The ACC Championship Game between undefeated No. 4 Florida State and No. 14 Louisville will put a cap on a busy championship Saturday schedule with a matchup that carries College Football Playoff implications for nearly every contender watching across the country.
Florida State moved up in the selection committee’s rankings on Tuesday after beating Florida with backup quarterback Tate Rodemaker starting in place of the injured Jordan Travis. The Seminoles have a fairly clear path to making the program’s first playoff appearance since 2014: Beat Louisville to finish with a 13-0 record and an ACC Championship. The committee has never left out an undefeated power conference champion, and since there are only four undefeated power conference teams left entering Week 13, the “win and in” proposition is on the table for Mike Norvell’s squad.
But Florida State is not playing this game in a vacuum and there is far more on the line for Louisville than just playing spoiler or providing help to other playoff contenders. Winning the ACC is something that Louisville has never accomplished in its decade of conference membership, coming the closest in 2016 when it finished tied for 1st in the ACC Atlantic Division but missed out on the championship game due to a head-to-head tiebreaker against Clemson.
Jeff Brohm’s return to Louisville brought a ton of buzz in the offseason but even the most optimistic projections might not have foreseen winning the league in his first year. Strong work in the transfer portal and smart hires have helped Louisville quickly elevate from a middle-of-the-pack squad in the ACC to a conference title contender. Beating Florida State and winning the ACC would be program-changing validation for what Louisville can accomplish in this conference.
Florida State vs. Louisville: Need to know
Tate Rodemaker’s status TBD: FSU’s backup quarterback hasn’t been a full participant in practice this week and his status for the ACC title game is up in the air. Rodemaker started FSU’s regular-season finale against Florida after star quarterback Jordan Travis went down with a season-ending leg injury the week prior. An FSU spokesperson said that Rodemaker will “go through the (preperation) process.” If he can’t go, FSU will turn to third-string QB Brock Glenn. Glenn ranked as the No. 21 overall quarterback in the 247Sports 2023 recruiting cycle, but has only taken a…
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