. Manuel	7	44	195	0	4.4	2	24	19.8
Christian Ponder	9	72	179	0	2.5	2	30	19.89
Lonnie Pryor	9	27	156	0	5.8	4	50	15.11
Chris Thompson	8	23	120	0	5.2	2	49	12.5
Bert Reed	11	18	94	0	5.2	2	42	6.82
Louis Givens	6	8	58	0	7.3	1	15	9
Tavares Pressley	3	9	40	0	4.4	0	12	13.33
Rodney Hudson	11	1	9	0	9	0	9	0.82
Taiwan Easterling	10	2	8	0	4	0	7	0.10
Jarmon Fortson	11	1	4	0	4	0	4	0.36
Rod Owens	11	1	3	0	3	0	3	0.27
Total	11	352	1635	0	4.6	24	54	148.64
Opponents

Receiving

Name	GP-GS	Rec	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
Rod Owens
Bert Reed
Jarmon Fortson
Taiwan Easterling
Richard Goodman
Caz Piurowski
Lonnie Pryor
Jermaine Thomas
Beau Reliford
Louis Givens
Ty Jones
Chris Thompson
Willie Haulstead
Rodney Smith
Ja'Baris Little
Total
Opponents

Defense

Name	GP	Tackles				Sacks	Pass Defense		Interceptions				Fumbles		Blkd Kick
		Solo	Ast	Total	TFL-Yds	No-Yds	BrUp	QBH	No.-Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Rcv-Yds	FF
Total

Special teams

Name	Punting								Kickoffs
	No.	Yds	Avg	Long	TB	FC	I20	Blkd	No.	Yds	Avg	TB	OB
Dustin Hopkins
Name
Total

Name	Punt Returns					Kick Returns
	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long
Name
Total

Projected 2009 Depth Chart

Offensive

• QB – Christian Ponder Jr
• TB – Jermaine Thomas So
• FB – Marcus Sims Sr
• WR – Corey Surrency Sr
• WR – Taiwan Easterling So
• TE – Caz Piurowski Sr
• LT – Evan Bellamy So
• LG – Rodney Hudson Jr
• C – Ryan McMahon Jr
• RG – David Spurlock So
• RT – Zebrie Sanders So

Defense

• DE – Kevin McNeil Sr
• DE – Markus White Jr
• DT – Kendrick Stewart Sr
• DT – Budd Thacker Sr
• DT - Nick Cuming Sr
• LB – Dekoda Watson Sr
• LB – Nigel Bradham So
• LB – Kendall Smith Jr
• CB – Ochuko Jenije Jr
• CB – Patrick Robinson Sr
• S – Jamie Robinson Sr
• S – Korey Mangum Sr

Special Teams

• K – Dustin Hopkins
• P – Shawn Powell

External links

• Media Guide
• Roster
• Season Statistics