GameDay: Oregon prepares to play Florida State: ‘The team that doesn’t lose’

Originally Posted on Emerald Media via UWIRE

Oregon wide receiver Keanon Lowe described Oregon’s Rose Bowl matchup with Florida State succinctly.

“It’s awesome,” Lowe said. “We get to play a team that doesn’t lose.”

In the last 29 games, no team has come out victorious against the Seminoles. The last team to beat Florida State, the reigning BCS National Champions, was Florida in the final game of the 2012 season. The Gators won that game 37-26.

There are two blatant common denominators in Florida State’s winning streak.

One of them is its often-talked-about, Heisman winning quarterback Jameis Winston. On the field, Winston has shown clutch capabilities while leading a Florida State offense that is ranked 29th in the country averaging 34.8 points per game. In every game of his first two seasons with the Seminoles, Winston has thrown at least one touchdown pass.

Oregon senior linebacker Derrick Malone compared Winston to UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley.

“He’s a big guy, like (Hundley), and he’s hard to bring down,” Malone said. “We got to make sure that we’re firing on all cylinders. We got to make sure we can contain him and play our defense and make sure everyone does their job. We have to make sure we bring our ‘A’ game.”

The other commonality for the Seminoles is Jimbo Fisher and his coaching staff. Fisher took over a 7-6 football team in 2009. Since then, the Seminoles are 58-10. Under Fisher, Florida State is undefeated in bowl games. The Seminoles won back-to-back BCS bowl games coming into this season, as well.

Lowe believes Florida State’s winning streak is a testament to the Seminoles’ coaching staff.

“29-0, you know, that speaks for itself,” Lowe said. “Clearly they have one of the best coaching staffs in the country to be able to (win) two years in a row.

Still, the undefeated ACC champions, appeared less dominant in its most recent wins than it did throughout the course of its winning streak. In their last four games, the Seminoles have won by a combined margin of 14 points.

Lowe, however, still sees an opportunity to do something no other team has done in the last two years.

“They’re the real deal,” he said. “I’m excited to get a chance to knock them off.”

Florida State

Offense34.8 points per game (29th)

Passing

Jameis Winston – 3,559 yards, 65.4 completion percentage, 24 touchdowns and 17 interceptions.

Rushing 

Dalvin Cook – 905 yards and eight touchdowns

Karlos Williams – 609 yards and 10 touchdowns

Receiving

Rashad Greene – 93 receptions, 1,306 yards and seven touchdowns

Nick O’Leary – 47 receptions, 614 yards and six touchdowns

Travis Rudolph – 32 receptions, 459 yards and three touchdowns

Defense23.0 points allowed per game (30th)

Reggie Northrup – 113 tackles, one sack and one interception

Terrance Smith – 85 tackles, one sack and two interceptions

Jalen Ramsey – 75 tackles (9.5 tackles for loss), three sacks and two interceptions

Mario Edwards Jr. – 44 tackles (11 tackles for loss) and three sacks

Oregon

Offense –46.3 points per game (3rd)

Passing

Marcus Mariota – 3,783 yards, 38 touchdowns and two interceptions

Rushing

Royce Freeman – 1,299 yards and 16 touchdowns

Marcus Mariota – 669 yards and 14 touchdowns

Receiving

Byron Marshall – 61 receptions, 814 yards and five touchdowns

Devon Allen – 41 receptions, 684 yards and seven touchdowns

Dwayne Stanford – 37 receptions, 557 yards and six touchdowns

Defense –22.5 points against per game (29th)

Erick Dargan – 82 tackles and six interceptions

Derrick Malone – 76 tackles and 0.5 sacks

Joe Walker – 74 tackles (eight tackles for loss) and one sack

DeForest Buckner – 69 tackles (12 tackles for loss) and four sacks

Follow Joseph Hoyt on Twitter @JoeJHoyt

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