Billy Napier saw something he liked anyway and gave Mertz a chance, even as fans and writers alike lamented that the Gators didn’t pursue other flashier transfer portal names like Sam Hartman (Notre Dame) or Devin Leary (Kentucky). Once a heralded recruit, Mertz was cast off to the island of misfit toys by most coaches after 3 tough seasons as the starter at Wisconsin. Hopefully that joy finds its way to a NFL playing field in the near future.

A joy to watch and a privilege to cover as a writer, Travis made Florida State football fun again. Now he’ll lead a cheering section on the Seminoles sideline, with Noles and Gators fans collectively wishing him well off of it. In a fairer world, Travis would get to pursue those goals on the field. He deserves the shot at the ending I asked him about at ACC Media Days where, in his customary thoughtful, engaged manner, he said he “came back for my team, for this coaching staff who believed in me and believed in themselves when many people had written us off, and to pursue our unfinished goal of winning a ACC Championship and competing for the national championship.” He deserves to be healthy, compete for a College Football Playoff championship, and buck the odds again when he arrives at the NFL Combine early next year. Travis, whose college career ended with a gruesome leg injury last week against North Alabama, deserves to finish a program-changing career on the field. Let’s start there and let everything else follow. Jordan Travis and Graham Mertz deserve better. The why, by now, is well-known, and that’s where the similarities begin to mirror each other, instead of melt away. 15 LSU, a then-ranked Duke team, and at Clemson.Īnd yet, despite all that, thanks to a cruel twist of fate, the Seminoles enter Saturday’s contest desperate in every way. They are an elite team, 1 of only 3 teams (Georgia, Michigan) with SP+ efficiency rankings in the top 10 in all 3 phases (7th offense, 9th defense, 4th special teams) and a résumé that, while not overwhelming, includes a blowout win over No. The Seminoles have the nation’s 3rd-longest active winning streak (Georgia, Washington) at 17, with their last loss coming in the middle of October 2022.

The Seminoles are an unblemished 11-0, on the verge of the program’s second College Football Playoff appearance. Florida is a decidedly average football team, one with a good offense hamstrung by an imploding defense that ranks 129th (last in the Power 5) in yards allowed per play. Florida has lost 4 consecutive games, last winning at South Carolina in the middle of October. The Gators are on the verge of the program’s third consecutive losing season, which hasn’t happened since before integration ushered in the sport’s modern era.

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