It sure seems like Greg Sankey sensed Florida State’s frustration after the Seminoles were shut out of the College Football Playoff at the end of the 2023 season.
By now, you know the story. Florida State capped a 13-0 season with the ACC title, but failed to qualify for the College Football Playoff in large part because starting quarterback Jordan Travis was injured in the penultimate game of the regular season. FSU’s offense didn’t look as good without Travis, and Florida State fell to No. 5 in the final CFP rankings.
The playoff loss caused much consternation in Tallahassee, as the Seminoles felt they received a raw deal when Alabama, with a loss, advanced to the playoffs after upsetting Georgia in the SEC title game.
Sankey, however, believes Georgia deserved to make the playoffs, too. And he made it clear in an interview on 1010 AM Jacksonville on Wednesday at SEC media days that he felt the SEC hadn’t made much noise about Georgia’s exclusion from the playoffs. And while Sankey didn’t mention FSU by name, it’s hard not to think of the Seminoles when reading or hearing his comments.
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey talks about @1010XL“Georgia was one of the top four teams (in the country) and didn’t make the playoffs. But you didn’t see us jumping for joy, complaining and hanging up national championship banners.”
A not-so-subtle shot at FSU.
—Matt Hayes (@MattHayesCFB) July 17, 2024
Of course, Florida State and Georgia met in the Orange Bowl as a consolation prize of sorts. And the game didn’t go well for the Seminoles, though it wasn’t a totally fair fight. The Bulldogs beat Florida State 63-3 in a game that many of FSU’s star players missed after opting out following the playoff exclusion.
Fortunately, we won’t have to argue about whether the fifth- and sixth-best teams in the country are playoff-worthy in 2024. This fall is the first for the expanded 12-team playoffs and both Florida State and Georgia are the favorites to be part of the playoffs again this season. The Bulldogs are the national title favorites at BetMGM at +300, while Florida State is the favorite to win the SEC and +150 to make the playoffs.
