The Florida State Seminoles will be off this week before resuming their gauntlet of a schedule against the Clemson Tigers on Halloween, with a potentially ranked and definitely good Florida Gators team awaiting them at the end of it all.
Florida State football enters its bye week with a 3-4 record, most recently losing to No. 1 Miami, 43-35 in double overtime. Dropping its ACC record to 1-3, with Mike Norvell still looking for his first road win since 2023.
Through seven games, linebacker Chris Jones leads the team in tackles with 46 and is in fifth place in sacks. Defensive lineman Rylan Kennedy leads the team in sacks with six. Ashlyn Barker remains the team's leader in interceptions with two, with one coming in FSU's loss to Miami. The Seminoles have only logged four total interceptions this season, with the other two coming from Quindarrius Jones and Nehemiah Chandler, with one each.
As a team, how does FSU football's defense stack up against the rest of the ACC? Here is where the Seminoles rank in several major defensive categories through their first seven games.
Yards per game allowed: No. 16
Florida State is one of three teams in the conference that allow over 400 yards per game, at 434.9. Only the Stanford Cardinal is worse, at 452.0. Its best performance of the year came against Virginia, with the Seminoles only allowing 205 yards of offense.
Here are the top five defenses in the ACC according to yards allowed per game:
- Miami (281.8 YPG)
- Duke (292.7 YPG)
- SMU (303.0 YPG)
- Pittsburgh (306.3 YPG)
- Virginia Tech (314.7 YPG)
Passing yards allowed per game: No. 16
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Seminoles are terrible in pass defense given they are among the worst in the ACC in total defense, allowing 256.3 yards per game.
Here are the top five pass defenses in the ACC:
- SMU (164.8 YPG)
- Boston College (169.3 YPG)
- Virginia (174.6 YPG)
- Clemson (189.3 YPG)
- Syracuse (190.8 YPG)
Rushing yards per game: No. 14
The ACC as a whole has been great at stopping the run, with the top five teams each averaging under 100 rushing yards given up per game. FSU is not even close to that.
Here are the top five defenses in the ACC at stopping the run.
- Pittsburgh (57.3 YPG)
- Miami (58.5 YPG)
- Virginia Tech (87.4 YPG)
- Wake Forest (92.4 YPG)
- Duke (92.5 YPG)
Points allowed per game: No. 16
The top team in the ACC, Miami, gives up 14 points per game, which is nearly two touchdowns under what FSU allows per game with 27.9 points allowed. Last-place Stanford is giving up 36.6 points per game.
Here are the toughest defenses in the ACC to score on.
- Miami (14.0 PPG)
- Duke (16.0 PPG)
- Pittsburgh (16.4 PPG)
- North Carolina (19.2 PPG)
- Wake Forest (19.4 PPG)
Sacks: No. 2
Finally, something good to report. The Seminoles are only behind Virginia Tech, recording 19 sacks through seven games. Rylan Kennedy leads the way with six.
Here are the top five teams in the ACC with the most sacks.
- Virginia Tech (22)
- Florida State (19)
- SMU, Miami, Wake Forest (tied at 18)
Interceptions: No. 7
FSU is middle of the pack in picks. Their four interceptions are tied with Clemson, Miami, and Syracuse for seventh best in the conference. Ashlynd Barker leads the team in interceptions with two.
Here are the ACC's interception leaders.
- Pittsburgh (9)
- Boston College (8)
- Virginia, California, Louisville (tied at 7)
Contact/Follow us @FSUWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of FSU news, notes, and opinions. Jacob Smith is a contributor for FSU Wire, part of the USA TODAY Network. You can also follow Jacob on X at @jsmith_sports.
This article originally appeared on FSU Wire: Where Florida State's defense ranks in the ACC after Week 7