Florida State, facing off against FCS opponent North Alabama on Saturday in the Seminoles’ final home game of the season, suffered a major loss when quarterback Jordan Travis was injured on a 17-yard rush late in the first quarter.
The Seminoles were trailing 13-0 at the time of his injury but shut out the Lions for the rest of the game, with redshirt Tate Rodemaker entering the game in relief and leading Florida State on seven scoring drives en route to a 58-13 win.
Travis, the all-time leader in touchdowns scored at Florida State, appeared to seriously injure his leg and was carted off the field as the crowd erupted into chants of his name.
While the injury was significant enough for him to be transported to the hospital, he was posting to his Instagram Stories during the final minutes of Florida State’s win, congratulating freshman quarterback Brock Glenn on his first touchdown as well as celebrating the Seminoles’ blocked field goal and touchdown return to end the win.
“When Jordan went down, that was something that nobody ever wants to see a player go down,” head coach Mike Norvell said in postgame availability. “I don’t have any updates on it tonight, so just so everybody is aware, but I was proud of the way our guys responded throughout the course of the game.
“It’s hard any time you see any player go down, but obviously Jordan is so important to this team — not just as the quarterback, but just who he is and what he stands for…it was emotional for everybody.”
“Coming in we knew this was Jordan Travis’s last game at Doak Campbell Stadium. I wanted to see him have a special game, special experience. Any time somebody 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.”
What he’s accomplished this season for Florida State:
- Broke FSU’s career touchdown responsibility record at Clemson, passing 2000 Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke. The record-breaking touchdown was a game-winning pass in OT.
- Broke FSU’s total offense record on a go-ahead rushing touchdown vs. No. 16 Duke.
- Only player in ACC and one of three nationally with 20 passing touchdowns and 2 or fewer interceptions.
- One of eight players nationally with 20 passing touchdowns and 7 rushing touchdowns.
- Has thrown at least one touchdown pass in 22 consecutive games, FSU’s longest stretch since 2013 Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston’s 27-game streak in 2013-14.
- Had an FSU-record streak of 16 consecutive games accounting for multiple touchdowns.
- Tied his FSU record by accounting for at least one rushing and one passing touchdown in four straight games, matching his record originally set in 2020.
- Tied single-game career-best with 27 completions in a 38-20 win vs. No. 16 Duke.
- Had a streak of 184 passes without an interception, the 5th-longest at FSU and 13th-longest in ACC history.
- Leads the nation in passer rating (202.99) and yards per attempt (11.0) against ranked opponents, and is 4th nationally in completion percentage (74.2) against ranked opponents.
- Registered a 99.9 ESPN QBR in the 2nd half vs. No. 5 LSU, the highest rating in a half by any quarterback nationally vs. a ranked opponent since Jameis Winston in 2013.
- Posted a career-high four passing touchdowns in a 45-24 win vs. No. 5 LSU.
And what he’s done in his career with the Seminoles:
- Only player in FSU history with more than 50 passing touchdowns and 12 rushing touchdowns.
- Only player in FSU history and only active player nationally with at least seven rushing touchdowns in four straight seasons.
- One of four active players with at least 8,000 passing yards and 1,900 rushing yards.
- Only player in program history to rank Top 10 in career passing (3rd) and rushing (4th) touchdowns.
- Only player in FSU history with three passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns in a game (at North Carolina, 2021).
- Seven straight games played with a rushing touchdown is the longest stretch by a quarterback in FSU history (2020-21).
- FSU-record six consecutive games accounting for at least three touchdowns (2022).
- PFF’s highest-graded FBS quarterback and ACC’s top offensive player in 2022 (91.7).
- Accounted for 32 touchdowns (24 passing, 7 rushing, 1 receiving) in 2022, the 4th-most in a season in FSU history.
- 4th player in FSU history with at least 3,000 total yards and 30 total touchdowns in a season (2022), joining Heisman Trophy winners Charlie Ward (1993), Chris Weinke (2000), and Jameis Winston (2013).
- 2nd player in FSU history with passing, rushing, and receiving touchdowns in the same game (2022 at Syracuse) and tied career high with five touchdowns accounted for against Orange.
- Led ACC with 8.35 yards per play, 9.10 yards per pass attempt, and 14.22 yards per completion in 2022, ranked Top 10 nationally in all three categories.
- Named 2022 Cheez-It Bowl MVP after gaining FSU bowl-record 468 yards of total offense in a 35-32 win vs. Oklahoma, was 27-of-38 passing for a career-high 418 yards and two touchdowns, and added 50 yards on seven rushes.
- First player since Joe Burrow in the Jan. 14, 2020 CFP National Championship Game with 400 yards passing and 50 yards rushing in a bowl game and fifth in records dating to 2000.
- Total offense yardage was the 9th-highest single-game output in program history, passing yards were the 2nd-most in FSU bowl history, and 18th on the program’s single-game list.