FSU AD Michael Alford shoots arrows at CFP committee after Seminoles get kicked out of college football playoffs

FSU missing the playoff was something that could happen when the final College Football Playoff rankings were revealed and that is what happened. Despite going a perfect 13-0 and winning the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship.

This is the first time that an undefeated Power Five conference champion has failed to make the College Football Playoff.

However, many people have displayed their displeasure of the College Football Playoff Committee's decision to exclude FSU from the playoff. ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips discussed the situation.

"It's unfathomable that Florida State, an undefeated Power Five conference champion, was left out of the College Football Playoff. Their exclusion calls into question the selection process and whether the Committtee's own guidelines were followed, including the significant importance of being an undefeated Power Five conference champion. My heart breaks for the talented FSU student-athletes and coaches and their passionate and loyal fans. Florida State deserved better. College football deserved better."

The anger did not just stay at the level of the commissioner's office, as Florida State Seminoles athletic director Michael Alford went scorched-earth about FSU missing the playoff.

"The argument of whether a team is the 'most deserving OR best' is a false eqivalence. 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... The committee failed college football today."

The final rankings saw the Florida State Seminoles land fifth in the country as the Michigan Wolverines, Washington Huskies, Texas Longhorns and Alabama Crimson Tide are the final four teams.

Does FSU missing the playoff cause issues going forward?

Luckily for college football, a situation like FSU missing the playoff will not happen again in the future. The College Football Playoff is expanding from four teams to 12 beginning next season so undefeated conference champions getting an automatic bid will avoid the confusion going forward.

Who should FSU be in the College Football Playoff over?

In order to eliminate FSU missing the playoff, that means one of the four teams would be forced to be out. The most logical solution would be switching the Florida State Seminoles and the Alabama Crimson Tide. The Crimson Tide defeated Georgia but leaping from eighth to fourth over the Florida State Seminoles is tough to picture a logical solution.

The Texas Longhorns deserve to be in over Alabama but there should be no SEC representation in the College Football Playoff for the first time.