Florida State Football

Florida State quarterback Brock Glenn doesn't believe missing out on the College Football Playoff should necessarily preclude the Seminoles from being recognized as a national champion.

Glenn said they'd "absolutely" deserve the honor if they're the last unbeaten Power Five team standing this season, per ESPN's David Hale.

Linebacker Kalen DeLoach concurred.

"It's only right," he said. "Nothing else needs to be said if we're the only undefeated team."

Before the playoff era, split national champions were uncommon but not unprecedented. The last occurrence came in 2003, when USC and LSU ranked first in the Associated Press and coaches polls respectively.

The seemingly definitive nature of the CFP didn't stop UCF from crowning itself a national champion in 2017, either, after it went 13-0 and sat atop the Colley Matrix. The NCAA subsequently recognized the achievement officially.

This year, there's nothing stopping AP voters or coaches from ranking Florida State first when all is said and done.

"As a matter of principle, I'd consider ranking Florida State No. 1 regardless of whether they are in the CFP field," said ESPN's Rece Davis, who has an AP vote, to the Associated Press' Ralph D. Russo. "Much like the selection process itself, the exercise is who, in my judgment, is the best team."

As much as a perfect season and symbolic national title would be for FSU, plenty of fans outside of Tallahassee would look derisively upon the honor. Seminoles defensive lineman Braden Fiske admitted it was "tough" to contemplate the actual significance.

"I don't know. Would it be phony?" he said, per Hale. "That's weird. Would it be cool? Sure. But would it be a little bit cooler to actually be in [the playoff] and feel that confetti drop?"

This might be a moot issue because Florida State still has to beat Georgia in the Orange Bowl.

Perhaps watching their title defense unravel in the SEC championship game will have a hangover effect for the Bulldogs, or they could be itching to set the record straight and prove they were one of the four best teams this season.

The Seminoles, meanwhile, will be without multiple key players as some are moving on to the NFL and others entered the transfer portal. This is a shell of the squad that ran the table in the regular season.

A heavy loss to Georgia won't erase what Florida State did to this point but will bring the national champion conversation to a clear conclusion.

If Mike Norvell wants to get a look at what the 2024 Florida State team is going to look like, the roster he will have playing in the Orange Bowl might give him some indication.

After star wide receiver Keon Coleman declared for the NFL draft on Wednesday, the Seminoles' depth chart looks extremely different than the one from the regular season with more than 20 players having opted out either by entering the transfer portal or to prepare for the NFL.

Coleman, Johnny Wilson and tight end Jaheim Bell, the three leading receivers for the team this season, have all opted out.

Quarterback Tate Rodemaker, who started against Florida after Jordan Travis suffered a season-ending injury, entered the transfer portal on Monday. Leading rusher Trey Benson, starting defensive linemen Jared Verse and Fabien Lovett and cornerback Akeem Dent are among the other notable players who won't be on the field against Georgia.

It's been a whirlwind five weeks for the Seminoles. They lost Travis to a lower-leg injury in the first quarter of a 58-13 victory over North Alabama on Nov. 18. Rodemaker started the following game against Florida, but he suffered a concussion in the fourth quarter that kept him out of the ACC Championship Game.

Florida State defeated Louisville with Brock Glenn at quarterback to win the ACC title and cap off a 13-0 regular season, but it was an ugly performance with a 16-6 final score. Glenn finished 8-of-21 for 55 yards.

The College Football Playoff selection committee opted not to reward the Seminoles' body of work by dropping them one spot to No. 5, with Alabama getting bumped up to the final spot in the playoff after defeating Georgia in the SEC Championship Game.

Florida State became the first undefeated Power 5 team to be excluded from the College Football Playoff since its inception in 2014.

Some of Georgia's key players, including Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey, haven't officially been ruled out for the Orange Bowl yet. Head coach Kirby Smart has said the team isn't expecting to have a lot of players skip the game.

Florida State and Georgia will square off on Dec. 30 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida.

Florida State wide receiver Keon Coleman officially declared for the 2024 NFL draft Wednesday.

Coleman transferred to the Seminoles ahead of the 2023 season and caught 50 passes 658 yards and 11 touchdowns. He's the No. 2 wideout behind Ohio State's Marvin Harrison Jr. and the seventh-best overall prospect on Bleacher Report's 2024 big board.

B/R NFL scout Derrik Klassen compared him to 2015 Pro Bowler Allen Robinson II and called him a "throwback X receiver."

"Physicality and ball skills are the name of the game for Coleman. At 6'4" and 215 pounds, he always has his way with defensive backs," Klassen wrote. "He excels at fighting through press at the line of scrimmage, as well as using his length and strength to buy space at the top of route breaks. Coleman is even a pretty chippy blocker.

"Coleman also leverages that strength when it comes to playing the ball in the air. His ball skills are special. He does an excellent job jostling for positioning with defensive backs before going up for the ball."

Coleman's best performance came in his Florida State debut. He caught nine passes for 122 yards and three touchdowns as the 'Noles beat then-No. 5 LSU 45-24.

Wednesday's announcement probably didn't come as a huge shock to FSU head coach Mike Norvell given how highly his leading receiver is thought of. But this just reinforces how much work Norvell and his staff have ahead of themselves as they rebuild the offense.

Star quarterback Jordan Travis is moving on and Tate Rodemaker, one of his internal replacements, is entering the transfer portal. Trey Benson, who had a team-high 905 yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground, declared for the draft as well. Coleman isn't even the first notable pass-catcher from the Seminoles to leave early, with Johnny Wilson forgoing his remaining eligibility. Starting tight end Jaheim Bell is gone for good measure.

While the portal allows for coaches to immediately address needs within their roster, taking a step backward might be inevitable for Florida State in the face of so much offensive turnover.

Florida State quarterback Tate Rodemaker is reportedly seeking a new opportunity for the final year of his collegiate career.

According to ESPN's Tom VanHaaren, Rodemaker said Monday that he is entering the transfer portal and he won't be playing in Florida State's matchup against Georgia in the Capital One Orange Bowl.

Rodemaker's decision comes amid Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell's pursuit of transfer quarterbacks Cameron Ward and DJ Uiagalelei. However, neither of them has committed to Florida State as of yet.

"This decision to enter the portal was incredibly difficult," a source close to the Rodemaker family told 247Sports' Matt Zenitz. "However, with the unforgiving nature of the calendar relative to transfer portal players and bowl games and limited opportunities remaining for transfer quarterbacks, the family felt this move was in Tate's best interest. Florida State has quite publicly recruited multiple quarterbacks in this transfer cycle, so Tate and his family reluctantly came to the decision that now was the time to move on."

A 3-star recruit in the class of 2020, Rodemaker opened the 2023 season as the primary backup to Jordan Travis before he was thrust into action when Travis suffered a season-ending leg injury. The redshirt junior appeared in nine games and started Florida State's win over in-state rival Florida. He threw for 134 yards against the Gators and finished the season with 510 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions.

Rodemaker ended up suffering an injury of his own against Florida and was forced to miss the ACC Championship Game against Louisville. VanHaaren noted that he would've been cleared to play in the Orange Bowl if he didn't opt out of the game.

Freshman Brock Glenn, who threw for 55 yards in the win over Louisville, is expected to start against Georgia with Travis still out and Rodemaker departing the program.

Florida State University is headed to court in an attempt to exit the ACC.

Florida State trustees chair Peter Collins said the school has "no choice" but to challenge the ACC's prohibitive "grant of rights" agreement.

"Today we've reached a crossroads in our relationship with the ACC," Collins said Friday. "I believe this board has been left no choice but to challenge the legitimacy of the ACC Grant of Rights and its severe withdrawal penalties."

Pete Thamel of ESPN reported Florida State estimates it would cost around $572 million to leave the ACC.

As the Big Ten and SEC transform into superconferences, Florida State has been increasingly unhappy with its relationship with the ACC. The situation seemingly reached a head when an undefeated Seminoles football team was left out of the College Football Playoff—marking the first time an undefeated Power Five team has not made the playoffs.

The current ACC grant of rights runs through 2035-36. Colloquially, this gives the ACC the right to determine Florida State's broadcasting rights and strengthens the conference by allowing negotiations to happen as a collective.

Florida State has pushed the ACC to distribute revenue based on each school's media value to the conference. Thus far, the ACC has refused, leaving Florida State in a bind where the football program in particular will fall well behind on revenue over the next decade.

"This is not where I would prefer to have ended up," Florida State president Richard McCullough said. "I would prefer a different pathway, but I feel in many ways we've exhausted all other options and you can't wish and hope that somehow they'll get fixed."

It's unlikely any resolution in this situation will happen quickly. This is the first time a university has challenged a grant of rights, which means this battle could be played out for an extended period in the court system if the two sides do not reach an accord.

Florida State would likely be welcomed into the Big Ten or SEC if the school is able to extract itself from the grant of rights or lessen the exit fee to a more palatable number. However, no conference will approach Florida State on a formal level until the situation is resolved.

Florida State has been a member of the ACC since 1992. The university previously operated as an independent from 1951-1991.

Florida State's days in the ACC may be numbered.

According to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports, the school's Board of Trustees is expected to meet Friday and discuss whether it will eventually leave the conference. "The result of the meeting could produce a formal legal filing in what many describe as the first step to achieving an exit from the ACC's binding grant-of-rights agreement," Dellenger wrote.

That grant-of-rights agreement the league and its members signed with ESPN in 2016 is turning into quite the obstacle for any school that wants to leave the ACC.

It was a 20-year agreement that now seems out of date after the Big Ten and SEC signed much more lucrative media rights contracts. It runs through the 2035-36 academic year, and Dellenger noted Florida State may have to pay an estimated $500 million on top of a $120 million exit fee if it did leave with so many years remaining on the deal in place.

That is a daunting amount of money even in today's college football landscape, although Dellenger also reported Florida State could seek a "declaratory judgment action" from a judge who would declare it is not bound to the grant-of-rights agreement.

It could create a blueprint for other schools as well, as Andrea Adelson of ESPN reported on Tuesday that Clemson, North Carolina, Miami, Virginia Tech, Virginia and NC State have also at least discussed a potential exit during the last year.

So many schools at least considering a way out of the ACC reflects the changing reality of college football in which the SEC and Big Ten are separating themselves as the haves versus the have-nots.

Not only do the schools within those leagues have a massive financial advantage with their media rights deals, but the competitive nature of the conferences will also be all the more notable when Texas and Oklahoma join the SEC, and Oregon, Washington, USC and UCLA join the Big Ten.

It wouldn't be a surprise to see the conferences take up the majority of the at-large spots in the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff, which is surely a sore spot for Florida State after it just went undefeated and was left out of this year's four-team field.

Adelson noted discussions about leaving the ACC "reignited following the Seminoles' omission," while Dellenger said missing the CFP "rocked those in Tallahassee and accelerated the school's planned exit strategy."

Perhaps it was a last-straw situation, although the idea has been on the forefront of discussions since Florida State President Richard McCullough said in August, "My current assessment of the situation after very deep analysis is I believe FSU will have to at some point consider very seriously leaving the ACC unless there were a radical change to the revenue distribution."

The upcoming meeting could be an important step in that process.

Going undefeated as a member of the ACC during the 2023 season wasn't enough to get Florida State into the College Football Playoff, and the school is reportedly considering its long-term options and future within the conference.

According to Andrea Adelson of ESPN, "Florida State has had renewed in-depth discussions about its long-term future in the ACC in recent weeks."

Adelson noted not making the CFP "angered many at the university and among its Board of Trustees, essentially the last straw after a year spent voicing their displeasure with the ACC."

This doesn't mean Florida State will be joining a new conference in the immediate future. In fact, there has not been an official Board of Trustees meeting scheduled even amid the renewed discussions.

Still, it reflects the changing nature of college football.

The SEC and Big Ten have positioned themselves to be the focal point of the sport in the coming years. The two conferences generate more revenue than the others and dominate television ratings, and the gap figures to only increase when Texas and Oklahoma join the SEC and USC, Oregon, Washington and UCLA join the Big Ten.

If Florida State didn't get the benefit of the doubt over Alabama and others in 2023, it will likely get even less leeway while teams in the Big Ten and SEC are playing loaded schedules with matchups between national championship contenders seemingly every week.

The Seminoles aren't the only ones taking that into account, as Adelson noted Clemson, North Carolina, Miami, Virginia Tech, Virginia and NC State all at least discussed their futures this past year.

Yet any school leaving the ACC would face an exit fee of approximately $120 million to overcome the league's grant of rights that gives it control over media rights for all member schools.

Those other programs may have discussed potential moves down the line, but Florida State has been the most vocal about the possibility.

Florida State President Richard McCullough said in August, "This continues to be a very difficult issue. There's a lot going on in the world of conference realignment. My current assessment of the situation after very deep analysis is I believe FSU will have to at some point consider very seriously leaving the ACC unless there were a radical change to the revenue distribution."

He pointed to the significant gap in television revenue for league members between everyone else compared to the growing SEC and Big Ten.

For now, the Seminoles remain in the ACC and will face Georgia in the Orange Bowl instead of playing in the CFP.

Florida State football head coach Mike Norvell admitted that he and his team have worked through a wave of negative emotions in the wake of the undefeated Seminoles being left out of the College Football Playoff.

"You had to learn how to work through disappointment, hurt, frustration and anger -- every bit of it -- for 18-to-22-year-old kids and a 42-year-old coach," Norvell said Tuesday, per ESPN's David Hale.

"It's hard. But at the end of the day, you control things you can control. We did everything we needed to to win 13 games this season."

Norvell's Seminoles, Michigan and Washington were the lone three Division I-FBS teams from Power Five conferences to finish undefeated.

However, FSU was the first school out of the four-team playoff, which includes Michigan, Washington, Texas and Alabama in that order.

CFP committee chair Boo Corrigan said that the season-ending leg injury suffered by quarterback Jordan Travis on Nov. 18 against North Alabama played a factor when considering the team's resume.

"Florida State is a different team than they were the first 11 weeks," Corrigan said on ESPN on Dec. 3, the day the field was announced.

"Coach Norvell, their players, their fans, an incredible season. But if you look at who they are as a team, right now, without Jordan Travis, without the offensive dynamic that he brings to it, they are a different team. And the committee voted Alabama four and Florida State five."

FSU clearly took a hit on offense over its last two games, but the defense was largely dominant both times, especially in a 16-6 win over No. 14 Louisville in the ACC Championship Game. The Seminoles also took care of business the week before in a 24-15 road win over the Florida Gators.

Being left out undoubtedly hurts for FSU and Norvell, who called the time since the announcement the "most challenging couple weeks of coaching I've ever had."

But FSU's season isn't over yet as it now gets a shot at reigning back-to-back national champions Georgia, the nation's No. 6 team, in the Orange Bowl.

"We get an opportunity to go get better," Norvell said. "You can't just be good when it sounds good. ... This is our reality, so you push through it and go get better."

Kickoff for that matchup will take place on Saturday, Dec. 30 at 4 p.m. ET in Miami Gardens Florida's Hard Rock Stadium.

Florida State will be without one of its best players when it faces Georgia in the Orange Bowl on Dec. 30.

According to ESPN's Jordan Reid, Seminoles edge rusher Jared Verse has opted out of the game and declared for the 2024 NFL draft.

A redshirt junior who began his collegiate career at Albany, Verse has starred on the Florida State defensive line for the last two seasons. He earned first-team All-ACC honors for the second straight year after he led the team with nine sacks, matching his 2022 total. He also added 41 total tackles, two passes defended and a forced fumble.

In B/R's latest draft big board, Verse is ranked as the No. 1 edge rusher and No. 8 overall player in the 2024 class. B/R NFL scout Matt Holder projects him to be a first-round pick and potentially the first defensive lineman selected in the draft.

"Part of what makes Verse such a coveted prospect is his blend of strength and athleticism," Holder stated. "He can put offensive tackles on their heels with his ability to turn speed to power as a pass-rusher, and he has good use of hands paired with the bend to win around the edge using finesse moves like a cross chop or arm over."

Florida State is understandably still disappointed over not being included in the College Football Playoff despite being undefeated and winning the ACC championship. While losing Verse for the Orange Bowl is another blow to the team, it can be expected that the Seminoles will put their best foot forward against a Bulldogs team that is likely angry after losing out on the chance for a third straight national championship.

Florida State running back Trey Benson has declared for the NFL Draft.

The junior announced his decision on social media on Sunday, noting that he will not play in the Seminoles' Orange Bowl matchup with Georgia.

Benson rushed for 905 yards and 14 touchdowns this season, helping lead Florida State to an undefeated season and an ACC Championship. He spent two seasons with the Seminoles after playing for Oregon his freshman year.

Benson is the No. 1 running back on Bleacher Report's 2024 NFL Draft Big Board and the No. 55 overall player with a 7.3 rating.

In his three collegiate seasons, Benson collected 1,917 rushing yards and 24 touchdowns. After playing limited snaps at Oregon in 2021, he joined the Seminoles and became a star. He led Florida State in both rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in 2022 and 2023, proving to be integral to the Seminoles' offensive success.

His biggest game this season came against Virginia Tech when he tallied 200 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns, including an 85-yard touchdown run to put the game away.

Now Florida State will be looking to get past Georgia without its star running back. The Seminoles and Bulldogs were the first and second teams out of the College Football Playoff, so the matchup should be a fun one on Dec. 30 in Miami.

Benson had a successful run with the Seminoles, and now he's looking to dominate at the next level.