FSU football: ESPN's Desmond Howard doesn't think it is over for the Noles

Many individuals around the college football landscape (even a portion of the fan base) feel hopeless about Florida State's chances to make the College Football Playoff after losing in Dublin, Ireland on Saturday to Georgia Tech by a score of 24-21.

I am sure that individuals such as ESPN's Paul Finebaum and Greg McElroy will continue to bash the Seminoles as the team has become a talking point for their audience. However, ESPN's Desmond Howard (a Michigan graduate) on College Football Live shows support for the Seminoles after the loss.

In the video, Howard states that he does not think that it is over for Florida State. The loss was disappointing and it stings that it came against an ACC opponent which messes up the conference record.

However, the Seminoles still have teams such as SMU, Clemson, Miami, and North Carolina on the schedule this season. This means that the program has an opportunity to make an impact in the conference race.

This would also place more importance on Florida State not having any more room for error. To put it in perspective, I had the Seminoles losing to Clemson and Notre Dame in the preseason. I did not envision Florida State losing to Georgia Tech (a team that had an over/under win total of 4.5).

However, the result happened and this squad has to deal with, turn the page, and make the most of the opportunity. I know that fans are angry at ESPN with what transpired in December with the College Football Playoff snub, but Howard makes a ton of sense as the Seminoles could still control their destiny.

If the Seminoles find a way to have a 7-1 conference record with wins over Boston College, California, SMU, Clemson, Duke, Miami, and North Carolina then that should be enough to get into the ACC Championship Game unless a team like North Carolina State or Virginia Tech emerges.

If Florida State wins the conference, they will get an automatic bid to the new 12-team College Football Playoff format. This squad knows what is at stake. Now it is time to focus and handle business!