TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The Florida State football staff tried to wrap up Jimbo Fisher's session with the media prematurely following Saturday night's thrilling 29-24 victory against rival Miami.
But Fisher was having none of it.
"Just calm down," Fisher told his staff as they interrupted reporters' questions during post game. "We just beat Miami. We can stay and talk for a bit."
The head coach's quip lightened the mood on an otherwise tense evening that saw No. 12 Florida State (5-0 overall, 3-0 in the ACC) beat the Hurricanes (3-2, 0-1) for the sixth straight year.
The Seminoles, however, had to rally to do it. And they have Dalvin Cook to thank for that.
Cook, the Seminoles' star running back and emerging Heisman Trophy contender, returned from a hamstring injury and put together another monster performance, rushing for 222 yards and two touchdowns while adding three catches for 47 yards and another touchdown.
"That guy (Dalvin) ... he's one of the best players in college football. He's something else," said Fisher, who is now 6-0 against Miami and 13-1 against FBS teams from Florida since taking over in 2010. "I'm sure glad he's on my team."
Florida State now has 12 touchdowns this season, and Cook has scored nine of them while rushing for 792 yards through five games.
Well, technically, just four games and less than a quarter. Cook left after the first quarter of last week's game and did not return after a 94-yard touchdown on his second carry.
"I always wanted to play (Saturday), but then while I was warming and felt great, I knew it was a go," said Cook, a Miami native who didn't return to practice until late in the week but made it clear to Fisher he wanted to play against his hometown team. "It's a great feeling and something you cannot describe going out there and scoring the winning touchdown and watching the defense stop them."
The Seminoles watched a 20-10 halftime lead evaporate early in the fourth quarter when Miami quarterback and reigning ACC Rookie of the Year Brad Kaaya connected with wide receiver Stacy Coley from 29 yards to put the Hurricanes ahead 24-23.
The one-point deficit marked the first time Florida State trailed this season, but the Seminoles responded quickly.
On their ensuing drive with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter, quarterback Everett Golson engineered an eight-play, 84-yard march capped by Cook's third touchdown of the game, from 23 yards. Florida State's two-point conversion failed, leaving the door open for Miami.
But the Hurricanes - just like last year when they trailed 30-26 and had a chance to pull the upset with a final drive couldn't put together a game-winner.
They got the ball back with 2:45 left on their own 20-yard line and Kaaya had three passes batted down - two by defensive lineman Giorgio Newberry and one from defensive end Demarcus Walker.
Kaaya and the Hurricanes, who have now lost two straight games, were distraught afterward but said the goal for the rest of their season is now clear: Win the ACC Coastal Division and get a rematch with Florida State in the conference title game.
"We can't let what happen last year happen again. We can't let this linger," Kaaya said of the Hurricanes' implosion following last year's loss to Florida State as they finished the season with three straight losses. "This loss isn't going to break us."
Kaaya, the conference's top-rated passer, was 29 of 49 for 405 yards and three touchdowns. The Hurricanes struggled on the ground, rushing for just 20 yards.
Golson finished 25 of 33 for 291 yards and a touchdown pass, and Kermit Whitfield was Florida State's top receiver with nine receptions for 95 yards.
Kaaya appeared poised to lead the Hurricanes to the upset after putting together their longest drive of the season - a 17-play, 80-yard march - midway through the third quarter. Kaaya capped it with a 1-yard scoring pass to running back Joe Yearby on third down to pull Miami to within 20-17.
Florida State kicker Roberto Aguayo then made it 23-17 with a 25-yard field, but Kaaya's touchdown throw on the next drive to Coley gave the Hurricanes a 24-23 lead.
But the upset was not to be - much to Miami head coach Al Golden's dismay.
"I wanted it so badly for them to win this game. I really did. They worked really hard," Golden said. "We had opportunities. We didn't do it. (But) we have only played one ACC game; that's what I told (my team). We haven't even played a Coastal game. We just have to keep tight, grow from this."
Florida State's defense was paced by safety Tyler Hunter's eight tackles, while Walker recorded two sacks. Miami's defense was led by nine tackles from linebacker Jermaine Grace but the defense as a whole had no answer for Cook.
Cook took his first carry of the game 72 yards to the end zone to put Florida State ahead quickly 7-0. The touchdown came on an option play - a formation Florida State hasn't run all season - as Golson held the ball until the final seconds before pitching it to Cook, who weaved through tacklers and romped untouched to the end zone.
Miami answered with a scoring drive of its own, getting a 30-yard field goal from Michael Badgley to cut the deficit to 7-3 after the Hurricanes' 11-play, 62-yard march stalled inside Florida State's red zone.
Florida State pushed the margin to 14-3 on another Cook touchdown - a 36-yard pass from Golson on the Seminoles' second possession. Aguayo then added a 22-yard field goal to make it 17-3 and the Seminoles appeared to be running away with it early.
But the Hurricanes answered when Kaaya connected with wideout Rawshawn Scott on a 52-yard bomb to make it 17-10.
Aguayo added another field goal, this one from 32 yards out, late in the fourth quarter and had a chance to extend it to 23-10 just before intermission. But his 49-yard try at the gun hit the upright. The miss was only Aguayo's second of the year.
For a while, the missed kick looked like it would cost Florida State when they fell behind late. but Fisher said that's why you should never underestimate the Seminoles.
"This is a young team. There was a bunch of babies out there tonight," he said. "But those babies grew up out there tonight, that's for sure."
NOTES: It seems that every Florida State-Miami meeting, there's always a pregame dust-up - and Saturday was no different. As Florida State K Roberto Aguayo warmed up near the Hurricanes' side of the field before kickoff, several Miami players approached him and seemed to take issue with him being so close to their warm-up spot. An argument ensued, followed by one of them pushing Aguayo and pointing for him to return to the other side. Eventually, coaches from both team intervened and separated them. ... Florida State lost one of its defensive stars for the rest of the game - and he first half of next week's game - midway through the first quarter. S Trey Marshall was flagged for roughing the passer and targeting after hitting Kaaya following a completion. The referees reviewed the play and Marshall was ejected. Per NCAA rules, Marshall will now miss the first half of Florida State's next game, which is Oct. 17 at home against Louisville. Florida State retired the jersey of two-time All-American LB Marvin Jones (1990-92) during halftime. Jones, who became the 10th former Florida State player to have his jersey retired, won both the Butkus and Lombardi awards as a junior in 1992 and placed fourth in the Heisman balloting. ... Miami's lead in the all-time series shrunk to 31-29 following Saturday's loss.
