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Short-handed Seminoles shellacked in Orange Bowl; Georgia hands FSU only loss of 2023

On3 imageby: Ira Schoffel12/31/23iraschoffel
On3 image
Georgia Bulldogs wide receiver Arian Smith (11) attempts to make a catch over Florida State Seminoles defensive back Quindarrius Jones (16) during the first half in the 2023 Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium. (Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports)

MIAMI GARDENS — Florida State’s magnificent 2023 season came to a spectacularly awful conclusion Saturday evening in the Orange Bowl.

And while it wasn’t unexpected, that made the final result no less painful.

With the Seminoles missing 13 of 22 starters on offense and defense, plus several key backups, they were no match for a Georgia team that has lost one of its last 31 games and claimed two straight national championships coming into this year.

The Bulldogs scored 35 points in the second quarter to blow the game open and cruised to a 63-3 victory. It was the most lopsided loss in school history, topping the previous worst margin of 49 points. It also goes down as the most lopsided bowl loss in college football history, eclipsing the 58-point loss TCU suffered to the Bulldogs in last year’s national championship game.

Both Florida State and Georgia will finish the season with 13-1 records.

FSU, which was left out of the College Football Playoff despite being an undefeated Power 5 champion, already was going to be without starting quarterback Jordan Travis due to injury. Then a slew of other star players opted out to prepare for the NFL Draft, and others entered the transfer portal.

The Seminoles played without their top two quarterbacks, top three running backs, top two receivers, top tight end, best defensive end and five of their top seven tacklers. Three of those star defensive players — defensive tackles Braden Fiske and Joshua Farmer, and linebacker Tatum Bethune — made the trip to South Florida but were held out due to injuries.

Georgia led 42-3 at halftime.

*ALSO SEE: Ira Schoffel: Understanding why Florida State is in this mess, and what it says about the future

Stay connected with Warchant.com for complete postgame coverage.

Talk about this story with other die-hard FSU football fans on the Tribal Council.

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