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After putting together a solid 9-3 regular season record the Noles are back to bowling this season. On selection Sunday, Florida State received a bid to cap off the 2022 season with a Cheez-it Bowl appearance against the Oklahoma Sooners. Not only will the Noles get to stay close to home for the holidays with the game being in Orlando, but it is also the same Camping World Stadium they will kickoff 2023 in against LSU…who oddly enough is also playing in Orlando in the Citrus Bowl on Jan 2nd.
While some may not be the most excited about getting paired against a 6-6 Big 12 team, I personally think it is a fun matchup. FSU has history with the Sooners as well as new head coach Brent Venables. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been the greatest history with the series record between the two schools sitting at 1-6 in favor of the Sooners. We also know plenty about Venables time at Clemson. I’m hoping this time around FSU will be poised to deliver some payback.
Oklahoma has struggled in Venables first year but that does not mean FSU can take this game lightly. The Sooners have a good offense and have put up over 30 points in six games this season. To be fair, they do play in the Big 12 which is not exactly known for having stout defenses. There is still the mystery of who will be playing in this game for both sides as portal season has opened and there has been over 700 players already entered on the first day!
However, Venables has already reported they will be without their leading rusher Eric Gray and both starting offensive tackles which should make for a long day against Florida State’s top 15 defense. Speaking of the FSU defense, we have already gotten word that DE Jared Verse and Safety Jammie Robinson intend on playing in the bowl game which will be crucial as the Noles peruse their 10th win of the season.
While we still have to wait for the rest of the roster moves and opt-outs to come out before we provide an in-depth look at the game. However, we can at least provide an early look at how these two teams match up as of the end of the regular season seen in the graphic below.
As you can see, prior to the opt-outs these two offenses are pretty much identical but the difference between the two teams is the defenses with Oklahoma’s being far worse. That sounds awfully strange with one of the best defensive coordinators in the country at the helm, but to be fair he has yet to build his roster. On paper I like FSU to win this, and with the current opt-outs, possibly in big fashion. The Noles should be able to run all over the Sooners 109th ranked rush defense and if that isn’t working they haven’t show to be able to stop the pass well either. However, games certainly are not played on paper and FSU will need to bring their A-game for this one.
The Noles will be the home team in this game and should also have a decided home field advantage playing in their backyard. The game will take place from Camping World Stadium in Orlando Florida on December 29th at 5:30 PM. Be sure to check back for a full game preview and prediction once we get a little closer to game time and who is even playing becomes clearer. Until then, thanks for reading and Go Noles!
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