Behind Enemy Lines: Five Questions With An FSU Blogger

Sep 28, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Florida State Seminoles quarterback Jameis Winston (5) runs the ball against the Boston College Eagles during the first half at Alumni Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

We sat down with ChopChat.com editor Jack Jorgensen, FanSided’s resident expert of all things FSU, to pick his brain about the upcoming game this weekend. Give him a follow on Twitter @JackJ14CFB, and be sure to check out his site on game day for some good coverage. As always, we’d like to thank Jack for working with us on this!

TSMD: Jameis Winston. Great FSU quarterback? Or greatest FSU quarterback? What makes him so good?

Jack Jorgensen: Jameis certainly has all of the potential in the world to be remembered one day as the greatest FSU QB of all-time. He has two guys in front of him in the forms of Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke–both of whom won national championships in Tallahassee. However, Jameis, in my opinion, is more than capable of making that happen as well.

As far as what makes his so special, his most appealing attribute is most definitely his poise. He never gets rattled, never gets nervous and is always in control no matter what the situation is. And, when you combine that with the godly skill sets that he possesses, you do have a recipe for eventually becoming the best ever. 

TSMD: If you had to pick a flaw in Winston’s game, what would it be? Also, who is the less heralded but equally as important player on your offense?

JJ: Really, and this might be a bit nit-picky but I’d love to see him cut down on the aggressive blocking just a little bit for safety purposes. Jameis is not afraid of contact whatsoever. When he gives the ball off to the back, he is more than happy trying to lay the wood on someone, and he’s been successful on a few occasions. But eventually, something is bound to go wrong and I’d hate to see him miss some time for something of that nature.

And one of his wide receivers, Rashad Greene, is definitely one of the best at what he does, yet not many people mention him. He’s great at finding even the slightest hole in the secondary to get open, he rarely drops anything and he has the ability to take a game over whenever necessary (see VT last year and the 2011 Oklahoma game). 

TSMD: Your defense got gashed against Boston College on the ground, but was that just road jitters? Should we expect the traditional FSU defense?

JJ: The thing with our defense is that they’re still trying to find their identity, as cliche as that may sound, but it’s true. New defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt came over from Alabama and the guys are still trying to get used to executing the complex blitz packages in game situations. Also, those “guys” I speak of, are young. Guys like Chris Casher, Jalen Ramsey and Mario Edwards Jr. are still getting fully used to the game at this level. They’ll eventually pull it all together, and I sure hope that they do against Maryland because we can’t afford a BC type situation against the Terps–because we might not be able to recover.

TSMD: Who has been the defensive MVP for you guys? Are you missing Mark Stoops at all?

JJ: So far, I’d have to give the defensive MVP nod to true freshman Jalen Ramsey, solely because the youngster has performed well for how much has been asked of him from the opening game. He got the start at corner over last year’s ACC Rookie of the Year, Ronald Darby, and played phenomenally. Then, he was asked to play a little safety when Tyler Hunter went down and starred there. Just off of his versatility alone I’d name him the MVP. I’m glad he’s going to be sticking around for a little bit.

And as I said above, Jeremy Pruitt is going to do just fine I believe. He’s trying to implement a lot and they’re all still trying to grasp it in game situations, which will eventually all come together.

TSMD: Do you, as a fan and editor, believe Florida State is finally back? Is this the team that wins you another national championship?

JJ: They’re back as far as being a consistent 9-12 win team per year, but nothing will touch the dominance they had in the 90s. And as far as raising that crystal ball, I’d look for that next year rather than this year. It’s obvious that, especially defensively, they’re prone to making some costly mistakes and that will eventually catch up with them this year at some point, be it Saturday or against Clemson.

Bonus Q: Predict the final score

JJ: I absolutely love what you guys are doing so far, but I think Saturday we might have some of those defensive issues in check that’ll help us jump out early, but now without you guys making a bit of a statement in the process that you’re no fluke.

Florida State 38, Maryland 31