Florida State AD Goes Nuclear Over College Football Playoff Snub of Undefeated Team, 'Unforgivable'

AP Photo/Steve Cannon

As RedState's Brad Slager reported, the College Football Playoff teams were announced Sunday, with Michigan, Washington, Texas, and Alabama filling out the four-team field. But there was one squad that didn't make it, despite the fact that they won every game they played: the Florida State Seminoles.

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On Sunday, FSU athletic director Michael Alford went off on the CFP Committee, calling the snub "unforgivable":

"The consequences of giving in to a narrative of the moment are destructive, far-reaching and permanent. Not just for Florida State, but college football as a whole," Alford said.

"The argument of whether a team is the 'most deserving OR best' is a false equivalence. It renders the season up to yesterday irrelevant and significantly damages the legitimacy of the College Football Playoff. The 2023 Florida State Seminoles are the epitome of a total TEAM. To eliminate them from a chance to compete for a national championship is an unwarranted injustice that shows complete disregard and disrespect for their performance and accomplishments. It is unforgievable (sic)."

The president of the university also condemned the move:

The CFP Selection Committee blamed the affront on the fact that FSU lost their star quarterback Jordan Travis to injury several weeks ago. Yet, even without him, they managed to beat Louisville in the ACC title game. But CFP Selection Committee Chair Boo Corrigan wasn't convinced, saying on ESPN that FSU was a "different team" than they were throughout the first 11 weeks, implying that the Travis injury was the reason the Seminoles were left out.

Former Baylor star Robert Griffin III weighed in:

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The rest of his tweet:

Despite their offense having more yards in the ACC Championship than Michigan had in the Big 10 Championship. Despite holding Louisville’s Top 20 Offense to 6 points. Despite beating 4 Top 25 teams. Despite finding a way to win with their Back up QB in a bitter rivalry game. Despite finding a way to win with their 3rd string QB in the ACC Championship Game. Florida State EARNED their spot in the CFP on the field. With and Without Jordan Travis. You don’t punish or diminish the work of 100+ players and coaches because 1 player is not there on the field calling the shots. FSU always answered the bell this year and their response to losing their QB was to play POSSESSED ON DEFENSE. It’s an absolute travesty that they were excluded from the CFP.

Alford was not done and absolutely teed off on the decision, arguing that it was made based on "intangibles," not on performance:

"Wins matter. Losses matter. Those that compete in the arena know this," he continued. "Those on the committee who also competed in the sport and should have known this have forgotten it. Today, they changed the way success is assessed in college football, from a tangible metric – winning on the field – to an intangible, subjective one. Evidently, predicting the future matters more.

"For many of us, today's decision by the committee has forever damaged the credibility of the institution that is the College Football Playoff. And, saddest of all, it was self-inflicted. They chose predictive competitiveness over proven performance; subjectivity over fact. They have become a committee of prognosticators. They have abandoned their responsibility by discarding their purpose – to evaluate performance on the field."

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I can't argue with this guy's points. For one thing, FSU ended up ranked fourth in the final AP poll rankings. You're ranked number four, but you don't make a four-team field? You never lost a game, but you're not in because someone "thinks" you might not be as good as your record? That's simply not fair. You are your record in sports. 

Why is Alabama ahead of FSU? Yes, they had a big win against Georgia on Saturday, but they lost to Texas in September. Texas also has an entry in the L column, but they got in. 

Why play the games if the results don't matter? "The committee failed college football today," Alford said. Can't argue with that.

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