When Florida State football won the national title in 2013, I was pumped that we were relevant again on the gridiron. After the decade in which we do not speak of (a la Chris Rix fiasco, a la Tim Tebow dominance), it was nice to think of FSU football and have hope. Then it all went to heck when, out of nowhere, the university decided to change the iconic logo. While that may seem like no big deal, it showed the school’s true colors. Not garnet and gold, but green. To this very day I feel duped, like a partner who was cheated on. It keeps becoming more and more clear that from top to bottom all that matters is money.
Well, more drama lies ahead as head coach Jimbo Fisher might be leaving, and this will be days after the university president said, “Jimbo’s here…as long as he wants to be.” Everyone knows that’s a joke, right? If Fisher stays and has another very mediocre season, he’ll be on the next Capital City Pedicab out of town, whether he wants to or not. Why does the university continue to act as if fans and the general public don’t know anything? Just come out and be honest with them. It’s called transparency and it seems to be lacking in Tallahassee.
Anyway, here’s my list of gripes against FSU after I woke up and realized they care about making money a lot more than upholding tradition, supporting fans, or even doing things the right way.
Radio analyst (& former player) Peter Tom Willis fired for critiquing FSU offense (2008)
Coach Bobby Bowden pushed out of head coaching job (2010)
City botches national championship celebration in Tallahassee (2014)
FSU surprises everyone with new logo (2014)
Record since logo change (& undefeated 2013 season): 13-1 / 10-3 / 10-3 / currently 5-6
Many FSU coaches linked to Nick Saban (Alabama coach), a coach and a team I dislike wholeheartedly (2017)
Fan is booted from radio show after politely asking Jimbo Fisher a question (2017)
Giving me a ‘D’ in pre-calculus (1999)
OK, OK, that last one’s on me. But I ask, what kind of tradition is being established at Florida State? Football should be about having fun, believing in and cheering for your hometown team. But the logo change, as harmless as it was, lifted the veil to expose FSU’s true intentions. Money. It’s all about money. Well, money and acting like Tallahassee is Stepford, Connecticut.
Maybe everyone else already knew that, but I was under the impression fans mattered, tradition mattered, not just seeking any way possible to capitalize on fans loyalty. Or selling out to the highest bidder (ahem, Nike). Not to mention they’ve also used the stadium for advertising… to make more money:
Obviously, I still get heated up about FSU. It was a bad breakup between us so it’ll take time for me to be indifferent towards them. But I know one thing is for sure, it’ll never be how it once was. I’m an FSU graduate. But there is no more ‘we’ and ‘us’. There’s ‘me’ and there’s ‘them’. And I’m actually really happy about that! I feel more free now and let’s be honest, I’ve avoided a lot of heartache too, with all the losses and whatnot. Now as soon as I can get them to stop calling me for donations, we’ll be all set. 🙂
-Out of the Wilderness
Out of the Wilderness 
