Posted by ESPN.com's Heather Dinich
When Florida State coach Bobby Bowden saw quarterback Christian Ponder pull the ball down and run against Miami's stingy run defense -- over and over -- Bowden said the thought that went through his mind was, "this is what we have needed."
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| | Doug Benc/Getty Images |
| | Christian Ponder is proving to be a threat through the air and on the ground. |
One might argue they haven't had it since, well, Charlie Ward.
Ponder became the first Florida State quarterback to rush for 100 yards or more in a game since Ward in 1992. He accounted for 303 yards of total offense and 58 of his 144 rushing yards didn't come on called runs. They came on Ponder's ability to scramble and make good decisions when the pass plays were covered instead of forcing the ball downfield.
"I always knew I could run," Ponder said, "but not like that."
Offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher said Monday he saw more big runs and play action passes, and the Seminoles controlled the line of scrimmage for the most part. They played with poise instead of panic when Miami threatened a comeback. There were plenty of positive signs for a team that faced so many questions coming into the season, but Fisher cautioned they "haven't done anything" yet.
"We're starting to have limited success, but we're five games in," Fisher said. "We haven't won anything. We haven't done anything. We're 4-1. Now, what they have to remember is why they've had success ... When you think you've got all the answers as a coach and a player, this game will bite you right in the tail so bad it's ridiculous, and that's what you have to remind your players."
Despite a young offensive line, a new quarterback, and all of the suspensions through the first three games, Florida State is sitting at 4-1 in the Atlantic Division standings and in a position to peak in the second half of the season. Much of that can be attributed to the quick maturity of the players on offense. So far, aside from Wake Forest, the only team getting in Florida State's way has been Florida State.
"The answers are so visible it's not even questionable, if you do this, you're gonna win, and if you do this you're gonna lose," Bowden said. "And we have continued to self-destruct a lot. We got by [Miami] even with our self-destruction. ... To win under that situation it's usually a superiority thing. If you ain't better, you sure ain't gonna win that game."
During its bye week, Florida State will put an emphasis on fundamentals like blocking, ball security, and running more precise routes. Fisher said "there's so much we're still leaving on the field" at every position. The goal this week is to maintain the running game while improving the passing game.
Still, Bowden gave much of the credit for the Miami win to Fisher, who called the game aggressively. Florida State converted its third downs, and scored touchdowns in the red zone instead of field goals.
"His game plan, it was something else," Bowden said. "Those runs that quarterback was making, a lot of them were check-offs, where he looks for this, he sees this, and tells him to do that. All that's in the game plan. I was very impressed, to be honest with you, with the game plan."
Considering everything the team had to overcome in the first few weeks, Bowden admitted he was a bit surprised at the Seminoles' place in the conference standings heading into their bye week.
"If you'd have asked me before the season, I'd have probably said that's probably about as good as we can do if we're lucky enough to do it because you knew that you were not going to get your kids back until after -- after -- the Wake Forest game. You're thinking to yourself, 'I'm probably not good enough with seven starters out or five, I'm probably not good enough to get by them.' ... So yeah, I feel good up to this point."
So does Ponder.
"It definitely helped me progress as a leader and a commander on the field," he said. "I feel that, at times, when we needed plays and needed things to happen, the whole offense came together and was able to make plays at certain times. ... It was definitely a confidence booster. It really showed what we can do and there are still a lot of things we need to improve upon as well."
