The first time Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher declared that the Seminoles' defense was more talented than their offense, he wouldn't have found many people outside his locker room who would have agreed.

Week by week, that defense is winning more believers.

Jimbo Fisher's defense is beginning to live up to its potential.

A defense that couldn't slow anyone last season leads the nation in sacks and ranks second among all FBS teams in tackles for loss. That defense faces a major test Saturday when the Seminoles (4-1 overall, 2-0 in the ACC) travel to Miami (3-1, 1-0).

"Last year on defense we didn't do too well," sophomore defensive end Brandon Jenkins acknowledged. "That was motivation for us to come out this year and show the nation that really wasn't us. We're better than that."

So far, they've been much better than that.

FSU is allowing barely half as many points per game as it did last season. The Seminoles rank 21st in the nation in total defense after finishing 108th in that category in 2009. They've surprised just about everyone but Fisher.

"I thought we could be very good," Fisher said. "I've said this before. I don't mean this as any slight, but I think our talent on defense is better than our talent on offense."

Fisher's comments didn't make much sense on the surface. FSU returned almost its entire nucleus from an offense that ranked in the top 32 in yards and points per game last season. But the Seminoles went 7-6 because their defense allowed at least 26 points in 10 of their 13 games.

But a closer look at the Seminoles' depth chart reveals Fisher may have a point.

Florida State's first-team defense features four former five-star prospects in senior end Markus White, sophomore nose tackle Jacobbi McDaniel, junior linebacker Nigel Bradham and sophomore cornerback Greg Reid. The Seminoles' first-team offense doesn't include any five-star recruits.

FSU's defensive depth is evident from an examination of the team statistics. Rather than relying on one guy to get most of the sacks or to deliver most of the tackles, the Seminoles are getting contributions from just about everyone. Nine players have recorded at least two sacks. Four players have picked off at least one pass. Ten players have at least 15 tackles, and nobody has more than 31.

"We always knew we had the talent on the defensive side of the ball," senior linebacker Kendall Smith said. "We knew we could do it. We just had to get everybody on the same page, play fundamental football and do our jobs. We just needed to put it all together."

Maybe they also needed a new plan.

When legendary coordinator Mickey Andrews decided to retire at the end of the '09 season, Fisher filled the vacancy by hiring Mark Stoops away from Arizona. Former East Carolina defensive coordinator Greg Hudson also came aboard, as linebacker coach, and D.J. Eliot arrived from Rice to work with the defensive ends.

 

Stoops' arrival brought a change in strategy. FSU had focused mainly on man-to-man coverage in previous seasons, but the Seminoles are playing zone more often this season. Jenkins noted that quarterbacks need more time to read zone coverage, which makes them more vulnerable to getting sacked.

"In the past, they played a lot of man coverages, and I think people had seen so much of their man coverage that you designed plays specifically to beat man coverage," said Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe, whose team lost 31-0 at Florida State two weeks ago. "What they're doing now with their zone concepts is basically keeping things in front of them. They're not giving up big plays."

At least they haven't given up many big plays lately.

Although FSU's defense undoubtedly has improved as much as any unit in the country, it isn't necessarily quite as good as its lofty rankings suggest. The Seminoles could go a long way toward dispelling those concerns by delivering a big performance Saturday at Miami.

The only other time this defense entered the national spotlight this season, it suffered a severe case of stage fright. Oklahoma scored touchdowns on each of its first four possessions last month in a 47-17 rout of Florida State. The Seminoles allowed touchdown passes of 18, 36 and 46 yards in that game.

Jenkins believes the defense has learned its lesson. He said the Seminoles headed into that game feeling too good about themselves after a season-opening 59-6 blowout of Samford. They soon learned that just because you've dominated an FCS program, it doesn't mean you're ready to handle one of the nation's most potent offenses.

"We've got to stay level-headed," said Jenkins, who has 7.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks to lead the team in both categories. "I think we got that Samford game in [our heads] too much. We thought everything was going to be great. We got beat pretty badly against Oklahoma.

"That wasn't us. We're making sure that doesn't happen again."

So far, it hasn't happened again. In the three games since the Oklahoma debacle, FSU's sack total (20) has nearly matched the opponents' point total (24). Opponents have converted just 26 percent of their third-down attempts and have made only five trips into the red zone in the past three games.

Associated Press
Greg Reid is one of the key cogs in the 'Noles defense.

Of course, it's worth noting the Seminoles' three-game winning streak has come against BYU (ranked 96th in total offense), Wake Forest (80th) and Virginia (51st). Miami is ranked 70th in the nation in total offense, but the Hurricanes also average 32.5 points per game despite playing three major-conference teams (Ohio State, Pittsburgh and Clemson) on the road during the first month of the season.

Miami's Jacory Harris threw for 386 yards in a 38-34 victory at FSU last season. The Seminoles could have a particularly tough time covering 6-foot-3 receiver Leonard Hankerson, who caught three touchdown passes last week in Miami's 30-21 victory over Clemson; three of FSU's top four cornerbacks are less than 6 feet tall.

"He's an extremely tough matchup," Fisher said. "You never stop guys like that. You hope they don't kill you totally, that you can contain them."

This game represents a huge opportunity for the 'Noles in many respects. A victory over Miami would give the Seminoles bragging rights and help them take a big step toward their first ACC Atlantic Division title in five years. It also would make a major statement to FSU fans.

Even as the Seminoles have won four of their first five games, a large segment of the fan base doesn't seem convinced the program has turned the corner. FSU's average attendance for its first three home games was 66,293 - more than 15,000 below Doak Campbell Stadium's capacity.

"I honestly think our fans think after [last] year, we have to prove ourselves," Smith said. "This game right here is the game to prove [ourselves] to the nation and to our fans."

Florida State's defense keeps winning over a few skeptics every week. If the Seminoles make a convincing argument at Miami, they might find themselves playing in front of thousands of more converts when they return home next week.