How FSU football interim DC Randy Shannon turned the page; plan vs. DJ Lagway, Florida

Posted by Admin November 26, 2024 Football

Florida State football’s (2-9, 1-7) interim defensive coordinator, Randy Shannon, is not worried about his past or what the future holds for him.

He is only worried about having his defense ready for the Florida Gators (6-5, 4-4) for Saturday’s Sunshine State Showdown at Doak Campbell Stadium, which will start at 7 p.m.

Shannon, who has coached FSU’s rivalry teams in his 32-year coaching career, was asked about his past experiences during Monday’s press conference and immediately shut it down by sticking with the presence and nothing in between.

“It’s one thing I’ll never do,” Shannon said.

“I never talk about any position that I have ever been in. When I was at Florida, when I was at Miami, you had to do your job and just keep it moving. You don’t worry about the future. You just worry about what’s in the present.”

Last week’s victory over Charleston Southern was Shannon’s first game calling the defense after Adam Fuller was fired.

New coach, new rules

FSU’s defensive back Ashlynd Barker, who caught his first career pick against the Buccaneers, mentioned after the game that Shannon had installed some new plays and that it took time to adjust to it during the week of practice.

“Once we found out the news, and then the next day, we kind of had a couple of new stuff that was installed, Barker said.

“So the first day of practice, that was full speed, it was kind of challenging for me because I try to like proud myself in knowing what I’m doing, but pretty much after that, it was smooth riding because Shannon has confidence in us and stuff like that.”

Shannon was pleased by the defense’s performance, especially from his young group.

He liked how the Seminoles shut down the Buccaneers’ running game, which they held to 57 rushing yards on the ground. He would also encourage them to remain positive, play loosely, and not treat it like a job.

“They just went out and played the game,” Shannon said.

“It was a response. It is more about you playing the game because you enjoy it. You play the game because you chose to do these things, and it’s more about not making this a job,”

“Don’t make this a situation where you have to take it to another level, which you do, but not at all cost. I just told them, “Hey, don’t let the negative plays control you; you control the negative plays.”

How FSU football’s DC Randy Shannon is preparing against Florida Gators

Shannon knows a thing or two about the FSU-UF rivalry, as he has coached both sides.

This year’s matchup will feature two freshman quarterbacks taking the field at Doak. For Shannon and his defense, it’s about game planning for UF’s freshman DJ Lagway.

Since Lagway took over at quarterback, the Gators have won three of the last four games, including beating Top 25 SEC opponents, LSU and Ole Miss.

The win over the Rebels made Florida bowl-eligible. Lagway has thrown for 1,477 yards, nine touchdowns and six interceptions.

Shannon believes the best way to stop Lagway is to win upfront and stop Florida’s running game.

“It’s what they are doing up front, to be honest with you guys,” Shannon said.

“I mean, the coach has done a great job of what they are doing. It’s limited to what they are trying to get done as run team first. They’re going to try to pound the ball.”

Focus on football

FSU has won the last two meetings, and it could be the first time since 2017 that the Seminoles beat the Gators in three consecutive years. Shannon had a different viewpoint when handling a rivalry game like FSU-UF and advised his players not to make that a distraction from the game itself.

“It’s all going to come down on the football field. I mean, the environment is going to be the environment. It’s always the rivalry games, the crowd, the fans, the stands, it’s always electrifying and everything else, but you have to do as a player not get caught in the verse of getting the stands,all the theatrics, the excitement the fun the family’s going to be there,” Shannon said.

“The biggest thing you have is just to concentrate on what happens on the football field and not get a kid into one-on-one battles,” Shannon said.

“That’s the one biggest thing that you cannot get into when you have a rivalry game, the one-on-one battles, me against that game because eventually, somebody’s going to, and all of the sudden flags going to come off, and then officials have to take control of the gameplay.” Shannon said.

“Play the game with what you normally do and be the best that you can be but don’t get into the one-on-one battles.”

How to watch FSU vs. Florida

Date: Saturday, Nov. 30
Time: 7 p.m.
Where: Doak Campbell Stadium, Tallahassee
TV: ESPN2

FSU football schedule 2024: TV channels, dates and start times

Saturday, Aug. 24: vs. Georgia Tech* (Aer Lingus College Football Classic) Lost 24-21
Monday, Sept. 2: vs. Boston College* | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo) Lost 28-13
Saturday, Sept. 7: Bye
Saturday, Sept. 14: vs. Memphis | Noon | ESPN (Fubo) Lost 20-12
Saturday, Sept. 21: vs. Cal* | 7 p.m.| ESPN2 (Fubo) Won 14-9
Saturday, Sept. 28: at No. 9 SMU* | 8 p.m. EST | ACC Network Lost 42-16
Saturday, Oct. 5: vs. No. 17 Clemson* | 7 p.m.| ESPN (Fubo) Lost 29-13
Saturday, Oct. 12: Bye
Friday, Oct. 18: at Duke* | 7 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo) Lost 23-16
Saturday, Oct. 26: at No. 7 Miami* | 7 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo) Lost 36-14
Saturday, Nov. 2: vs. North Carolina* | 3:30 p.m.| ESPN (Fubo) Lost 35-11
Saturday, Nov. 9: at No. 5 Notre Dame | 7:30 p.m. | NBC (Fubo, Peacock) Lost 52-3
Saturday, Nov. 16: Bye
Saturday, Nov. 23: vs. Charleston Southern | 1:30 p.m. |ACC Extra/ ESPN+ Won 41-7
Saturday, Nov. 30: vs. Florida