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Florida State has finally settled on a starting quarterback. Senior Day is coming up Saturday against Chattanooga. And last week was one heck of a come-from-behind win for the Seminoles. But the hot topic around the program focuses on one man: sophomore running back Dalvin Cook.
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"Do I think he deserves it? Yes," Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher said when asked about Cook's chances to still win the Heisman Trophy.
Cook wasn't considered one of the top six favorites for the award when sportsbooks released new odds this week.
"I think he's not only one of the best backs, I think he's one of the best players in the country," Fisher said.
Cook, who averages a staggering 38.5 yards on every touchdown he's scored this season, started the Heisman talk following his 22-carry, 138-yard, two-touchdown, highlight-reel performance last week against N.C. State.
Cook was asked three pointed questions about the Heisman Trophy during his post-game interview: Did he A) Deserve to be in the Heisman conversation? B) Deserve to be invited to New York as one of the finalists? and C) Deserve to win it?
Cook answered yes to all three.
And Monday, Fisher continued the conversation -- while openly questioning what, exactly, was today's Heisman Trophy criteria if Cook wasn't even considered among the current favorites, mainly because the Seminoles aren't in the College Football Playoff discussion.
"Isn't (giving the Heisman to the best overall player) the way it's supposed to be? I think that's where we went wrong with that thing. I really do," Fisher said.
Fisher referenced Notre Dame legendary running back Paul Hornung, who remains the only player to win the Heisman from a losing team, doing so in 1956 when the Fighting Irish finished 2-8.
"(Paul Hornung) had a losing record and he won the Heisman. You know what I'm saying?" Fisher said.
"Whatever goes on, to me, I think that's where we get caught up on (awarding it to the best player) on the winning team. That's just the way it's evolved. And that's a shame to me because it's supposed to be an individual award. (You have) team awards and you have individual awards.
"You're punishing your guy because he didn't go to a school that wins the national championship or played for it. That's where I think we've gotten out of whack with it."
Cook, who broke the Seminoles' single-season rushing record last week and has scored a team-high 15 touchdowns this season for Florida State (8-2 overall, 6-2 in the ACC), is ranked in the top six nationally in four categories that typically serve as barometers for determining college football's top rusher: yards per game, yards per carry, all-purpose yards and total yards.
Cook averages 152.1 yards a game (second in the FBS), 8.5 yards per carry (second), 174.6 all-purpose yards an outing (fourth) and has rushed for 1,369 total yards this season -- good for sixth-best in the country.
Current Heisman frontrunner, Alabama running back Derrick Henry, is ahead of Cook in just one of those categories: total yards. Henry has rushed for 1,458 yards, but he's also played one and a half more games than Cook -- who missed time with injuries -- and Henry has carried the ball 240 times, compared to just 170 from Cook.
Henry, however, plays for a team that's still very much in the race for the College Football Playoff, while Cook and Florida State -- with two losses and already out of the running for even the ACC title -- are not.
Cook was asked again about the Heisman this week, and said while the award would be nice, he not losing any sleep over it.
"(The Heisman) isn't something I set out to go get, and I don't feel disrespected at all (not being mentioned)," Cook said, adding that if he doesn't get invited to New York this year, getting there next year won't be a goal either. "I want a national title and an ACC Championship (first)."
None of that will be at stake Saturday when the Seminoles host Chattanooga (8-2) for the third time in school history -- only Florida State's FBS-leading 20-game home win streak will be on the line.
Junior quarterback Sean Maguire was officially anointed the starter for the game -- and likely the rest of the year -- after replacing graduate transfer Everett Golson in the first half last week against N.C. State and leading the Seminoles from a 17-7 deficit to a 34-17 win.
Maguire passed for 231 yards and two touchdowns, while Golson was 5 of 9 for 52 yards and three turnovers before being benched. The performances by both players all but ended any quarterback debate at Florida State with Fisher proclaiming Monday that Maguire "will be the starter based on what he did in the last game."
Saturday's game will also mark the final appearance in Doak Campbell for Florida State's 12 scholarship seniors, who have already won 47 games and could tie the 2014 senior class Saturday for most wins over a four-year period in FSU history. If the Seminoles beat Chattanooga, the seniors will have two chances to set a new record: in their regular-season finale at Florida on Nov. 28 or in their bowl game.
If there's one remaining theme to this Florida State season, it's to finish strong.
"Looking forward to sending these seniors out on a great note and what they've accomplished in these last four years winning almost 90, 91 percent of their games. That's a lot of W's in a short time span," Fisher said. "So it's been a heck of a run for these guys and a tribute of what they've meant to the program and what they've done."
NOTES, QUOTES
PLAYERS TO WATCH
--Florida State fans at Doak Campbell will say so long to 12 key contributors Saturday on Senior Day: P Cason Beatty, S Lamarcus Brutus, DB Javien Elliott, QB Everett Golson, DB Tyler Hunter, LS Barrett Kernon, DT Nile Lawrence-Stample, DT Derrick Mitchell, DE Gio Newberry, LB Reggie Northrup, DB Keelin Smith and LB Terrance Smith. Seven walk-ons will also be honored.
--Who will finish the season as Florida State's leading wideout? The race is tight. Travis Rudolph is out front right now with 47 catches, followed by Bobo Wilson with 46 and Kermit Whitfield with 43 -- and they've been trading the lead all season. They became the eighth trio of receivers in the last 25 years to each record 40 or more receptions in a season. They also have accounted for 12 of Florida State's 17 receiving TDs this season.
--LB Reggie Northrup, the Seminoles' leading tackler for the second straight year, continues his quest for a Florida State milestone. With 73 total tackles this season, Northrup could become the first Florida State player to record back-to-back 100-tackle seasons since linebacker Michael Boulware accomplished the feat in 2002 (127 tackles) and 2003 (111). Northrup, who recorded 122 tackles in 2014, will have three games left to get there; the Seminoles have two regular-season contests remaining -- vs. Chattanooga and at Florida, plus a bowl game.
