Florida State captured the state title — in dramatic fashion.
Trey Benson had a 17-yard touchdown run with 4:06 left to give No. 16 Florida State a 45-38 win on Friday.
Benson had 11 rushing yards and three touchdowns, and Jordan Travis ran for 83 yards and two touchdowns as the Seminoles ran for 228 yards _ the seventh straight time they surpassed the 200-yard rushing mark.
Florida drove the field in the final minutes but Anthony Richardson’s fourth-down pass over the middle was incomplete with 39 seconds to go.
Travis also completed 13 of 30 passes for 270 yards as Florida State (9-3) completed a sweep of its state rivals for the first time since 2016. The Seminoles drilled Miami 45-3 on Nov. 5.
Florida State trailed 24-21 at the half but opened the second half with scores on the next three drives (field goal, touchdown, touchdown) to jump in front 38-24. The Gators (6-6) answered back with a pair of touchdowns, one each by Montrell Johnson and Trevor Etienne, to tie the game with 7:41 left.
Florida State also had 227 rushing yards on 44 carries, the seventh straight game the Seminoles have surpassed the 200-yard mark on the ground.
Anthony Richardson completed just 5 of 17 passes but three were for touchdowns. Ricky Pearsall had a career-best 148 receiving yards, including touchdowns of 52 and 43 yards in the first half.
This is the eighth time this season FSU has surpassed 35 points in a game.
Florida State honored 18 players on Senior Day, including a number of redshirt juniors who could opt to return in 2023. Among those who were recognized include preseason AP All-American Jammie Robinson and defensive tackle Fabien Lovett, both of whom have announced Senior Bowl invitations on Twitter. Among those not honored were redshirt junior quarterback Jordan Travis.
Among the FSU players who are not dressed not out are Winston Wright and Darion Williamson. Bless Harris, Thomas Shrader, Kayden Lyles and Stephen Dix Jr. were also on the sideline. Julian Armella was not observed.