This is a very awkward situation.
A detailed report from user bakonydraco on Reddit unveiled on Thursday that Florida State shouldn't be bowl eligible this season, even with a record of 6-6.
The report focuses on Florida State's 77-6 win over FCS team Delaware State on Nov. 18. While FBS teams are usually able to count one win against FCS competition towards bowl eligibility, the report reveals that Delaware State did not meet FCS scholarship requirements in order to be counted as a win towards bowl eligibility.
FCS teams must award at least 90-percent of their allowed scholarships over the past two years in order to count as a win towards an FBS team's bowl eligibility. Reddit received data from Delaware State confirming that the school was actually under that limit (87-percent) and therefore Florida State's win over the school shouldn't be counted towards bowl eligibility under NCAA rules.
College football insider Brett McMurphy was able to later confirm the report, with Florida State's inclusion in a bowl game being called a "monumental oversight" that should have been caught at three levels.
Because of “monumental” oversight FSU did not meet NCAA requirement for bowl eligibility, but will still play in @IndyBowl. “This should have been caught at 3 levels: FSU, ACC & NCAA,” a source said. “But it’s too late now” 1st reported by @RedditCFB https://t.co/fcxi8GKyeI
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 21, 2017
Florida State will still play in the Dec. 27 Independence Bowl, largely because it is too late to make a change. This will be the 36th consecutive year that Florida State has played in a bowl game.
Florida State notably had to scramble to get to bowl eligibility this year. The Seminoles had to reschedule a previously cancelled game with Louisiana-Monroe just to get to 12 games, and then the team had to win their last three contests against Delaware State, Florida, and ULM just to get to six wins on the season.
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