“Excitement levels are through the roof...team is here to perform:” Alex Atkins, FSU offensive line embracing Orange Bowl challenge vs. Georgia
“It’s kind of like drinking water through a fire hose,” Kirby Smart described the day after conference championship games.
Every coaching staff nationwide puts the pedal to the metal to finalize their incoming recruiting classes.
The work for Florida State offensive coordinator Alex Atkins began the moment after the Louisville game ended.
“After the game, I stayed in Charlotte,” the North Carolina native shared, “and I was on a five-hour flight to California the next morning.” Atkins was flying to the West Coast to go home with 4-star OT signee Manasse Itete, the Modesto native.
After the flight, the offensive line coach checked his phone and saw the notification that FSU played Georgia in the Orange Bowl.
He did not realize what just happened.
“I didn’t even think, I didn’t even know. I was just like oh sh*t, we play Georgia in the Orange Bowl. I better get on point.”
The coach grabbed his bags, still not understanding that the Orange Bowl was not the expected destination for his team.
“It wasn’t until I got in the rental car and got to the booth and the guy said, ‘man, y’all got screwed.”
The run-in was the first time he heard about the heartbreak.
Even with the disappointment, Alex Atkins and his offensive line brought the energy and leadership when they met with the media yesterday. His unit prides itself on being the program’s backbone and is grateful for the opportunity they are in.
The perspective of the team is what matters, not the outside noise.
“I’m looking at Darius Washington across the room, who was at Florida State before I got here. Who signed in 2019. Who probably didn’t dream he would be at a press conference at the Orange Bowl.”
“I believe overall guys are just anxious to show what they can do. We’ve got a confident bunch....You got individuals making choices for their individualism. But the team of Florida State and the brand, the team is here to perform.”
Three offensive linemen spoke to the media yesterday and echoed their coach’s sentiment.
“I just think the group that we have, it’s just a tight-knit group,” explained 7th-year senior D’Mitri Emmanuel, “We just wanted to go finish strong, no shot to anybody else; it’s kinda how it played out.”
Emmanuel, who exhausts his eligibility on Saturday, felt playing was his only option. The majority of his position group teammates feel the same, with the offensive line being one of few units playing close to full strength.
The Seminoles will need all hands on deck.
The Georgia defensive line has been and still is one of the best in the nation. They can overpower any unit, even with their own transfer portal and opt-out attrition. Mykel Williams anchors their front, but the Bulldogs have plenty of able bodies thanks to their dogged recruiting over the years.
Alex Atkins and his players would not want it any other way.
“We always feel like the most important group,” center and offensive leader Maurice Smith chimed, “So, we always try to put everything on our back, regardless of the situation of whose out there.”
With negativity clouding the program the last few weeks, Atkins and his players provided the other side. The offensive line relishes the challenge and the opportunity to play in Miami. They felt focused and ready to quiet the noise from the last three weeks. Players and coaches often exclaim, “We’re all we got, we all need.”
The offensive line epitomizes its meaning.
Florida State Seminoles vs. Georgia Bulldogs: How to watch
Date
Saturday, December 30
Time
4:00 p.m.
Watch
ESPN
Stream
ESPN National Radio (Sirius CH. 80)
Seminoles Radio Network, SiriusXM RADIO FSU Broadcast: CH. 84
Odds/lines are subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.
