Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday criticized the College Football Playoff committee and said he is seeking $1 million in the state budget to allow the state of Florida to sue the committee over its decision to exclude the team from the playoffs.
DeSantis spoke about the decision at a news conference regarding his spending proposal, which includes a $114.4 billion budget for Florida. DeSantis said his children are Seminoles fans and were unhappy with FSU’s exclusion from the playoffs.
“My first grader, my fifth grader and my preschooler… they’re all ‘noles’ and they’re big fans and they do the tomahawk chop and they weren’t happy,” DeSantis said, according to the Associated Press. “We will set aside $1 million and let the chips fall where they may.”
It will be months before the budget is approved, with DeSantis’ recommendation just a suggestion to the Florida Legislature. The group begins its annual session in January to determine a spending plan. Once the plan is agreed upon, DeSantis will be able to veto individual articles.
Florida State, which went 13-0 and won the ACC Championship Game, slipped to fifth place in Sunday’s final rankings, behind Michigan (13-0), Washington (13-0), Texas (12-1 ) and Alabama (12-1). ). The Longhorns and Crimson Tide each moved ahead of FSU after winning the Big 12 and SEC championships, respectively.
FSU lost star quarterback Jordan Travis to a serious leg injury suffered in a game against North Alabama on Nov. 18, but went on to win two critical games with backup quarterbacks Tate Rodemaker and Brock Glenn. The committee cited Travis’ injury as the reason for leaving FSU.
“In the eyes of the committee, Florida State is a different team without Jordan Travis,” committee chairman Boo Corrigan said Sunday. “One of the things we look at is player availability, and our job is to rank the top teams, and in the final decision, looking at this, it was Alabama at four and Florida State at five.”
Others besides DeSantis expressed outrage at the snub, with Florida State football coach Mike Norvell saying he was “disgusted and enraged” by the committee’s decision Sunday to leave the Seminoles out of the four-team field. FSU is the first undefeated Power 5 conference champion to miss the playoffs.
“What’s the point of playing? Do you tell players it’s okay to quit if someone falls? Not playing on Senior Day for fear of getting hurt? What is the motivation for scheduling challenging non-conference games? Norvell said.
FSU athletic director Michael Alford told the committee he “failed college football” with the decision.
Florida State will face Georgia in the Orange Bowl on Dec. 30.
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