LSU takes on Florida State for the first time since 1991
Apologies for what I’m about to say but here goes:
*deep breath*
For the first time in my entire life, LSU is going to play Florida State in football. The LSU-FSU series has been dormant since 1991. I was born in 1993. I have literally never seen these two iconic college football programs share the field in my existence.
While I’ve never seen these two play each other, it’s probably for the best. Florida State owns a 7-2 overall record against LSU and hasn’t lost to the Tigers since 1982. All seven of those wins came under Bobby Bowden’s watch whose record breaks down like this against Tiger head coaches:
- 1-0 vs. Charles McClendon*
- 3-1 vs. Jerry Stovall
- 2-0 vs. Mike Archer
- 1-0 vs. Curley Hallman
*To McClendon’s credit he did beat Florida State 31-27 in the first ever game between the two in 1968 Peach Bowl
Florida State evened the series in 1979 with a 24-19 win in Tiger Stadium. That would be the first of five straight years FSU and LSU would play, all in Tiger Stadium oddly enough, and the Seminoles took four out of five.
Florida State’s won the last four meetings (1983, 1989, 1990, 1991) with the last three coming by at least 10 points or more.
In ‘89 Florida State visited Baton Rouge and left with a 31-21 victory. One year later LSU made its one and only visit in school history to Doak Campbell and got blasted to the tune of 42-3. I get why LSU hasn’t gone back in three decades; and finally Florida State came back to Tiger Stadium the following fall and got out of Baton Rouge with a 27-16 win in 1991.
Since there’s not a lot of good history to look back upon in this particular series we don’t have to get too deep into the weeds. Plus Poseur did an excellent recap of the 1982 thumping LSU handed Florida State aka The Night it Rained Oranges.
Poseur also recapped the infamous 1979 game where, had LSU beaten the Noles, they may have been able to steal Bobby Bowden away from Tallahassee. Both pieces are excellent if you haven’t read them; and if you have, they’re worth a second or third reading.
All-Time Results
1968: LSU 31, Florida State 27 (Atlanta)
1979: Florida State 24, LSU 19 (Baton Rouge)
1980: Florida State 16, LSU 0 (Baton Rouge)
1981: Florida State 38, LSU 14 (Baton Rouge)
1982: LSU 55, Florida State 21 (Baton Rouge)
1983: Florida State 40, LSU 35 (Baton Rouge)
1989: Florida State 31, LSU 21 (Baton Rouge)
1990: Florida State 42, LSU 3 (Tallahassee)
1991: Florida State 27, LSU 16 (Baton Rouge)