ORLANDO, FL - SEPTEMBER 05: Deondre Francois #12 of the Florida State Seminoles drops back to pass against the Mississippi Rebels during the Camping World Kickoff at Camping World Stadium on September 5, 2016 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
The Florida State Seminoles football team will be playing the Southern Miss Golden Eagles in the Independence Bowl on Dec. 27 despite not meeting all of the requirements to be eligible for a bowl game.
The Seminoles have secured a bowl bid for a 36th straight season. However, college football writer Brett McMurphy explained the reason for their ineligibility: he said it stemmed from Florida State’s 77-6 victory over Delaware State on Nov. 18.
“Delaware State did not have enough scholarship grants-in-aid over a two-year period,” which meant Florida State’s win shouldn’t have counted as one of the six victories needed for bowl eligibility.
“This monumental error should have been caught at three levels: the school, conference and NCAA,” a source said to McMurphy. “It’s too late to do anything now, they’ll still play in the game. If it was funny, it would be a comedy of errors.”
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A user on Reddit was reportedly among the first to discover the issue regarding the Delaware State Hornets’ scholarships. FCS schools must reportedly have a 90 percent scholarship threshold, and Delaware State used 87 percent of its scholarship grants-in-aid over a two-year period, per a report from the University.
The Seminoles had a rough season this year. Besides finishing 6-6 and 3-5 in the ACC to place sixth in the conference, they lost starting quarterback Deondre Francois to a season-ending knee injury in the opening game of 2017, a 24-7 loss to Alabama.
Florida State’s six victories were its least since 1981. Former head coach Jimbo Fisher wasn’t even around for the final regular-season contest as he had departed to take over the Texas A&M Aggies.
The mistake regarding FSU’s bowl status carried relatively large consequences, McMurphy noted, as the Buffalo Bulls, Western Michigan Broncos and UT-San Antonio Roadrunners all had six wins but were overlooked during the bowl selection process.
The Independence Bowl will be held in Shreveport, Louisiana.
ORLANDO, FL – SEPTEMBER 05: Deondre Francois #12 of the Florida State Seminoles drops back to pass against the Mississippi Rebels during the Camping World Kickoff at Camping World Stadium on September 5, 2016 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
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