I'm watching the Clemson game....

.....for the fourth time in as many days.

And it doesn't get old. I could watch the second half of this football game every day for the rest of the season and I wouldn't care. It was a very exciting game, full of offense from both teams. I may be biased, but it was the best game of the weekend by far.

Sure, sitting in Doak Campbell Stadium on Saturday night had its tense moments. The Seminoles were playing from behind for two and a half quarters. It was apparent that the Tigers came to town to show the home team and the rest of the country that it was worthy of the top ten ranking and wouldn't back down from the mountain of a challenge they were facing.

But, alas, the Clemson offensive juggernaut found out what most of Seminole Nation already knew: there are few teams that have the offensive depth and talent to hang with this defensive squad and the coaching staff that guides them. Not only that, but I will take it one step further. With all the talk of the depth and talent on the defensive side of the ball, after four games it is apparent that this offense is scary good. EJ is healthy. The offensive line is (still) healthy. The running game features two possessed running backs. We are four games into the season and we have already matched the rushing TD total from 2011. Manuel is in the Heisman talk, and I feel he has answered any questions about his ability to be the leader of a championship caliber team. He was Charlie Ward-esque in his leadership of the team, and he answered every Clemson punch with a counterpunch of his own.

I've been watching FSU football for 23 years, and this unit matches, in terms of speed and athleticism, those great teams of the 90's. Jimbo Fisher has made his mark on this football team, and it's hard not to look at the Noles and feel that you're watching an SEC-type squad. They answered the first big challenge of the year, and an almost perfect game by the Tigers, in spectacular fashion. Jimbo's team overcame penalties, missed FG's, and two double digit deficits and pulled away in relative ease.

Since my editor (ahem, wife) tells me that I need to keep these blogs shorter, I'll stop here. I still am not ready to put the Seminoles in the BCS title game yet, but I liked what I saw Saturday night. We're 1/3 of the way through the season, still undefeated, and based on the remaining schedule, there are two games that pose the largest challenges. I still worry about that Thursday night game in Blacksburg, but even that matchup looks to be a very winnable game.

I'm ready for that plane flight to Tampa and 2012 Revenge Game #3 on Saturday. If you're going to be there, let's have a beer and celebrate win number five!

It's FSU Game Day, Y'all!

It's September.

And those of us rabid college football fans, it means one thing. The fastest, most fun four months of the year.

Here in the South, there's Momma, there's church, and there's College Football Season, sometimes not necessarily in that order. College football brings people together (and even forces some apart) like none other this time of the year, and that's the fun of it. Rival school jokes and other shenanigans began yesterday at work, and we don't even play the Lizards for another three months!

My passion for college football, and FSU football in particular, began in a night October game in 1989 win against the Miami Hurricanes, and I haven't looked back to the NFL since. Sure, I follow the Dolphins, my longtime favorite NFL team, and the Jaguars, the hometown team, but that's just so I can carry on conversations with those that prefer the pro game. There's just a different feel at a college football game. Higher energy level in the stadium. More pageantry. The tailgating is more fun. Lee Corso's costumes. Erin Andrews (with apologies to my wife...had to throw that in there).

You know my take on the season. Even though we're playing lower division foe Murray State, I still woke up this morning early with knots in my stomach. Murray State, you say? A team the Noles will beat by five TD's? Yep, that Murray State. This is just what college football does to me. And I love it.

I'm ready. The car was prepped last night. Window flags...check. Drinks and cooler....check. Satellite radio on college football station....check. This will be my first of seven trips to see the Noles play, and hopefully, beat, worthy and not-so-worthy opponents. Whatever the outcome, win or lose, I will have fun. In the end, it's only football. There are fans that aren't fortunate enough to see their team in person because their situation doesn't allow it, so I always keep the "fun" aspect of college football in mind.

This could be a special season for FSU, and I am ready to enjoy every minute of it. Time permitting, I will blog after every game with my thoughts and observations, as well as provide links to stories about the games Seminole fans might be interested in. I look forward to celebrating a successful season with my FSU brethren. You can follow me this football season on Twitter at @noleman95. Hope to see you out there!

Go Noles!

 

Photo courtesy of Stephen M. Dowell, Orlando Sentinel