Mike Norvell Comments On Jordan Travis' Leg Injury Following FSU's Win Over North Alabama
Florida State took down North Alabama 45-13 on Saturday to advance to 11-0 and secure an undefeated showing in Doak Campbell Stadium in 2023. However, the only thing the Seminoles are worried about coming out of the contest is the status of redshirt senior quarterback Jordan Travis.
In the final minutes of the opening quarter, Travis appeared to be seriously injured after going down while scrambling for a first down. His leg was twisted at an awkward ankle and was pulled under the defender as Travis was brought to the ground with a hip-drop tackle.
It was immediately clear that something was wrong after Travis slammed the ball against the turf while reaching for his left leg. Trainers rushed out and an air cast was applied to his leg prior to the quarterback being carted off and ushered into an ambulance.
Redshirt junior signal-caller Tate Rodemaker ended up replacing Travis and finished 13/23 for a career-high 217 passing yards and two touchdowns. He helped guide the offense to 45 consecutive points prior to being relieved by true freshman Brock Glenn.
Following the game, head coach Mike Norvell offered his comments on the unfortunate injury suffered by Travis during his final game in Doak Campbell Stadium and where the team goes from here.
"When Jordan went down, it was something that nobody ever wants to see," Norvell said postgame. "I don't have any updates on it tonight so everybody is aware but I was proud of the way that our guys responded throughout the course of the game.
Prior to going down, Travis completed 2/4 passes for 21 yards while rushing once for 16 yards. He was honored leading up to the game during Florida State's Senior Day Ceremony.
"I'd like to say you block it out, you don't. Coming in, we knew this was Jordan Travis' last game at Doak Campbell Stadium. I wanted to see him have a special game, special experience," Norvell said. "Anytime someone gets hurt, it hurt. It's painful to see, it's painful to have to go through, you just want so bad for that kid because he does everything right. He really is just a special, special young man and I can't say that I did block it out."
"You go and you coach and you do everything for the players that are out there on the field. I went to them too. It doesn't lessen the impact when you have any player that goes down," Norvell continued. "It's hard because this is a game that these guys, they just put so much into. You've got to be for others what they need and really our players, the way that they competed, the way that they fought, the way that they were responding was a lot of what I even needed at times because you see their desire to go out there and do all they can to make sure we finish as good as we can be. They showed it in their response and we have a responsibility as coaches to do the same."
Norvell also discussed what the Seminoles will need out of Rodemaker if he's forced to step into a bigger role.
"He just needs to be him," Norvell said. "Just because you're not a starter, which Tate, obviously he's behind one of the best quarterbacks in the country, but that doesn't mean that he hasn't been pushing and leading and doing everything that he could to show his teammates that if his number was going to be called that he was going to be ready. We've got to do a better job of helping him out, I think we had too many dropped balls. He threw a couple of just unbelievable passes."
"We need to support him the best way that we can," Norvell continued. "He just needs to go be himself and if he does that, I've got a lot of confidence about how he'll play, and obviously guys around him will be there for him in these moments."
The Seminoles return to action on Saturday, November 25 against the Florida Gators. The contest will kick off at 7:00 p.m. and be televised on ESPN.
READ MORE: How To Watch Florida State and North Alabama
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