Ashton Daniels had 71 yards and a touchdown run on the ground on Monday night, but as a passer, the Auburn transfer continued to struggle. He once again looked flustered against the pass rush and prone to making mistakes when throwing the ball.
It's no wonder FSU took its first loss of the season to SMU, 27-24 at Doak Campbell Stadium. Once the lights finally came on, anyway, after a several-hour-long game delay due to a power outage.
Daniels may be having trouble processing in the pocket, but make no mistake: Mike Norvell is holding him back. Until Norvell is shown the door in Tallahassee, Daniels will look similar to how he looked Monday night and in a ho-hum Week 1 win against New Mexico State. In fact, against teams like Alabama, Louisville, and Miami, he may look worse.
That may mean another full month, at least, of Norvell calling plays for the Seminoles. Don't expect any significant improvement over that time, besides, presumably, the Central Arkansas matchup.
FSU couldn't take advantage of SMU turnovers
You know an offense is bad when it can't take advantage of good field position.
Somehow, Tony White's defense forced three turnovers against a Kevin Jennings-powered Mustangs offense, including two interceptions. FSU scored on zero of the three follow-up drives.
Norvell wasted a strong showing from White's defense, which doesn't have all too many of those. During losing seasons mired in malaise, that's the kind of bad luck that happens.
It didn't end there, either. The numbers paint an even bleaker picture when you dive deeper.
FSU didn't convert on third down until the fourth quarter
Somehow, Daniels and Co. couldn't convert on a single third-down opportunity until the fourth quarter.
The Seminoles started 0/10 on third down. Florida State only finished 2/15 on third downs when it was all said and done.
Norvell didn't put Daniels in positions to make big plays until it was too late. Daniels repeatedly held onto the ball for too long and didn't seem to trust himself in the offense. One particular drive, with under seven minutes left in the game and the score tied at 24, was particularly egregious, with the ball only moving backward.
This isn't sustainable.
Ashton Daniels is used to play-calling shakeups. No need to waste time, FSU.
Daniels had Troy Taylor as a play-caller at Stanford, then Hugh Freeze, Derrick Nix, and Kent Austin as a play-calling trio on the Plains. Once Freeze was fired, Daniels had just Nix. Now, he has Norvell.
What's just one more play-caller for Daniels in his last collegiate go-round?
If Norvell is fired, offensive coordinator Tim Harris Jr. would be the most logical replacement. Harris was promoted internally after Gus Malzahn suddenly retired in February.
Daniels' career has become somewhat of a journeyman's tale at the collegiate level. He deserves one last chance to prove himself as a leader, given that he was a multi-time Class 6A state champion in Georgia. Daniels showed star potential at Buford. Maybe there's still some of that left.
It can only reveal itself without Norvell. Because, frankly, Daniels doesn't have much of a chance to prove himself as long as Norvell is around.
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