Jordan Travis opens up on his relationship with Riley Leonard

Jordan Travis and Riley Leonard will be enemies on Saturday, but they’ve been friends in the past. On Wednesday, the Florida State QB revealed the details of the quarterback tandem’s relationship.

“I met him at the Manning Passing Academy,” Travis said of Leonard. “He’s a really special kid. I reached out to him after he got injured a couple of weeks ago. We talked a little bit back then. He’s a great kid and I look forward to competing against him.”

It’s not clear whether Leonard will take the field against FSU. The Blue Devils’ standout QB went down with an injury on the final play of Duke’s 21-14 loss to Notre Dame in Week 5. He hasn’t played since.

On Thursday, ESPN’s Pete Thamel provided an update on Leonard’s recovery.

“We’ll know more about that on College GameDay tomorrow. But I would say that the original timeline of Riley Leonard’s return, this would be on the very early side of that. The very early side,” Thamel said. “Remember, if you like Riley Leonard as your quarterback, you like him running the ball. He’s a great dual-threat guy. You played the awesome basketball highlights on the show. 

“So I think the question that Duke and Riley Leonard are going to have to answer is, can all of that Riley Leonard be back? They obviously have a big game at Louisville next week too. So game-time decision, officially.”

Jordan Travis will be ready for FSU

Travis will have no such doubts. The FSU star will lead the Seminoles into battle on Saturday evening. Travis boasts 1,482 passing yards and 13 touchdowns while only throwing one interception. The sixth-year senior has also tallied four rushing touchdowns.

Although Duke will likely be without Leonard, FSU head coach Mike Norvell is not overlooking the Blue Devils.

“You watch film, and you see really good players. They’ve been productive, they’ve done everything they needed to do,” Norvell said.

“They’re one play away in that Notre Dame game. I mean, you kind of felt for [Leonard] for how it all played out. But this is a very, very talented team, and it’s one that you don’t need to give a motivational speech to any of our guys because they know the challenge that’s ahead. And it’s going to take our best game. You know, I’m looking forward to the continued week of preparation. But yeah, our guys know.”

With or without Leonard, Duke will square off against FSU at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. The game will be broadcast on ABC.