FSU Falls in Double Overtime at Virginia

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Florida State football team suffered its first loss of the season, 46-38 in double overtime at Virginia on Friday night at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Virginia.

The Seminoles (3-1, 0-1 ACC) erased three deficits, including the third with a game-tying touchdown with 36 seconds remaining in regulation, but they could not answer a touchdown by the Cavaliers (4-1, 1-0 ACC) in the second overtime.

Playing its first ACC game and first contest away from home, FSU trailed 14-0 but, aided by two interceptions, quickly answered to take the lead with three consecutive trips into the endzone. UVA tied it at 21-all with less than a minute left in the first half and retook a 28-21 lead in the third.

The Seminoles tied it for a second time late in the third quarter and the Cavaliers went ahead 35-28 in the fourth. Florida State responded once more to tie it 35-35, this time with 36 seconds left in regulation. In overtime, both teams traded field goals before UVA scored a touchdown with a two-point conversion and FSU was unable to answer.

Florida State had 514 total yards of offense, 258 passing and 256 rushing, while Virginia had 440 offensive yards, 229 through the air and 211 on the ground. Both teams had three turnovers which led to 14 points each.

Quarterback Tommy Castellanos was 18-for-32 passing for 254 yards while rushing for 78 yards on 14 attempts. He scored two touchdowns, one passing and one rushing. Wide receiver Duce Robinson caught nine passes for 147 yards with a touchdown, and running back Gavin Sawchuk ran for 74 yards with one touchdown on 17 carries. Tight end Randy Pittman Jr. contributed to three touchdowns, one passing, one receiving and one rushing.

Defensively, defensive back Earl Little Jr. had a game-high 13 tackles, four solo. Defensive back Ja'Bril Rawls had 11 tackles with one tackle-for-loss and an interception. Linebacker Elijah Herring and defensive back Edwin Joseph also picked off passes on Friday night. Defensive back Ashlynd Barker picked up both of FSU's sacks on the night.

Virginia took a 7-0 lead with five minutes remaining in the first quarter on a drive that started on the FSU 38 following a fumble. An interception deep in UVA territory gave the Cavaliers the ball back, and the home team extended the lead to 14-0 15 plays and 81 yards later.

That's when Florida State responded, first with a seven-play, 75-yard drive capped by Sawchuk's two-yard touchdown run. Joseph picked off the very next play at the Virginia 43, which set up Pittman's two-yard rushing touchdown to finish off a four-play, 27-yard drive that took 1:11 to tie the game at 14-14 with 5:29 left in the first half.

It took all of four plays for the Seminoles to get the ball back again, as Herring's interception gave the visitors the ball at the UVA 45. Six plays and 45 yards later, it was 21-14 Florida State thanks to Castellanos' four-yard score on the ground.

Virginia was able to answer with a touchdown of its own on the next drive to tie the game at 21-21 with less than a minute left in the half.

A missed field goal started the second half, and the Cavaliers then regained a 28-21 lead with a 12-play drive. FSU tied it right back again at 28-all on Pittman Jr.'s four-yard pass to Robinson. That punctuated a seven-play, 75-yard drive.

With a 16-play drive that took nearly eight minutes, UVA answered to retake the lead at 35-28 midway through the final quarter of regulation. Florida State's next drive was halted on 4th-and-1 at the Virginia 22, but the defense got a stop with just over two minutes left to give the Seminoles the ball back.

Eight plays later, Castellanos found Pittman Jr. in the endzone for the game-tying touchdown with 36 seconds left on 4th-and-11. On a 67-yard drive that was aided by a 34-yard completion from Castellanos to wide receiver Lawayne McCoy, the touchdown made it 35-35. Rawls' interception with 16 seconds left ended Virginia's attempt to win it in regulation.

In overtime, FSU got the ball first and kicked a field goal to make it 38-35, only for UVA to answer with three points of its own. In the second OT session, the Cavaliers scored on a four-yard run on 4th-and-goal and converted the two-point conversion to make it 46-38. The Seminoles could not get a first down on their try, and an interception in the end zone on 4th-and-12 ended the game.

Florida State returns home to host Miami on Saturday, October 4. The matchup at Doak S. Campbell Stadium is at 7:30 p.m. on ABC.

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Team Stats

Tommy Castellanos

Randy Pittman Jr.

Players Mentioned

Ashlynd Barker

Tommy Castellanos

Elijah Herring

Edwin Joseph

Earl Little Jr.

Lawayne McCoy

Randy Pittman Jr.

Ja’Bril Rawls

Duce Robinson

Gavin Sawchuk

Florida State University Athletics