Florida Legend Steve Spurrier Supports Idea of Florida State Joining the SEC

The longtime SEC coach weighed in on the Seminoles joining one of college football’s most popular leagues.

Florida State has a strong desire to exit the ACC and bolt to the SEC or the Big Ten after the latest round of conference realignment has Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah heading to the Big 12 and Washington and Oregon departing to the Big Ten.

With the Pac-12 sitting at only four teams and the ACC’s future uncertain, legendary college football coach Steve Spurrier believes the Seminoles would be a good fit for the SEC, where he coached FSU’s rival Florida as well as South Carolina.

“Yea, if they [Florida State] come into the SEC, heck, that would be good, I think,” Spurrier told Mike Bianchi of iHeartRadio. 

Spurrier, a former six-time SEC champion and coach of the ’96 national champion team at Florida, faced off in many battles with FSU in the Sunshine State rivalry. But, he also revealed that FSU’s latest discussions to join the SEC are not new, stating that the program had a “chance” to enter the SEC right before joined the ACC in 1992.

Forde and Johnson: Sources: Stanford, Cal’s Future Unclear With ACC Candidacy Unlikely to Pass

“… I remember Bobby Bowden said, ‘I don’t wanna play that [SEC] schedule—Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, Georgia,’” Spurrier recalled to Bianchi. “Of course their schedule was tough enough since they played us and Miami.”

While FSU appears to be looking for a framework to exit the league, the Seminoles’ departure will be very difficult because of the conference’s Grant of Rights as well as the program likely having to pay an outrageous exit fee.