For Florida State, There’s a Note of Familiarity : Orange: Seminoles win eighth consecutive bowl, beating Nebraska, 27-14, and probably will finish No. 2 in the nation again.

Florida State, which lost its hopes of winning the national championship with a three-point loss to Miami last October, took out its frustration on Nebraska, defeating the No. 11 Cornhuskers, 27-14, Friday night in the rain-drenched Orange Bowl before 57,324.

Ranked third behind Miami and Alabama going into the game, the Seminoles (11-1), whose only loss was to the Hurricanes, probably will finish second to Alabama, which defeated Miami, 34-13, in the Sugar Bowl. It would be the third time in the last six years that Florida State has finished second.

“I feel we’re the best team in the country,” Florida State linebacker Marvin Jones said. “We deserve to win the national championship, but Alabama beat the No. 1 team and they’ll be the national champions. That’s just the way it is.”

Florida State Coach Bobby Bowden, whose team will finish in the top five for the sixth consecutive year, said he is not frustrated by the Seminoles’ inability to win the national championship.

“All you can do is do the best you can do, and if somebody thinks that we’re playing better than anybody else, that’s all we can ask,” Bowden said. “It’s our fault we didn’t beat Miami. We can’t blame anybody for it.

“Do I think we are the best? We must be pretty darn close. But the people that deserve to win the national championship are winning it tonight. For six years in a row we’ve been very close to it. We’ll just try again next year.

“Maybe I’m different. I wasn’t raised on the rich side of town. Number 2’s kind of high for me. One of these days we’re going to be No. 1. But it hasn’t gotten to me. What gets to me is losing.”

Florida State quarterback Charlie Ward, voted the Orange Bowl most valuable player after passing for two touchdowns, said the Seminoles--who ended the season with seven consecutive victories--are playing as well as anybody.

“I think we’re one of the best teams in the country,” Ward said. “I think they should give out three national championships to the two teams that are playing tonight (Alabama and Miami) and us. I think we all deserve the national championship. If we could take Miami off our schedule, we’d be undefeated.”

Florida State, which averaged 61 points in its last three games after switching to a no-huddle, shotgun offense, scrapped the offense after it began to rain heavily in the first quarter. But the Seminoles were still productive, building a 20-0 first-half lead.

Ward completed 15 of 30 passes for 187 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception, as Florida State won its eighth bowl game in a row.

The Seminole defense, ranked sixth in the nation against the run, shut down Nebraska, which averaged 328.2 yards on the ground to lead the nation for the fourth time in the last five seasons. Florida State limited the Cornhuskers to 144 rushing yards.

Nebraska I-backs Calvin Jones and Derek Brown, nicknamed the We-Backs after they combined for 2,221 yards this season, weren’t as productive against Florida State’s aggressive defense. Jones had only 76 yards in 19 carries and Brown gained 13 yards in four carries.

“They should be called the soft backs,” Seminole linebacker Marvin Jones said. “S-o-f-t. I can spell. I could have made a lot more plays, but they ran away from me.”

Nebraska quarterback Tommie Frazier, who gave away only two turnovers in six games after he moved into the starting lineup midway through the season, lost the ball three times, twice on interceptions. Frazier set up a Florida State touchdown when he threw the ball away at his two on a botched pitch to Brown in the second quarter.

Nebraska (10-3), which finished the season by losing two of its final four games, lost its sixth consecutive bowl game. It was Nebraska’s third bowl loss to Florida State, which defeated the Cornhuskers, 31-28, in the 1988 Fiesta Bowl and 41-17 in the 1990 Fiesta Bowl.

Florida State, which averaged 38.1 points per game, led 20-7 at halftime.

Ward threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to freshman wide receiver Tamarick Vanover with 7:41 to play in the first quarter to cap a 10-play, 75-yard drive.

The Seminoles used trick plays to set up Dan Mowery’s 40-yard field goal with 10:54 to play in the first half. Vanover gained 29 yards on a reverse to give the Seminoles a first down at their own 49. Ward caught a 20-yard pass from tailback Sean Jackson to give Florida State a first down at the 23. But the Seminoles gained only one yard on their next three plays before Mowery’s field goal.

Florida State defensive end Dan Footman recovered Frazier’s fumbled pitch at the Cornhusker two on Nebraska’s next series to set up Ward’s four-yard touchdown pass to Kez McCorvy with 9:22 to play in the first half.

Mowery added a 24-yard field goal.

Trailing 20-0, Nebraska scored when Frazier connected with split end Corey Dixon on a 41-yard pass play with 1:03 remaining in the first half. Dixon, who took the ball away from Florida State cornerback Corey Sawyer, bowed and blew kisses to the fans while standing in the end zone.

The Seminoles scored a touchdown on their first second-half possession, driving 85 yards to take a 27-7 lead. Jackson capped the 16-play drive that used 7:48 with an 11-yard touchdown run with 4:52 left in the third quarter.

Trailing by 20 points, Nebraska cut the deficit to 13 when Frazier threw a one-yard touchdown pass to tight end Gerald Armstrong with 10:24 to play. Frazier set up the touchdown when he connected with wide receiver Corey Dixon on a 37-yard pass play to the Florida State four.