Rick Scott: “Not good for this country” is FSU’s exclusion from the College Football Playoffs.
Written by Matt Baker The Tampa Bay Times (TNS) is a media company.
Tuesday marked the start of an additional phase in Florida State’s exclusion from the College Football Playoffs as an antitrust investigation was launched by the Attorney General’s Office.
U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, who is still advocating for openness from the 13-member playoff selection committee that chose 12-1 Alabama over undefeated FSU, applauded the move.
Scott said to the Tampa Bay Times on Wednesday morning, “I think this goes to the core point of what people think about our country right now: They think that the institutions are playing games.”
“In this country, people are losing faith in institutions due to various issues such as the FBI’s actions, the Department of Justice, and Supreme Court criticism. That is the current situation. When people don’t trust their institutions, it’s bad for this nation.
Republican Scott from Florida claimed that if the playoffs don’t explain openly and honestly why the Seminoles lost out to Alabama for the fourth and final playoff spot, the public will lose faith in them. Boo Corrigan, the athletic director at North Carolina State, has been publicly questioned by him for information and records regarding the selection committee’s findings. Written correspondence from ESPN, the SEC, and the committee is included in these documents. He hasn’t heard back from anyone yet.
What’s the key to everything here? Asking Scott. Does ESPN decide that switching to a different team will result in higher ratings? Is there anyone on there attempting to assist a friend in getting more money or something similar? I’m not sure, but please be honest.
“When they’re not, you tend to assume the worst.”
In the history of the playoffs and the Bowl Championship Series, FSU became the first team from a major conference to go undefeated and be surpassed by a team with one loss. However, other unbeaten teams—UCF in 2017 and 2018—have been left out.
Before the ACC title game, FSU was ranked fourth, but after defeating No. 14 Louisville by 10 points, they dropped a spot, which Scott said was egregious. Texas and Alabama, two one-loss conference champions who finished seventh and eighth respectively before defeating Oklahoma State and Georgia to win the Big 12 and SEC, overtook FSU.
He also brought up Jordan Travis’s injury, the star quarterback for FSU, which was one of the committee’s stated justifications. Despite having quarterback injuries in 2014, Ohio State advanced past TCU, ranked third, to the field. After defeating Wisconsin 59-0 to win the Big Ten championship, the Buckeyes secured the top spot, while the Horned Frogs dropped three spots following their victory over Iowa State 55-3.
Regarding FSU’s exclusion, Scott remarked, “So it just seems like there’s something that we don’t know that’s going on here.”
The office of Attorney General Ashley Moody is looking into that allegation. They served the playoffs with a civil subpoena-style antitrust civil y Ashley Moody on Tuesday, requesting documents and information pertaining to the decision. Scott stated that if an inquiry is required to obtain those answers, then so be it.
“They must be open and honest,” Scott declared. They are destroying this institution, and that is not acceptable.
