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Former FSU football players, alumna bring Seminole bond from Doak to CBS Sports show

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Former FSU football players, alumna bring Seminole bond from Doak to CBS Sports show

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From under the floodlights at Doak Campbell Stadium to in front of the studio lights for CBS Sports.

That’s the journey of former Seminoles quarterback Danny Kanell, cornerback Bryant McFadden and alumna Jordan Giorgio.

The trio have joined forces on College Football Pregame, CBS Sports HQ’s new college football Saturday pregame show.

“It’s so cool,” Giorgio said. “The camaraderie is there, even the first time I met everyone virtually I was just like, ‘I know he has my back.’ We graduated from the Florida State University, so it’s really cool to lean on each other.”

Kanell is one of the best quarterbacks in FSU history. He posted 6,372 yards and 57 touchdowns, winning a National Championship in 1993 as a backup, then winning a Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl as the starter. He was drafted by the New York Giants in 1996.

McFadden played for the Seminoles from 2000-04, recording 107 tackles, winning an ACC title and two Gator Bowls. He also won two Super Bowls with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Giorgio is a 2017 graduate of FSU and she has served as the sideline reporter for the ACC Network and Seminole production. She also worked as a production runner for ESPN and a reporter for NBC Sports before joining CBS.

The show offers an alternative to ESPN’s College Gameday and Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff, with the 24/7 CBS Sports HQ channel hosting the show during the 9 a.m. timeslot. Unlike the other two, CBS Sports HQ is a free channel on many smart televisions and devices and can be watched on the CBS Sports app.

Both Kanell and McFadden serve as CBS Sports HQ analysts and Giorgio is the CBS Sports HQ host.

Coverage continues throughout the day on the channel. Giorgio feels that offers something different to viewers.

“I think we cover the sport as a whole, inside and out yearly. It’s a year-round cycle,” Giorgio said.

“We have recruiting, which is constant. We’re the first to know, and we’re going to bring that to you on game days. If you’re wondering if a key player is going to be playing, if they’re questionable if they’re going to be warming up everything, we got it covered.

“It’s not just a pregame show. We got game updates. We have halftime updates. We’re going to bring BMac [McFadden] on if someone goes down and gets injured. We have it all covered.”

Kanell and Giorgio are joined in the studio by former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones, running back Beanie Wells and Alabama running back Damien Harris among other reporters and analysts.

McFadden often travels to the biggest games in the country, providing updates from the stadium.

“I think what makes us unique in what we do is the different personalities that are tied to our shows that’s super unique,” McFadden said. “We give different views. We have different opinions. I don’t like being on a set where everyone is agreeing to the same thing, because that’s not the viewpoint of our viewers.”

A shared Seminole bond lights up the set

The group of FSU alumni was announced as talent for the new show before the kickoff of the 2024 college football season.

Giorgio feels there is a natural chemistry on set. And added good-naturedly even with people like Harris and Wells taking shots at the former Seminoles on set, she enjoys every moment. Kanell said the Seminoles tend to stick together, especially considering the shared experiences they had at FSU despite being on campus at different times.

“Any time you meet or work with somebody new that you’ve never met, you look for commonality. You look for common bonds,” Kanell said. “We all had maybe the most meaningful time of our lives, spent in Tallahassee, where we went to some of the same restaurants and bars. BMac and I practiced on the same fields and we probably all are very familiar with different dorms.”

“So there is that common bond that we all have”

Kanell has an extensive media career alongside his football career. He feels his current role on the show offers a wide range of perspectives.

With he and McFadden representing FSU, Kanell likes the fact that so many former players represent the different major conferences in college football. He thinks it helps build a better feeling for what each game can be.

“We’re definitely not boring. And you know, it’s hard to be a differentiator in a crowded space. There are so many great offerings for college football fans, but I think our chemistry is fairly unique,” Kanell said. “We have a pretty unique perspective coming from guys who have played the game to the female perspective, to data and analysis perspective, to guys that played in the SEC to the Big 10 to the ACC. We’ve got a little bit of everything for everybody.”

McFadden said he enjoys the nuances of the show, and he loves to teach the game to viewers. He pulls from his experiences playing under legendary coaches like Bobby Bowden, Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin to help give viewers a deeper look at the games.

“We bring juice. We’re not boring. I don’t watch boring people I don’t want anybody watching me thinking I’m boring. That’s number one,” McFadden said. “Number two, our job is to inform, educate and entertain. Like when people watch anything pertaining to sports they want more and feel like they can learn from it.”

“What good am I being a player that played on every level, played from some very, very important coaches if I’m not helping you learn something about the nuances of the game of football?”

The trio give their take on the current FSU football season

While the good times keep rolling for the trio on the CBS Sports set, they, like many fans, wonder how FSU’s football team ended up 1-5.

With preseason expectations high, the current state of the Seminoles has led to a lot of questions from the coaching staff to the players. Giorgio said the season hasn’t been what she imagined, but she believes Mike Norvell has what it takes to turn things around long-term.

“I think there’s hope for the future. I love what Mike Norvell is. I love him as a leader, and I love what he’s done to this program,” Giorgio said. “You hit bumps in the road, I think they’re trying to find their footing here. And I think the expectations were really high coming off what last season was, and it’s disappointing, to say the least.”

Both McFadden and Kanell know what it takes to put on the Seminoles uniform and how much the performance on the field means to the fans.

McFadden said it’s disappointing to see a season filled with so much expectation turn into what it has. He knows it hasn’t been up to standard, and while the outside noise can get loud, there is only one way to fix things.

“The best way to protect your pride is to go out and do what you’re supposed to do. We’re not seeing that right now, and it’s unfortunate because we had a lot of expectations that haven’t been reached,” McFadden said. “At some point in time, you gotta look yourself in the mirror and say, I gotta do better. And it starts from the top.”

Kanell knows the weight of the quarterback position at FSU better than anyone, and he said part of the disappointment from the season stems from the pairing of DJ Uiagalelei and the Seminoles.

He thinks neither side got what they signed up for, with Uiagalelei likely expecting a better offensive line and run game and FSU prepared to have a veteran quarterback who would take care of the ball and stabilize things.

However, he thinks there are issues far beyond just the quarterback. From portal misses to the wrong evaluation of the team, Kanell thinks Norvell is still looking for answers as to why this season has played out how it has.

“I think it’s a question that even Mike Norvell is still searching for answers for. Why did this happen? How did this happen? What fell through the cracks? What did we miss?,” Kanell said. “I think, is something that we’re all trying to pinpoint.”

Liam Rooney covers Florida State athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at LRooney@gannett.com or on Twitter @__liamrooney

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