Adam Fuller previews Florida State's matchup against Dillon Gabriel
Florida State‘s defense has been one of the best in the country and their conference this season and will be tasked with slowing down Oklahoma quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the Cheez-It Bowl. Gabriel has been the engine of the Sooners’ offense all season long, and Florida State defensive coordinator Adam Fuller spoke about their upcoming matchup.
“Yeah I would like to stop the run, the pass, and the screens, all of it ” Fuller smiled and said. “But their quarterback’s really good, he’s played in this style of offense for a number of years. Shane Burnham and Randy Shannon were there and Tatum Bethune had played on the same team as his quarterback, so I feel we’ve got information on him.”
Gabriel transferred to Oklahoma this offseason from UCF, and the Seminoles having coaches and a player formerly with the Knights that’s familiar with Gabriel could be an advantage that could work in their favor.
“But he’s been really successful everywhere he’s been, offense has not been the problem. He’s really efficient, he’s a competitor, has really good pace of play on his touch passes. He’s got really good feet, he had that one run against Nebraska where he’s still running away from them, so I just think he’s a complete quarterback,” Fuller said.
Gabriel missed about a game and a half this season after suffering a head injury versus TCU, but still had one of the best seasons for a quarterback in the Big 12 conference this season. Gabriel threw for 2,925 yards this season ranking third in the Big 12, along with 24 touchdown passes ranking second behind Heisman Trophy finalist Max Duggan.
Gabriel is also a proven dual threat like Fuller mentioned, and outside of his 61-yard scamper against Nebraska rushed for 298 yards this season along with five rushing touchdowns.
“And he’s a winner, and he’s done a nice job for that football program, at two different schools now. We like playing against competitors because it brings out the best in all of you and so we’re just excited, it’ll be a good matchup on Friday,” Fuller said.
Gabriel ended his UCF career with an 18-8 record in the games he played in, and may not have gotten the same results at Oklahoma this season, but is still a dangerous quarterback that’s more than capable of leading the Sooners to a bowl victory on Thursday when they face Florida State at 5:30 p.m. ET on Thursday.