A 39-3 record with three conference titles and a national championship speaks volumes. That’s what Florida State had done under head coach Jimbo Fisher from 2012-14, which was the best 3-year stretch for any team in the country entering the season. While every fan base has its eternal optimists, more of the same wasn’t exactly expected heading into 2015 — and with good reason.

The Seminoles were not only losing a former Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback and the top overall pick in the NFL Draft in Jameis Winston, they were replacing their all-time leading receiver (Rashad Greene), only John Mackey Award winner (Nick O’Leary), four starting offensive linemen and four defensive starters who declared early for the NFL.

As expected, FSU hasn’t exactly set the college football world on fire as it did in 2013. The Seminoles were tied 7-7 at halftime against lowly South Florida in a 34-14 win. FSU managed just one offensive touchdown in a 14-0 victory at Boston College and needed an interception from Tyler Hunter in the end zone to seal a 24-16 road win against a Wake Forest team that won just one ACC game last season. For the third straight season however, the Seminoles are off to a 6-0 start.

FSU boasts one of the nation’s best defenses when it comes to keeping opponents off the scoreboard as Florida State is giving up just more than 15 points-per-game. Cornerback Jalen Ramsey, defensive end DeMarcus Walker, defensive tackle Nile Lawrence-Stample and linebacker Reggie Northrup have not surprisingly had solid starts, but players like defensive tackle Giorgio Newberry, linebacker Ro’Derrick Hoskins and cornerback Marquez White have come from virtually nowhere to give FSU one of the country’s best overall defenses.

Few would argue that the defense has been the strength for the Seminoles through the first half of 2015, but over the last two games the offense has seemed to rapidly be catching up. Though FSU was at times sluggish through its first four games, it never trailed. They say adversity makes a team stronger and after facing 1-point deficits in the second half in each of the last two weeks, that’s held true for the Florida State offense.

With a defense that struggled to get off the field on third down against Miami and Louisville, the offense has more than picked up the slack. The Seminoles have rode the legs of sophomore running back Dalvin Cook for much of the year. With 955 yards rushing, which ranks fifth nationally, Cook is on pace to rewrite the FSU record books. Cook ranks fifth in the country with an 8.7 yards-per-carry average and 11th with 10 rushing touchdowns, but over the last two weeks, it hasn’t been a one-man show.

It’s been well-documented that senior transfer quarterback Everett Golson has not turned the ball over this year — something he did 22 times at Notre Dame last season — but over the last two weeks, Golson has started to make plays. With the Seminoles trailing 24-23 in the fourth quarter to rival Miami on October 10th, Golson converted two critical third downs — one with his arm and one with his legs — on FSU’s game-winning drive in a 29-24 victory.

While Miami’s defense has been a bit maligned after giving up more than 30 points to both Nebraska and Cincinnati, the Seminoles put up 41 points and over 500 yards of offense on Saturday against a Louisville defense that features a handful of NFL prospects like Sheldon Rankins, Keith Kelsey, James Burgess and Josh Harvey-Clemons.

On Saturday, FSU trailed 7-6 at the break before Golson led five consecutive touchdown drives to open the second half, tossing touchdowns on three of them. Golson passed for 372 yards — the second most of his career — in a 41-21 victory.

Cook is unquestionably the biggest weapon for Golson and the FSU offense, but junior receiver Kermit Whitfield has emerged as a home run threat after being used as little more than a kick returner over his first two seasons. Whitfield has caught nine passes in each of the last two weeks and had a career-high 172 yards receiving Saturday with 70 of it coming on a third quarter touchdown that put the Seminoles ahead for good.

Fellow receivers Travis Rudolph and Jesus Wilson have served as solid options for Golson as well, but the tight end duo of Ryan Izzo and Mavin Saunders has emerged in recent weeks also.

Injuries and inconsistent play has kept the offensive line from gelling as the Seminoles have put out several different starting lineups over the first half of this season. But after averaging nearly 525 yards and 35 points against a pair of ACC foes the last two weeks, it’s not nearly the grave concern it was at the start of the season.

Florida State hasn’t gotten much national respect so far in 2015. After beginning the year ranked eighth in the Amway Coaches Poll, the Seminoles have somehow managed to drop a spot after rattling off six straight victories. Facing a 2-5 Georgia Tech team this week probably won’t help, but November road games against ranked Clemson and Florida teams will give FSU the opportunity to turn some heads.

Coming into the year, the range of expectations for the Seminoles among their fans was dispersed. Some would have been happy with 10 wins. For others, it was an ACC title they wanted.

If FSU does either of those things, Seminole fans should be very satisfied with the 2015 season. With a head coach with more wins than any other coach in the country since taking over as head man in 2010, a defense that knows how to keep opponents off the scoreboard and an offense that has improved as the competition has gotten better however, there’s at least some reason to believe that FSU’s ceiling might be higher than 10 wins or a conference crown.