There’s not a lot of love lost between Florida State fans and ESPN — and that’s putting it mildly.
Seminoles fans may have had a legitimate gripe, especially when ESPN’s coverage of FSU’s playoff snub showed just how the ACC will always be second fiddle to the SEC, at least in the network’s eyes.
Yes, you had Booger McFarland, Dan Mullen, and Charles Barkley take up for FSU and blast the CFP for “selective criteria.” But then you also had the Paul Finebaum’s of the world who claimed they were bothered by “unadulterated fake outrage,” while Kirk Herbstreit kept feeling the need to defend his opinion on why FSU was rightfully snubbed.
There were Florida State players who were “sickened” by ESPN broadcasters praising Washington for overcoming adversity. And that rift only deepened as the program’s Athletic Director, Michael Alford, took a not-so-thinly veiled shot at Harry Lyles, Jr. Those wounds run deep between the network and those in and around the FSU football program.
So, as the Seminoles lick their wounds and look to prove the network — and many others — wrong, Finebaum decided he’d take another crack at FSU. Earlier this week, he continued to troll the Seminoles and their fans for missing out on last year’s CFP.
And his behavior has since been called into question. While Robert Griffin III didn’t call out Finebaum by name in a lengthy rant on X, the ESPN college football analyst certainly fits the criteria, as Griffin’s remarks were directed at “anyone who is throwing shade at or trying to take cheap shots at Florida State.”
Well, does this seem to fit that criteria?
.@finebaum believes FSU will finish unranked 👀
“I think they used up too many tears crying about not getting in the playoffs. That may slow them down a little bit.” pic.twitter.com/MeOComebfk
— First Take (@FirstTake) August 13, 2024
Anyone who is throwing shade at or trying to take cheap shots at Florida State for being left out of the College Football Playoff last year must be out of touch with reality. FSU wasn’t a team that was kept out because they lost a game down the stretch. They are a team that were kept out because their starting quarterback fractured his ankle. THAT’S NOT SOMETHING TO MAKE LIGHT OF. The players on that team, the coaches, their families and the fans certainly were crying tears for one of the most beloved players in all of college football in Jordan Travis. Then they scrapped their way to an undefeated regular season with a 2nd and 3rd string QB. That team should be CELEBRATED for what they pulled off down the stretch not mocked.
Anyone who is throwing shade at or trying to take cheap shots at Florida State for being left out of the College Football Playoff last year must be out of touch with reality. FSU wasn’t a team that was kept out because they lost a game down the stretch. They are a team that were… pic.twitter.com/srmP9mtz0J
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) August 14, 2024
While RG3 didn’t explicitly name his network or his colleague, it’s not that difficult to decipher who or what he’s referring to. Despite his demotion from Monday Night Countdown in favor of Jason Kelce, Griffin remains a prominent figure in ESPN’s college football coverage.
Continuing to mock FSU seems less like a legitimate analysis and more like a calculated attempt to generate controversy. And Griffin doesn’t want any part of it.
[RG3]
