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Winston throws 5 TDs in FSU's rout of Maryland

Oct 5, 2013 - 9:12 PM Tallahassee, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - Redshirt freshman Jameis Winston threw five touchdown passes, as the eighth-ranked Florida State Seminoles humbled No. 25 Maryland in a 63-0 dismantling at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Winston played until the early stages of the fourth quarter and finished with a career-high 393 yards on 23-of-32 passing.

Kelvin Benjamin and Nick O'Leary both caught two touchdown passes in the rout, and Karlos Williams added two scores on the ground for Florida State (5-0, 3-0 ACC), which reached the end zone on eight consecutive drives at one point.

Maryland senior quarterback C.J. Brown exited in the second quarter and did not return after being shaken up on an unpenalized hit by defensive tackle Jacobbi McDaniel.

"C.J. has a concussion ... we will evaluate him further tomorrow to see where he's at and go from there," said Maryland head coach Randy Edsall.

Sophomore Caleb Rowe connected on 9-of-17 passes for 119 yards for the Terrapins (4-1, 0-1), who are playing their last season in the ACC before joining the Big Ten.

Maryland, which was limited to nine first downs and 234 total yards on offense, was off to its best start since opening the 2001 campaign with seven straight wins.

The Seminoles moved the ball effortlessly on their first possession against Maryland's defense, a unit that began the week third in the country in scoring defense (10.3 points allowed per game).

Winston completed all five passes for 52 yards on a drive Williams capped with a short touchdown run.

The opening quarter ended with a 39-yard toss by Brown to Deon Long down the Maryland sideline. The long completion set the Terrapins up in field goal range, but Brad Craddock missed a 51-yarder when he hit the left upright.

After its impressive first drive, the Florida State offense stalled for a bit.

Another sequence seemed destined to result in a fourth straight punt. However, Winston, facing a 3rd-and-10 from near midfield, connected with Rashad Greene on a downfield strike for 38 yards. Three plays later, Devonta Freeman ran the ball in from five yards out to put the Seminoles up 14-0.

The offense remained in sync on its next touch, as Winston finished off a nine-play, 78-yard march with a touchdown pass to Benjamin in the final minute of the first half.

Winston continued to shine in the second half, throwing touchdown passes of eight, 21 and 12 yards in the third quarter. He then opened the fourth quarter with another scoring strike to Benjamin after Maryland turned the ball over on the final play of the third stanza.

"The defense I thought was the story of the day," said Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher. "They really (stole) the show. I thought they dominated from the start to the finish against some great skill guys."

Game Notes

The 63-0 blowout marked Florida State's most lopsided win over a Top-25 team in school history. The previous high in point differential was a 59-0 shutout of then-No. 15 South Carolina on Nov. 5, 1988 ... Winston became the first Florida State quarterback to throw five TD passes in a game since Christian Ponder accomplished the feat against Georgia Tech in 2009 ... Florida State has outscored ACC opponents by a 374-132 margin during its nine-game conference winning streak. It's the program's longest run since a 24-game streak from Sept. 19, 1998-Sept. 1, 2001 ... Maryland has dropped seven straight to the Seminoles and fell to 2-22 all-time in the series, including 0-12 on the road ... Florida State has opened 5-0 for the second straight year ... Greene saw his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown reception snapped at five.