The office of Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody announced Tuesday that they are officially launching a civil investigation into the CFP selection committee, demanding to see communications between them and ESPN, the NCAA, and the Power Five conferences, amongst other things.
This decision comes after the undefeated Florida State Seminoles were held out of a top-four spot by the CFP committee. Meanwhile, the Texas Longhorns and the Alabama Crimson Tide, both one-loss teams, ended up getting in over them, which led to outrage from fans and media members alike.
Moody took to social media on Tuesday, releasing a video on what exactly the subpoena will be looking into.
“Most of you know I’m a lifelong Gator,” said Moody standing on Florida State’s campus. “But I am also Florida’s Attorney General, and I know injustice when I see it. Shockingly, what happened to the undefeated ‘Noles after winning the ACC Championship has college football fans in Florida and across the nation wanting answers. It’s justified. What is clear is the need for more information about the unprecedented decision, made by a group of 13 in secret, that for the first time ever, left an undefeated Power Five conference champion out of the playoff.
“This stunning decision not only disappointed millions of fans, it cost this university and the ACC millions of dollars. The NCAA conferences and the College Football Playoff selection committee are subject to antitrust laws. We are launching an investigation to examine if the committee was involved in any anti-competitive conduct in its unprecedented decision. As it stands the committee’s decision reeks of partiality, picking winners in the board room and not on the field.
“We are demanding answers. Not only for FSU, but for all schools, teams, and fans of college football. We sent a subpoena to the committee demanding all communications related to the deliberations, documents showing compensation of members, and vote tallies, including who received access to those votes.”
I’m a lifelong Gator, but I’m also the Florida Attorney General, and I know injustice when I see it. That is why we are fighting for the #Unconquered @FSUFootball team and demanding answers from the College Football Playoff Selection Committee.
In Florida, merit matters. If it’s… pic.twitter.com/DFlh7mmLWD
— AG Ashley Moody (@AGAshleyMoody) December 12, 2023
Moody added that this investigation likely won’t overturn the committee’s decision to leave out FSU, which is fairly obvious considering the investigation will likely not be a quick one. What it will do is determine whether any anti-trust violations went into the decision, and whoever may be at fault for it.
In the accompanying press release, Moody’s office says it has requested “all communications relating to deliberations to or from the SEC, ACC, NCAA, ESPN, Group of Five conferences, Power Five conferences or any other person relating to the deliberations.” The inclusion of ESPN certainly answers the question of whether or not Florida officials might want to make a run at the Disney entity.
Bill Hancock, the executive director of the College Football Playoff, issued a statement on behalf of the committee, stating that they will review this subpoena demand, but that it is an “overly aggressive reaction” to Florida State’s absence in the CFP.
“We will carefully review this demand for information, but it sure seems to be an overly aggressive reaction to a college football ranking in which some fans somewhere were bound to be disappointed,” said Hancock.
On the surface, it seems bizarre that ESPN was named in this investigation. The network aired the CFP selection show, but there is no evidence of any involvement in the decision.
However, some out there believe ESPN is involved behind the scenes, including current Florida Senator and former Florida State Seminoles star Corey Simon.
The corruption of college football rears its ugly head again. ESPN and Disney have a vested interest in the SEC participating in the CFP. Lawsuits should be filed tomorrow
— Corey Simon (@csime90) December 3, 2023
We’ll see if this investigation goes anywhere, or is just the latest in a series of legal battles between Governor Ron DeSantis’s Florida government and Disney.
[AG Ashley Moody on Twitter/X, Forbes]
