NCAA FB

Kevin Durant approves, others don’t of College Football Playoff committee’s selection

Dec 3, 2023, 12:06 PM | Updated: 12:08 pm

Kevin Durant looks on from the sidelines as the Texas Longhorns play the Mississippi Rebels on Sept...

Kevin Durant looks on from the sidelines as the Texas Longhorns play the Mississippi Rebels on September 14, 2013 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

(Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

Former Texas forward Kevin Durant was ecstatic his Longhorns were selected to play in the College Football Playoff.

But others did not share that same sentiment as the CFP committee’s choice to include Alabama but not Florida State was met with tons of controversy.

It was the first time an unbeaten Power Five conference champion was excluded from the playoff.

“I wish my leg broke earlier in the season so y’all could see this team is much more than the quarterback,” Florida State quarterback Jordan Travis, who suffered a season-ending leg injury in mid-November, said on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday.

Florida State Athletic Director Michael Alford released a statement following the final rankings.

“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.

“The argument of whether a team is the ‘most deserving OR best’ is a false equivalence. It renders the season up to yesterday irrelevant and significantly damages the legitimacy of the College Football Playoff. The 2023 Florida State Seminoles are the epitome of a total TEAM.

“To eliminate them from a chance to compete for a national championship is an unwarranted injustice that shows complete disregard and disrespect for their performance and accomplishments. It is unforgivable.”

Florida State was No. 4 in the previous CFP rankings and before Sunday, no team ranked outside the top six of the second-to-last CFP rankings had ever moved into the final four, however both Alabama and Texas did on Sunday.

 

Florida State was selected for the CFP once as it competed in the first playoff in 2014, losing to No. 2 Oregon, 59-20, in the semifinals in the Rose Bowl. The SEC champion has always been selected to play in the CFP. Alabama was selected to play in the playoff for the eighth time.

As the No. 3 seed, Texas will play No. 2 Washington in New Orleans in the Sugar Bowl and No. 4 Alabama will play No. 1 Michigan in Pasadena in the Rose Bowl. Both semifinals will be on Jan. 1 and the national championship will be in Houston at NRG Stadium on Jan. 8.

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Kevin Durant approves, others don’t of College Football Playoff committee’s selection