Even UCF fans are laughing at FSU’s championship rings | Commentary
What's more legit — UCF's national championship claim in 2017 or FSU claiming to be undefeated last season?
Running off at the typewriter …
Back in 2017, the college football establishment — including many of my FSU buddies — got a big laugh out of UCF self-proclaiming its undefeated football team as national champions and even handing out national-title rings to drive home the point. Now it’s UCF fans who are laughing at FSU after the Seminoles recently unveiled ACC championship rings that are inscribed with “Unconquered” and “13-0.”
The problem is that FSU was neither 13-0 nor unconquered. The Seminoles got thrashed 63-3 by Georgia in the Orange Bowl in the most lopsided bowl loss in college football history.
Don’t get me wrong, I wrote at the time that the Seminoles got robbed by the College Football Playoff Committee back in December when they became the only undefeated Power 5 conference champion in history to be left out of the playoff. And, yes, the Orange Bowl was a meaningless afterthought because quarterback Jordan Travis was injured and most of FSU’s star players had opted out of the game.
However, the Orange Bowl was still played and you just can’t conveniently omit the result.
In fact, you could say that UCF’s 2017 national championship claim is more legit than FSU’s 13-0 claim. History will always reflect that FSU’s record last season was 13-1, but the NCAA record book does actually recognize two national champions for the 2017 season — Alabama (based on its victory in the College Football Playoff title game) and UCF (based on its No. 1 final ranking in the NCAA-recognized Colley’s Bias Free Matrix Rankings).
In hindsight, the Seminoles should have made a statement by refusing to play in the Orange Bowl. It would have saved them the embarrassment of getting throttled by Georgia and it would have made the inscription on their championship rings resonate and stand up to scrutiny. …
Short stuff: If the Orlando Magic keep shooting this horribly in their series with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team is going to have to change its playoff mantra from “Everybody In” to “Nothing’s Going In.” … Since Reggie Bush is getting his Heisman Trophy back because paying players is now allowed, shouldn’t the Gators get their 1984 and 1990 SEC titles back as well? Just sayin’. … For all those NFL fans who are giddy about their team taking a quarterback in Thursday’s QB-heavy draft, just remember that only one of the five quarterbacks selected in the first round of the 2021 draft remains with his original team — and that’s Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence, who was picked No. 1 overall and hasn’t exactly been great. The other four — Zach Wilson (No. 2 pick), Trey Lance (No. 3), Justin Fields (No. 11) and Mac Jones (No. 15) — all have been traded. … Did you see where Jim Harbaugh got a “15-0” tattoo on his arm to commemorate the Michigan Wolverines’ undefeated record and national title? He should have gotten a tattoo of designated sign-stealer Connor Stalions wearing a Groucho Marx disguise while looking through a pair of high-powered binoculars! …
With Caitlin Clark being drafted by the WNBA’s Indiana Fever and her rookie salary of $76,536 being widely reported in the national media, there has been the requisite amount of indignation from those who don’t know any better. Whoopi Goldberg railed on The View that women athletes “have the headlines, they have the fans, they have the viewers. When the hell are they going to get paid?” Tweeted President Biden in regard to Clark: “Women are not paid their fair share.” The main complaint, of course, is that WNBA players don’t make a fraction of what NBA players make. Why? Here’s a quick economics lesson: The NBA generated $10.6 billion last season and made a $3 billion profit. The WNBA generates $60 million and relies on funding from the NBA to stay financially afloat. In a perfect world, yes, WNBA players would make as much per game as NBA players, but the WNBA has to start creating more interest and making more money for that to happen. Hopefully, Caitlin Clark can further that process. As for those worried about Clark being underpaid, she just signed a $28 million endorsement deal with Nike. I think she’s gonna be just fine. …
And while we’re on the subject of salaries for female athletes, shouldn’t Whoopi and President Biden also go to bat for Nelly Korda, who just became the third LPGA golfer in history to win five times in a row? Korda won a combined $2.4 million for winning those five tournaments while Scottie Scheffler made $16.25 million for winning four of his last five men’s golf tournaments. If you’re scoring at home, Scheffler has made more than twice as much money in his last five tournaments than Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus combined to make during their entire PGA Tour careers. … As if he were dealing with a bad marriage, a Tallahassee judge has ordered FSU and the ACC to try to settle their issues through mediation. Coming soon: ACC accuses FSU of infidelity (having an affair with the SEC) while FSU argues that it should not have to pay child support to Wake Forest, Boston College and Syracuse. … Question: When is Whoopi Goldberg going to rail against MLS players making five times less money than English Premier League players? … Tweet of the Week comes from former NFL player Ross Tucker, who lampooned the ridiculousness of the NFL media speculation heading into the draft: “BREAKING: Just found out there’s a team open to trading down YET looking to trade up BUT don’t be surprised if they just stand pat and make a pick.” … My state of Florida mock draft: Jaguars, with the 17th pick, take Terrion Arnold (CB, Alabama); Dolphins, with the 21st pick, take Graham Barton (OL, Duke); Buccaneers, with the 26th pick, take Brian Thomas Jr. (WR, LSU). …
Last word: From William “Refrigerator” Perry, on NFL Draft Day in 1985: “I’ve been big ever since I was little.”
Email me at mbianchi@orlandosentinel.com. Hit me up on X (formerly Twitter) @BianchiWrites and listen to my Open Mike radio show every weekday from 6 to 9:30 a.m. on FM 96.9, AM 740 and 969TheGame.com/listen