The Seminoles competed in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference and were led by eighth-year head coach Jimbo Fisher until he left to coach at Texas A&M before the final game of the regular season.

Running back Dalvin Cook,[1] defensive end DeMarcus Walker,[2] offensive tackle Roderick Johnson and cornerback Marquez White[3] went on to be selected in the NFL draft.

Prior to the start of the season, Deondre Francois, Jacques Patrick, Cam Akers, Nyqwan Murray, Landon Dickerson, and Cole Minshew were named preseason All-ACC offensive selections while Derwin James, Tarvarus McFadden, Derrick Nnadi, Josh Sweat, Brian Burns, and Matthew Thomas were named preseason All-ACC defensive selections.

[4] In the pre-season media poll, Florida State was picked to finish first in the ACC Atlantic and win the conference title and Francois was picked as runner-up for ACC Player of the Year[5] while Alec Eberle, McFadden, and James were named to the pre-season All-ACC team.

[6] In the opening game against Alabama, quarterback Deondre Francois suffered a season ending knee injury which resulted in true freshman James Blackman being named the starter for the remainder of the season, leading to the program's worst start since 1976 although the Seminoles went on to become bowl eligible for the 36th consecutive year.