TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The decision by a Tallahassee jury to find Dalvin Cook not guilty of misdemeanor battery in late August has never been bigger for the Florida State football team.

Cook, who was indefinitely suspended after being charged in a nightclub scuffle in July - then reinstated three weeks ago following the acquittal - has returned with a fury for No. 11 Florida State, which downed South Florida on Saturday, 34-14.

Cook scored three touchdowns Saturday, rushing for 266 yards on 30 carries - and right into the Seminoles' history books. It was the second-best performance ever by a Florida State running back behind Greg Allen, who owns the single-game record with 322 yards.

Even more amazing? Cook, who has now rushed for 435 yards in his first two games, only had fewer than two weeks of practice with his teammates before the season.

"I prepared and had a good week of practice. The whole team did," said Cook, a sophomore who became the fifth player to rush for more than 200 yards in school history and is the first Seminole to surpass that mark since 1988. "I figured out (about my place in school history) after the game. It's a big accomplishment to be with some of the greats in Florida State history. We've had some great running backs, ... and to be mentioned with them is great."

With the win, Florida State (2-0) moved to 12-1 against teams from Florida under head coach Jimbo Fisher - including two wins against the Bulls - while South Florida (1-1) fell to 9-20 all-time against ranked FBS programs.

Fisher said he wasn't surprised by Cook's huge day.

"That's what great players do: When you need them, they step up," said Fisher, who won his 60th career game. "He has great vision, patience and he's just really, really fast. Now, a lot of fast guys will run right into the pile, but he hits holes and finishes runs."

After an ugly first half from both teams - Florida State and South Florida combined for only 37 passing yards, 1-of-16 on third-down conversions and 14 punts - the Seminoles needed a strong second half to pull this one out.

And they got it.

Tied 7-7 at halftime, the Seminoles broke things open in the third quarter thanks to a 24-yard TD run from Cook, a 31-yard Roberto Aguayo field goal and a 23-yard passing score from quarterback Everett Golson to Jesus Wilson. That gave Florida State a comfortable 24-7 lead - and its first breathing room of the game.

The Seminoles scored on all five of their second-half possessions after going 1-for-9 in the first half.

Golson, however, struggled overall in his second game in a Florida State uniform since transferring from Notre Dame this offseason, finishing 14-of-26 for 163 yards. He was also sacked three times and had eight rushes for minus-15 yards.

But Fisher didn't seem worried.

"He was going through things too quickly in the first half. He needed to slow down, and I was proud at how he managed the game in the second half," the coach said. "But I'm kind of glad it happened like that now that it's over. We needed to face some adversity to see how we would respond, and we did."

The Bulls scored on the first play of the fourth quarter to pull within 24-14 with a 71-yard strike from quarterback Quinton Flowers to a wide-open D'Erne Johnson. It was the second time the two hooked up in the game after Flowers also hit Johnson in the first half from two yards out for the Bulls' only other TD.

"I felt our guys played great (early in the game)" South Florida head coach Willie Taggart said. "I told our team early in the week, 'Don't be surprised if we're in this game in the second half.' And sure enough, our guys were there. But when you are playing a really good team like Florida State, I think coming out of halftime it's probably the most important drive of the game, and they had a big kickoff return (from Kermit Whitfield), which changed the momentum of the game."

Johnson, who now has four TDs in two games, led South Florida with five catches for 89 yards. Flowers finished 12-for-24 for 125 yards, two TD tosses and one interception.

Wideout Travis Rudolph paced the Seminoles with six catches for 55 yards in the win.

Aguayo, who broke the ACC record Saturday for most consecutive PATs made at 161, added a 38-yard field goal with just under nine minutes left. Cook then capped the scoring with just under two minutes left in the game with a 37-yard TD around the right end.

Florida State, however, lost one of its top defensive players in the first half when free safety Lamarcus Brutus - who tied for the team-high with seven tackles last week in the Seminoles' season-opening win against Texas State - was ejected from the game for targeting a USF player on punt return coverage. Brutus wasn't the only player thrown out Saturday: Bulls LB Auggie Sanchez hit Golson late in the third quarter and was also called for targeting and ejected.

Both players will be suspended for the first half of next week's games, per NCAA rules. Florida State next travels to Boston College for a rare Friday night game, while South Florida travels to Maryland.

Linebacker Nate Godwin led the South Florida defense with nine tackles, while defensive tackle Daniel Awoleke recorded two of the Bulls' three sacks. Florida State's defense was paced by seven stops each from linebackers Jacob Pugh and Ro'Derrick Hoskins. Pugh, Derwin James and Giorgio Newberry each had a sack for Florida State.

NOTES: USF players came into Saturday's game with heavy hearts after former star defensive tackle Elkino Watson, 23, was fatally stabbed earlier this week. Bulls players attended a private service for Watson on Tuesday and wore "EW" memorial stickers on their helmets Saturday ... It was Military Appreciation Day on Saturday at Doak Campbell Stadium as the Seminoles honored active and retired military veterans by wearing decals on their helmet and running out of the tunnel led by an American flag that had been flown over Kandahar, Afghanistan. The flag was carried by freshman defensive tackle Darvin Taylor II, whose parents served for more than 30 years in the U.S. Army. Fans were also scheduled to be treated to a flyover of World War II-type aircraft piloted by retired military aviators, but it was canceled due to the rainy weather before kickoff ... South Florida, which was called for 11 penalties last week for 97 yards against FAMU, wasn't called for a single infraction until late in the third quarter Saturday against Florida State and finished with just two infractions for 21 yards.