Florida State pulled off an improbable comeback on Monday night in their season-opening game as they overcame a 28-6 deficit and won 45-34 against Ole Miss.
Once left for dead and mocked especially after a bad play like this one, the Seminoles went on a 30-0 run to take the lead and seal the game. True freshman Ricky Aguayo and redshirt freshman Deondre Francois deserve a ton of credit for their roles in the comeback.
Let’s start with Aguayo, the successor to his brother, Roberto, who was a successful kicker at FSU and went on to become a second-round pick by the Buccaneers in this year’s NFL draft. Ricky was flawless as he went 6-for-6 on field goals and 3-for-3 on extra points to record 21 of FSU’s 45 points.
As one FSU reporter astutely pointed out, Aguayo has scored more points than multiple top programs in the first weekend:
Ricky Aguayo (6 field goals, 3 PATs) has more points this season (21) than LSU, Clemson, Wisconsin, Auburn and USC. #FSU #Noles
— Ryan S. Clark (@ryan_s_clark) September 6, 2016
Aguayo also gets some bonus swag points:
"Ice in my veins" pic.twitter.com/7qPuK5F6Hm
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero) September 6, 2016
Then there was the performance of Francois, who went 33-of-52 for 419 yards, two touchdowns and 59 yards on the ground. Not bad for a guy making his first career start … on national TV … against nearly a top-10 team.
And another player who must be mentioned is senior defensive end DeMarcus Walker. Walker recorded 4.5 sacks in the contest and might have had the best performance of anyone in the game.
It’s stunning that FSU could go from looking so bad to turning it around so quickly to win the game.
