Florida State Is Not Tipping Its QB Decision By Bringing Both To ACC Media Days

If Seminole fans were hoping to gain a little insight into their team’s quarterback situation from the upcoming ACC Football Kickoff media event, they’ll likely leave disappointed. Second-year Florida State head coach Mike Norvell will bring both of his potential quarterback starters to the Charlotte, North Carolina summit, along with a transfer defensive end as well.

This story is newsworthy because the decision reflects highly on the players chosen, as they will be thrust into the spotlight and be responsible for answering many speculative questions about the upcoming season. Clearly, Norvell believes in the presence and capabilities of both of his quarterbacks to handle the media well, which could suggest that both will play a significant role in the offense this fall.

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McKenzie Milton, QB, is a graduate transfer from UCF who led the Knights to a 27-6 record and two AAC championships, including an undefeated 2017 campaign, as a starter. He is the only two-time AAC Offensive Player of the Year in conference history, finished sixth in the Heisman Trophy vote in 2018 and eighth in 2017 and was a 2018 finalist for the Sullivan Award presented to the outstanding amateur athlete in the United States. The Kapolei, Hawai’i, native has appeared in 33 games and is 630-of-1,020 passing for 8,683 yards and 72 touchdowns with 1,078 yards and 20 touchdowns on 280 rushing attempts, for a total of 9,761 yards of total offense.

Jordan Travis, QB, is the only quarterback in FSU history to record four straight games with at least one rushing and one passing touchdown, and his stretch of six consecutive games played with a rushing touchdown is the longest by a quarterback in program history. The redshirt sophomore from West Palm Beach, Florida, has played in 12 games at FSU is 78-for-142 passing for 1,135 yards and six touchdowns while gaining 787 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on 120 carries. He owns the two longest runs by a quarterback in program history and already ranks fifth on FSU’s all-time list for career rushing yards by a quarterback. Last season he broke the single-season school record for quarterback rushing yards with 559, bettering the previous mark of 504 set by Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward in 1992.

The quarterback pair will be joined at the media event by DE Jermaine Johnson II, a Georgia graduate who recently transferred to FSU for his final year of eligibility.

New head coach Mike Norvell is hoping to build on an underwhelming 3-6 season in 2020 in which the Seminoles experienced a lot of growing pains, but did beat a top-five UNC team (Norvell was the first rookie ACC coach to accomplish this feat). His Memphis teams scored a lot of points, and he hopes to replicate that success at one of the country’s top football programs. His plans for quarterback remain close to the vest, for now, but will surely come into focus more as the season nears.

ACC Network will be live from the ACC Football Kickoff in Charlotte for the first time on July 21-22, for two days of expansive coverage.