Florida State's front seven, already down linebackers Izayia Williams, Daylen Green and Blake Nichelson, kept the first quarter close but couldn't hold up over 60 minutes. Alabama finished with 615 total yards at 8.6 per play and got off to the races behind Keelon Russell, who needed only 30 attempts to throw for 320 yards and three touchdowns without a pick, adding a 57-yard scoring scramble that turned a tight game into a laugher.
Alabama's own thinned secondary, without defensive backs Jorden Edmonds and Nick Sherman, took its own lumps early — Robinson finished with 135 yards and a score, and Florida State converted 8-of-15 third downs against a Tide defense that had allowed just 1-of-23 in its first two weeks. Kalen DeBoer didn't sugarcoat it afterward, calling the defense's third-down work "disappointing" and pointing to a lack of pass rush on the throws that kept extending Florida State drives.
Alabama trailed 21-6 with under 10 minutes left in the second quarter before ripping off 20 unanswered points to close the half. Ivan Taylor's interception set up Ryan Coleman-Williams' 46-yard touchdown catch, and Alabama added another score before the break to take a 26-21 lead. Russell's long scramble in the third quarter pushed the margin to 40-28, and from there Florida State was always playing from behind.
Trae'Shawn Brown's 20-yard touchdown run capped a 90-yard drive to pull Florida State back within a score with 2:15 left, but Bray Hubbard intercepted Daniels on the very next possession to close it out — Florida State's third turnover of the day against an Alabama offense that didn't give the ball away once. Alabama moves to 3-0 and 1-0 in the SEC; Florida State, the same program that beat this Alabama team a year ago, falls to 1-2 with its second loss in three games to open the season.