Florida
No. 4 Florida State earns spot in ACC title game by pulling away from Pittsburgh 24-7
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ja’Khi Douglas was there during the dark days at Florida State when the losses piled up and the program’s reputation as a national power seemed like a distant memory.
Those days are over. The fourth-ranked Seminoles are returning to the ACC title game for the first time in nearly a decade after pulling away from Pittsburgh for a 24-7 win on Saturday night.
“Since I’ve been here four years, we’ve been through ups and downs,” said Douglas, a redshirt junior wide receiver who caught a career-high six passes for 115 yards while filling in for injured star Keon Coleman. “It’s great that we get a chance to show the ACC, the whole world that Florida State is back.”
Jordan Travis passed for a season-high 360 yards, throwing for a touchdown and running for another as the Seminoles earned a trip to Charlotte on the first Saturday in December for the first time since 2014.
Nine years without a conference title appearance would be a blip in most places. Florida State is not most places. The program spent the back half of the 2010s in a freefall. Norvell arrived in 2020 to help turn things around and after a series of fits and starts, the Seminoles appear ready to re-enter the national conversation.
“A lot of work that goes into (reaching the ACC championship),” Norvell said. “To know we are going to get another game at the end of the regular season is big.”
If the Seminoles keep winning, there could be a couple more after the ACC final. The Seminoles, fourth in the initial College Football Playoff ranking, have won 15 straight games, and they showcased the depth Norvell has cultivated by fending off Pitt.
Travis hit tight end Markeston Douglas for a 22-yard touchdown midway through the third quarter to give Florida State a 10-point lead. Trey Benson sprinted 55 yards up the middle on the Seminoles’ next possession to put the Panthers (2-7, 1-4) away.
It did not come easy on a day the Seminoles played without leading receivers Coleman and Johnny Wilson. Wilson was ruled out well before the game due to injury, while Coleman did not take the field for warm-ups, though Norvell said he’s optimistic Coleman will be available perhaps as early as next Saturday when archrival Miami visits Doak Campbell Stadium.
Travis relied heavily on screens and dump-offs before finally getting going after halftime. The senior completed 22 of 36 passes and also ran for a 1-yard score in the second quarter to go with his touchdown strike to Markeston Douglas, giving him multiple touchdowns in a school-record 16 straight games.
Florida State’s defense did the rest. The Seminoles forced three turnovers and didn’t let the Panthers convert any of their 10 third downs.
Christian Veilleux threw for 244 yards with a touchdown and an interception for Pitt, which played well a week after getting shredded by Notre Dame but was undone by penalties and mistakes.
The Panthers were flagged 11 times for 91 yards, including an unsportsmanlike conduct call against tight end Gavin Bartholomew in the third quarter that pushed Pitt out of field-goal range with the Panthers down just three.
TURNING POINT
The Panthers have struggled to generate much offensively all season, and a frantic sequence early in the second quarter distilled Pitt’s miserable fall to its essence.
Veilleux found a wide-open Konata Mumpfield deep down the middle of the field and Mumpfield raced 81 yards toward the end zone only to have Florida State’s Fentrell Cypress II chase him down and knock the ball free just before Mumpfield crossed the goal line. Cypress pounced on the loose ball for a touchback to end the threat and keep the game scoreless.
THE TAKEAWAY
Florida State: The Seminoles have come a long way in Norvell’s four seasons. Florida State was drilled by the Panthers in Tallahassee in 2020 during his first year. Three years the tables have turned completely.
Pitt: The Panthers played with the kind of effort that seems to indicate coach Pat Narduzzi’s suggestion after the loss to the Irish that Pitt didn’t bring in enough talented players during the offseason — a suggestion he later apologized for — has been forgiven. Still, Pitt will miss a bowl game for just the second time in Narduzzi’s nine-year tenure.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
The Seminoles didn’t really make a compelling argument that they deserve to crack the top three while struggling to put away a 21-point underdog. If anything, Florida State’s performance might cost them a spot or two.
UP NEXT
Florida State: will try to beat the Hurricanes for a third straight time next weekend.
Animals at Central Florida Zoo get extra care as temps drop
As cold weather sweeps across Florida, staff at the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens are working to keep their animals safe and comfortable.
SANFORD, Fla. – As cold weather sweeps across Florida, staff at the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens are working to keep their animals safe and comfortable.
Signs around the zoo highlight the efforts to protect animals during the chilly conditions. For example, Coral, a two-toed sloth, has temporarily left her outdoor enclosure to enjoy the warmth of a heater indoors.
“When it gets to about 40 degrees, like it will tonight, our primates are ushered inside to their dens,” said Chris Torge, director of animal operations at the zoo. “We also use different types of heat lamps, heat pads, and forced-air heaters for our animals.”
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Some animals require more care than others in cold weather. PJ, a temperature-sensitive rhino, stays warm under large propane heaters and a tarp when temperatures fall below 40 degrees.
However, not all animals mind the cold. The zoo’s Amur leopard thrives in cooler weather, as the species hails from the frigid regions between China and Russia.
Zoo staff customize preparations based on each species’ needs, with some animals requiring little to no extra heat.
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The Source: This story was written based on information shared by Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens.
EUGENE – Since coach Dan Lanning took over at Oregon, the Oregon Ducks have become one of the top destinations for receivers all over the country. This season, Oregon had one of the best receiving corps in the nation and secured commitments from the top wide receivers in the class of 2025, including ESPN’s No. 3 overall prospect, Dakorien Moore.
Now, Lanning and his staff have landed a big-time transfer out of Florida State, Malik Benson.
Benson, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound senior from Florida State, has committed to Oregon. The former No. 1 overall junior college recruit out of Hutchinson Community College in Kansas played one season at Alabama and one with the Seminoles before entering the portal and committing to Oregon.
Benson chose Oregon over both Tennessee and Kansas State. He was ranked the No. 91 wide receiver in the transfer portal, according to On3’s 2025 Transfer Portal Player Rankings.
The former Seminole told ESPN on Tuesday that he picked Oregon because he was impressed with the coaching staff and intrigued by the opportunity to play with quarterback Dante Moore, a transfer from UCLA who served as Oregon’s backup QB this season.
“He’ll be a Heisman finalist next year. 100%. Next year,” senior wide receiver Tez Johnson said of Moore. “That boy can throw a ball like no other. I’ve never seen nothing like it.”
Next season, Moore will have another experienced receiver to target in Benson.
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The 2024 season was anticipated to be Benson’s final season of collegiate football before presumably testing his chances in the NFL Draft. However, he now has one more year of eligibility remaining due to the NCAA waiver granted to former junior college players.
“I’m just glad that the Lord blessed me with another opportunity and another year,” Benson told ESPN. “I will not take this for granted.”
In 2024, Benson appeared in all 12 games for the Seminoles. He finished the season with 25 catches for 311 yards and a touchdown. Benson also recorded two rushing attempts and one punt return.
Prior to playing at Florida State, Benson played at Alabama under head coach Nick Saban. While at Alabama, Benson made 14 appearances and six starts. He had 13 receptions for 162 yards, with his best showing of the season coming against Texas, where he recorded two receptions for 33 yards.
Before transitioning to Power 5 football, Benson had the challenge of proving himself at the junior college level, and he exceeded expectations. During his two seasons at Hutchinson, Benson recorded 2,152 receiving yards while ranking second in program history with 21 receiving touchdowns.
Benson has the opportunity to make an impact right away with Oregon, as the Ducks have lost multiple receivers to the NFL, including Johnson, Traeshon Holden, and potentially Evan Stewart, who has yet to make a decision. Benson is sure to provide a boost to Oregon’s 2025 roster as the program looks for redemption after falling to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. Although it is very early, given the talent and experience on Oregon’s future roster, the Ducks have another opportunity to make the College Football Playoff and contend for a national championship.
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By finishing off the give-and-go, Verhaeghe netted his 10th goal of the campaign.
“He made an awesome pass, really deceptive,” Verhaeghe said of Lundell’s set-up dish.
Starting the second period on the penalty kill, the Panthers held Colorado’s vaunted power play to just two shots on goal. Later in the period, the Panthers got the job done once again with another stalwart showing on the penalty kill, this time surrendering zero shots on goal.
Despite taking the ice without two of their top defensemen and penalty killers in Ekblad and Mikkola, who are both sidelined by injuries, the Panthers went 4-for-4 on the penalty kill.
“I think we did a good job,” forward Eetu Luostarinen said of the team’s work while shorthanded. “We know they have a lot of guys that can make plays and score. I think we didn’t give them too much time and space.”
Evening the score for Colorado, Devon Toews fired a shot through traffic that went off the cross bar, hit Sergei Bobrovsky’s back and then fluttered into the net to make it 1-1 at 18:18.
A grinder of a second period, the two teams combined for just five shots at 5-on-5.
After being shut down on the power play once again early in the third period, the Avalanche found the go-ahead goal they needed at even strength. Notching his second goal of the game, Toews found the back of the net with another point shot to make it 2-0 at 8:54.
From there, Bobrovsky and Blackwood went save for save for several minutes.
A great goaltending battle, Bobrovsky finished with 31 saves, while Blackwood made 26.
“He’s our wall back there,” Verhaeghe said of Bobrovsky. “I can’t say enough.”
Sealing the win for Colorado, Miko Rantanen made it 3-1 with an empty-net goal at 18:03.
“I think it was a tight game, a 2-1 game,” Verhaeghe said of the third period. “It’s a game we’re used to playing in. The last time game we got the better of it. It just took one break. We had our chances and looks to get back into the game or to tie it up. It didn’t go for us.”
THEY SAID IT
“We supported pretty well, moved the puck pretty well. Both team’s penalty kill was really strong. It was going to be a tight game.” – Paul Maurice
“It was kind of back-and-forth of a game. We had our chances, but they capitalized on one, which was kind of the difference. Yeah, we’re comfortable playing in those games. We usually pull it out.” – Carter Verhaeghe
CATS STATS
– Aleksander Barkov went 8-for-13 (61.5%) in the face-off circle.
– Dmitry Kulikov blocked a team-high three shots.
– Tobias Bjornfot saw 15:29 of ice time in his season debut.
– Sergei Bobrovsky made 10 high-danger saves, per NaturalStatTrick.com.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The Panthers will close the book on their two-game road trip with their first-ever trip to Salt Lake City for a matchup against the Utah Hockey Club at Delta Center on Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET.
To find a place to watch the game in South Florida, click HERE.
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