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When Florida State athletics director Michael Alford turned on ESPN on Sunday, Dec. 20, 2023, the sight of Marty Smith gave him pause and doubt.
The undefeated Seminoles had just secured their ACC Championship victory over Louisville in Charlotte. They were sitting as one of three undefeated teams in college football with a legitimate case at the four-team College Football Playoff in sight. But with ESPN’s personality Smith in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, for the College Football Playoff Selection Show and the lower-profile Harry Lyles Jr. in Tallahassee with the Seminoles, the doubt and reality crept in.
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“When I look up and see who’s covering us and see that Marty Smith is in Tuscaloosa, that hit me: ‘We’re not in,'” Alford said on an episode of the Dusty and Danny In the Morning podcast. “I did not get really worried until I saw that. Then I kind of knew, ‘OK, we may not be in here.’ And then when Texas popped up, I knew for sure we were not going to be in.”
Despite winning eight games over bowl-eligible teams and winning the conference championship despite playing with their third-string quarterback in freshman Brock Glenn, the Seminoles were left out of the playoffs for a pair of one-loss teams in Texas and Alabama. In contrast, the other undefeated Power 5 teams (national champion Michigan and runner-up Washington) made the playoffs. The CFB Committee cited the devastating injury of quarterback Jordan Travis as the reason for the snub and a fifth-place ranking.
“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 in the statement at the time.
“The argument of whether a team is the…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/marty-smith-made-fsu-ad-140055082.html
Author : Tallahassee Democrat
Publish date : 2024-05-22 14:00:55
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