Jason Kelce Compares Florida State to Super Bowl-Champion Eagles in Dissecting CFP Snub

The Philadelphia Eagles center took issue with the College Football Playoff selection committee’s slight of the Florida State Seminoles.
Jason Kelce Compares Florida State to Super Bowl-Champion Eagles in Dissecting CFP Snub
Jason Kelce Compares Florida State to Super Bowl-Champion Eagles in Dissecting CFP Snub /

Eagles center Jason Kelce has been in Florida State’s position—twice.

In 2009, Kelce was on a Cincinnati team that finished the regular season 12-0 and won the Big East title. However, the Bearcats were passed over for a berth in the BCS championship game and wound up losing to Florida in the Sugar Bowl.

In 2017, Kelce was on a Philadelphia team that lost starting quarterback Carson Wentz to an injury late in the season. But the Eagles regrouped and went on to win Super Bowl LII with backup Nick Foles.

With this experience under his belt, Kelce presumably does not support the unbeaten Seminoles’ CFP cause lightly.

“No matter how many teams you have, there’s gonna be somebody that has a case for being in it,” Kelce said on New Heights, his weekly podcast with his brother, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. “This year, very high case for Florida State. I just don’t like the reason they gave for Florida State not being included.”

Like many observers, Kelce took issue with how the CFP selection committee characterized Florida State quarterback Jordan Travis’s injury.

“Did Florida State earn the right to go into the playoffs? I don’t care who’s their quarterback now. I don’t care who that coach is now,” Kelce said. “That team and that group of players, did they earn the right to go there? The reason they gave I don’t think is a fair one.”

Kelce then drew on the events of the 2017 NFL season.

“If their backup quarterback’s Nick Foles, it might lead to some magic happening there in the playoffs of college football. … I’d be pretty pissed if I was a Florida State fan,” Kelce said.


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Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .