Photo courtesy of Florida State athletics
It’s the most important position on the field. It’s also one where Florida State has struggled to find stability over the last several years.
The position, of course, is quarterback.
For the first time in a long time, the Seminoles will enter the season with a clear-cut starter in Jordan Travis. In a series of position previews, we’ll give a brief overview for the Seminoles as the 2022 season approaches.
We begin behind center:
Quarterbacks on the Roster:
Jordan Travis, RS Jr.
Tate Rodemaker, RS Soph.
Gino English, RS Soph. (walk-on)
AJ Duffy, Fr.
Dylan McNamara, Fr. (walk-on)
Analysis
This offseason, the coaching staff made a conscious decision to not pursue a quarterback via the transfer portal. That decision came despite FSU only having three scholarship signal callers on the roster. Head coach Mike Norvell took it a step further when he anointed Travis as the starter very early.
During the 2021 season, the West Palm Beach native faced plenty of adversity. With the addition of former UCF quarterback McKenzie Milton, Travis was forced to earn his spot. Ultimately, he did when he started the season opener against Notre Dame.
Unfortunately, durability has not been Travis’ strong suit. Last season, he missed a portion of the second half against Notre Dame, the majority of the Jacksonville State game, a large percentage of the ACC opener at Wake Forest, all of the NC State game (flu) and a couple of series against Florida.
However, when Travis is healthy and on the field, he is a dynamic playmaker. His talent was put on display during the last three games of the season (against Miami, Boston College and Florida) where he combined to average 305.6 total yards and had seven total touchdowns with only one interception.
There is no question that Travis has the potential to be one of the ACC’s best quarterbacks when healthy. If he were to miss time again, either redshirt sophomore Tate Rodemaker (who has completed 18 of his 31 passes for 130 yards and three interceptions in his career with the Seminoles) or true freshman AJ Duffy would likely get the nod.
Both are unproven and it’s unknown how viable of an option that either would be. Fans in Tallahassee hope they won’t have to find out.