ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit appeared to troll Florida State Seminoles fans after the team's 24-21 upset loss to Georgia Tech in its season-opening game in Dublin, Ireland, on Saturday (August 24) in the latest incident of an ongoing feud with the fanbase.
"Man, tough loss for the Noles over in Ireland to a good GT team," Herbstreit wrote on his X account. "The great news is with the new 12 team playoff, there’s still plenty of opportunities to climb back into the bracket. Regroup and keep battlin!"
Herbstreit became the target of the Seminoles' fan base after being one of the louder voices supporting the decision to not include FSU among the four teams in the College Football Playoff prior to the format change to 12 teams this season.
Herbstreit argued that the Seminoles, who were coming off an undefeated season and ACC Championship Game victory, were undeserving of a playoff spot, particularly after starting quarterback Jordan Travis' season-ending knee injury. Florida State fans who attended the game booed Herbstreit during ESPN's College Football GameDay pregame broadcast.
Florida State was defeated by Georgia, 63-3, in the Orange Bowl after both teams were snubbed from the College Football Playoff in January. The Seminoles entered Saturday's game as the No. 10 team in the Associated Press Top 25 preseason poll and a 10.5-point favorite.