Hopefully, regular readers of the Misery Index are aware that it is primarily a semi-serious platform for reflecting on each college football Saturday and examining some of the more noteworthy outcomes through the prism of enraged fandom, which is ultimately what initially piques people’s passion for the sport.
Being a fan of a team or watching this sport is rarely linked to true, everyday suffering. After all, it’s just for fun. But on Saturday against Florida State, we witnessed that exact thing happen for what may have been the first time in ten years of doing this every week.
Regarding the manner the Seminoles were handled by the cart after quarterback Jordan Travis’ run ended with a portion of his lower torso twisted the incorrect way, there is nothing sarcastic or humorous to say. We don’t really need an official diagnosis, even if one hadn’t been provided as of Saturday night. It’s terrible news, as it will most likely ruin both his season and Florida State’s chances of qualifying for the College Football Playoffs.
To put it plainly, it’s devastating. It’s harsh. It’s the one genuinely awful aspect of the game.
In the end, the Seminoles prevailed 58–13, but it was hardly significant. The coach Mike Norvell’s somber tone during the halftime interview and their body language on the bench both suggested that the outcome wasn’t that crucial.
This is the worst that can happen to the team, the coaching staff, and the supporters. This was the season that Florida State had been preparing for years, and everything couldn’t be going more smoothly. From the first game against LSU in Week 1 to the end of the ACC schedule, the Seminoles had won every test. Realistically, the only thing separating Florida State from the postseason was a trip to a lackluster Florida the next week and a meeting with Louisville in the ACC title game.
Anyone who watches or plays football knows that one ill-advised tackle or a botched step may ruin a whole season or career. But that it would occur in a meaningless game against an FCS team?
As a sixth-year senior, Travis had advanced through Norvell’s program each year, emerging as one of the league’s top quarterbacks. He and his teammates, who mainly depended on him to achieve something spectacular this season, didn’t deserve for their college careers to end this way.
But Florida State has to deal with that reality, and it’s terrible. You are at a loss for words.However, it also poses a significant risk to college football as a sport.
Assume that, on December 3, the Seminoles are sitting at 13-0 after defeating Louisville and Florida in spite of everything. A Power Five conference winner that is undefeated normally has little problem qualifying for the College Football Playoffs.
However, a committee tasked with selecting the top four teams in the nation selects the field. An undefeated Florida State would undoubtedly be in that category with Travis. That seems like a reach without Travis.
It would be unfair, especially under these circumstances, to leave out a team that has accomplished everything it was expected to if Florida State manages to end the season undefeated. However, the playoffs are meant to determine a national champion, and a team that loses both its starting quarterback and its offensive engine in the eleventh game of the season isn’t the same one we saw throughout the first two and a half months of the season.
It makes no difference in the NFL. You remain in the playoffs even if you make it in but have a significant injury at the end of the season that eliminates your hopes of winning the Super Bowl. That’s not how college football operates, for better or ill. There are just four spots available, so it’s a rather subjective endeavor, at least until next season when it increases to 12 teams.
Over the years, the CFP committee has been quite fortunate to avoid making any really difficult decisions. But when they have to decide between what’s fair and what would be best for the playoffs, this FSU scenario may become very problematic.
It has to rank among the sport’s most unfortunate incidents if the Seminoles’ inability to make the playoffs, which appeared quite probable upon waking up on Saturday morning, is due to an injury sustained against North Alabama.
