FSU 20, WAKE 17: Down early, Bobby Bowden sticks with QB Wyatt Sexton and he delivers.
By BRIAN LANDMAN
Published October 24, 2004
[Times photo: Willie J. Allen Jr.]
Dominic Robinson's 46-yard touchdown catch and point-after pull the Seminoles even at 17 in the fourth quarter.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Florida State's season seemed to be at a crossroads Saturday afternoon.
The No. 5-ranked Seminoles, still eying a possible ACC title and a chance to reach the Bowl Championship Series finale, were shockingly down by 11 to Wake Forest at halftime.
Worse, coach Bobby Bowden was ready to yank struggling redshirt sophomore quarterback Wyatt Sexton, who had provided stability and harmony since taking over for the injured Chris Rix a month ago.
"I let the offensive staff talk me out of it," he said, "which was probably wise."
With a vote of confidence, Sexton threw touchdowns to backup receivers Willie Reid and Dominic Robinson then helped orchestrate an 11-play, 77-yard drive that culminated with a 22-yard field goal by Xavier Beitia with 63 seconds left for a 20-17 win in front of an announced crowd of 31,403 at Groves Stadium.
For now, the Seminoles (6-1, 4-1) remain on the right road and Sexton, his coaches insist, took another step in the right direction.
"He did what you want your quarterback to do, that's get it in the end zone when you've got to have it and he did that tonight," offensive coordinator Jeff Bowden said.
At least in the second half. Not so much in the first half.
Sexton, coming off a near-flawless performance (20 of 26 for a career-high 275 yards) in a dominating 36-3 win against Virginia, committed a pair of costly mistakes. Defensive end Matt Robinson intercepted a pass that teammate Jerome Nichols tipped as Sexton rolled away from pressure. Robinson returned it 19 yards for a 7-0 lead with 50 seconds left in the first quarter.
Late in the second quarter, cornerback Eric King blitzed from the left edge, sacked Sexton and forced a fumble. Linebacker Brad White picked up the ball and returned it 36 yards for a touchdown and a 14-3 lead that prompted the Wake Forest fans to do their own mocking version of the Tomahawk Chop.
In the half, Sexton completed just 8 of 20 passes for 59 yards.
It didn't help that his receivers dropped several passes, which coupled with another strong effort from the FSU defense, led Jeff Bowden and quarterbacks coach Daryl Dickey to tell their boss he should stick with Sexton.
"Over the past couple of weeks, I guess you could say I've built up a little bit of trust with the coaches and they stuck with me through a tough first half," Sexton said. "My receivers and my O-line made great plays the second half and I was just fortunate to be able to give them the ball."
Up first is Reid, who actually jump-started the offense with a 48-yard punt return midway through the third. Three plays later, he caught a 20-yard touchdown pass.
Up next is Robinson, who had to assume a larger role with senior Chauncey Stovall out. He caught a 46-yard touchdown pass with 9:59 left to give FSU its first lead at 17-14.
"When an opportunity came up, I was fortunate enough to take advantage of it," he said. "That's kind of how my career has gone."
But the Demon Deacons (3-4, 0-4) weren't done.
Defensive end Jeremy Thompson intercepted a Sexton pass on third and 8 from the FSU 30 that set up a tying 41-yard field goal by Ryan Plackemeier with 4:32 left.
"It's amazing," Bobby Bowden said. "No matter how much we talk about them, that we've got better material, we've got more depth, we got more this, we got more that, I don't care what we bring up here, it's a battle to the very last minute against these guys."
Wake Forest seemed ready to get the ball back when FSU faced third and 9 from its 18. But tailback Lorenzo Booker, held in check most of the game, burst up the middle on a draw and raced 46 yards. Sexton converted another third down with a 14-yard sideline pass to Robinson, his fourth for 81 yards. He entered the game with four catches for 45 yards.
A 10-yard run by Booker essentially set the stage for Beitia, the former Jesuit star who had a history of not making the critical, last-minute field goals. Think Miami in 2002, in the 2003 Orange Bowl and even in this year's season opener. Think North Carolina State last year. So what did the 22-yarder he hit mean to him?
"(It's) a kick," he said. "Honestly. It may mean something a lot bigger to other people, but to me it was a kick to help my team win."
Cornerback Antonio Cromartie sealed the win with an interception on the final play.
"It's big," junior linebacker A.J. Nicholson said. "When you win games like this, it gives a team a momentum shift. All these games we've been having, the real close games, have been character builders for us. It's big."
