Maguire shines in national television spotlight
By Nathan Mayberg
Tallahassee, Fla. — Sparta's Sean Maguire only had three day's notice that he would be starting at quarterback for the Florida State Seminoles, the number one team in the country. It was a challenge he was confident he could face. And with his team down by seven points at halftime Saturday against Clemson, Maguire was able to overcome his greatest challenge yet and lead his team to a heroic and action-filled, if not improbable victory with the eyes of the country's college football fans upon him.
In his first college start Saturday, Maguire faced a brickload of obstacles and dodged more bullets than Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2.
Maguire's offensive line was unable to contain a smoldering Clemson defense which hurried him on nearly every play, sacked him five times and knocked him down several more.
He rarely had a clean look at his receivers and was intercepted twice.
Somehow, Maguire was able to get back up on his feet after every knockdown, throw for 305 yards including a dazzling 74-yard touchdown play for a comeback that had appeared impossible at times, keeping the Seminoles undefeated with a 23-17 overtime victory.
Head Coach Jimbo Fisher had this to say after this the game.
“I thought he did an outstanding job as far as handling his emotions as far as the presence. He made some really good plays; he made some plays that weren’t as good. That’s typical for a first-time starter in a game of that magnitude and the situation and the opponent – the quality of the opponent especially with a rush that can affect you the way they do. Just him as a competitor and watching him handle it and coming off and making his corrections, going back and handling it well. Extremely proud of him. That’s a heck of a way to get your first inclination into college football when it mattered and for him to do that and what it stood for I was really happy for him and it will really help him through his career,” Fisher said.
Kevin Maguire, Sean’s father, was able to make the game at the last minute after finding out his son would be starting. He, his wife Tina and daughter Mackenzie were all able to attend. ABC cameras were able to catch Kevin full of nerves in the early stages of the game.
“Up down, up down. It was a true rollercoaster ride that’s for sure,” he said.
Kevin said that Sean deserved credit for the way he responded to being knocked down by the Clemson defenders.
“Every time he got hit, he got right back up again,” he said.
Sean “hasn’t been hit like that since high school. These aren’t high school kids anymore,” he said.
A retired New Jersey State Trooper, Kevin has spoken about instilling the importance of hard work in his son. It’s a lesson Sean has been quick to reiterate.
Despite the hardened resolve he knew his son had, “nobody knows how you’re going to react in that situation,” Kevin said. “His toughness was unbelievable.”
No moment was more critical than the touchdown play after being knocked down on the previous play.
“For him to stand in that pocket and hit Rashad Greene in stride was unbelievable,” Kevin said.
Maguire said he thinks his son will learn a lot from the game. Afterwards, he and his family were escorted down to the tunnel to meet Sean.
“I’ll never forget the look on his face,” Kevin said. “That smile on his face and the look on his face was priceless.”
Kevin said that Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher came up to the family and told them ‘what a gritty performance’ Sean had just had.
Kevin said he was getting calls and text messages late into the night from friends in the Sparta community after the game.
“I can’t thank the community enough for the outouring of support,” he said.
Gameday
Maguire and Florida State's first possession was unsuccessful, but he was saved when Clemson kicker Ammon Lakip missed a 23-yard field goal on the next possession.
On his second possession, the Sparta native was able to lead a drive that included a 14-yard pass to Jesus Wilson and a 27-yard pass to Karlos Williams. The Seminoles could not get the run going though, a common theme throughout the game, and settled for a 50-yard field goal.
It would be their only points of the first half.
Clemson tied the game at 3 at the start of the second half and tacked on another touchdown after stopping the Seminoles on consecutive three-and-out possessions, including a sack and blocked pass of Maguire.
But Maguire didn't panic. He found his roommate and tight end Nick O'Leary for a 19-yard completion but that was followed by a run of no gain, an incomplete pass and a corner blitz sack.
Florida State's defense stepped up to force a punt by Clemson after three plays, and wide receiver/punt returner Rashad Green flashed big time speed on a 28-yard punt return. But Clemson's defense was relentless, stopping any running attempt and pushed past the Seminole linemen for their third sack of Maguire.
While that may have discouraged most, Maguire showed he was fortified from a different type of steel and returned to the gridiron in the second half to lead a charge that tied the game at 10.
He flashed a quick release and completed five passes before running back Mario Pender ran in a one-yard touchdown.
Another quick stop by the Florida State defense, led by Eddie Goldman, a towering defensive tackle, brought the ball back to Maguire.
Clemson would unleash a ferocious drive down the field after getting the ball back, eating more than six minutes of clock time. Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson hurled a 19-yard pass to Stanton Seckinger, who was ruled down at the one-yard line.
A touchdown seemingly at hand, Clemson center Jay Guillermo hiked the ball over Watson's head for a 22-yard loss. Forced to kick a field goal and frozen by a television timeout, Lakip missed a 40-yard goal wide right, his second miss of the game.
Filled with a new burst of adrenaline, Maguire charged up the field, connecting with O'Leary on a fireburst of a 21-yard pass up the middle and then a five-yard shot to Wilson. A hesitation attempt up the middle to O'Leary was ill-fated as the Clemson Tigers had caught on to the Maguire-O'Leary connection and intercepted the pass.
Clemson scored on the next play after a tremendous 39-yard pass from Watson to Mike Williams and then a two-yard run by Watson, making it a 17-10 game.
It was up to Maguire to bring his team back.
He made another charge up the field, completing four passes before his line took a false start penalty and they had to punt.
A quick stop by the Seminoles on defense gave Maguire another chance.
He made a brilliant 16-yard pass to Greene while being knocked down for the fifth time. On the next play, he was sacked for the fifth time.
Maguire made the most sensational pass of the night, a 74-yard touchdown strike to Greene.
The game was tied at 17.
Tallahassee was in a frenzy.
Another big defensive stop by the Seminoles got the ball back to Maguire for a chance to win with four minutes left.
Then, Maguire overthrew a ball at a critical juncture deep in his own zone for an intereception.
The game looked over.
Until Goldman stripped Clemson running back C.J. Davidson at Florida State's own 14-yard line for a fumble recovered by teammate Nate Andrews.
After counting their blessings, Florida State headed to overtime and chose to defend first.
Once again, Goldman sacked Watson at a critical juncture to get the Seminoles back the ball.
Two runs later by Karlos Williams and the Seminoles had taken a 23-17 victory that will be long remembered by not just Maguire and his Sparta fans, but by Florida State faithful and college football fans all over the country.
It was a whirlwind of events that started just last week Wednesday, when Maguire learned that he would be starting after troubled quarterback Jameis Winston was suspended for lewd behavior.
Initially, Maguire was only supposed to start the first half, but then the college suspended Winston, last year's Heisman Trophy winner, for the whole game.
Maguire thanked Winston in his post game interview, saying he had stayed up with him late at night helping him prepare for the game.
Florida State next plays North Carolina State on Saturday.