Florida State was not on the field for the national anthem prior to its college football game against Boston College on Saturday. It seemed to be a misunderstanding.
The Seminoles were still in the tunnel when the Star Spangled Banner was performed prior to kickoff.
As of this writing, is unclear as to which college football program is to blame for the awkward scheduling blunder. The on-field absence did not appear to be a political statement.
Boston College hosted the college football game.
The Seminoles took the field without Mike Norvell as head coach on Saturday for the first time since 2020. They were late.
Boston College, led by head coach Bill O’Brien, entered the game at 4-4. Florida State, led by interim head coach Rick Stockstill, entered the game at 3-5. Kickoff was scheduled for 12:00 p.m. ET at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill.
The Eagles ran out of the tunnel at approximately 11:57 a.m. They were greeted by a mostly empty stadium.
Boston College ran over to the sideline and stood tall for the national anthem, which lasted more than three minutes.
Its opponent was nowhere to be found… Where were the Seminoles?
Florida State was not on the field for the national anthem.
Boston College played Florida State’s fight song during pregame but it forgot to announce its opponent for the team runout. The Seminoles were still waiting in the tunnel when the national anthem started to play.
They waited for more than three minutes while the national anthem was performed on the field. And then they ran out of the tunnel in time for the coin toss after the Star Spangled Banner was completed.
As of this writing, neither program has provided additional clarity on what happened. Perhaps it is on the Eagles for forgetting about their opponent. Perhaps it is on the Seminoles for being out of routine under a new head coach. I don’t know.
Either way, Florida State skipped the national anthem prior to the college football game at Boston College but it appeared to be an accident. Oops!