On Wednesday, Collins Hill High School cornerback Travis Hunter made headlines by decommitting from Florida State and signed his letter of intent to play at Jackson State University. The Tigers are a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC).
Hunter was rated the number one player prospect in the country. Many expected Hunter to sign with Florida State, Georgia, or Auburn. However, he made headlines when he announced that he was heading to Jackson State. NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders coaches Jackson State.
This year, the Tigers won the SWAC conference and will play South Carolina State in the Celebration Bowl this Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA. The game is sold out.
While Jackson State made headlines with Hunter’s signing, it was a huge win for SWAC and FCS Football.
FCS Football is incredibly underrated. Many of today’s NFL players have played in FCS Football. Some players who currently play in the NFL that went to FCS schools are Jimmy Garoppolo (Eastern Illinois), Joe Flacco (Delaware), Trey Lance (North Dakota State), Dallas Goedert (South Dakota State), Carson Wentz (North Dakota State), and Cooper Kupp (Eastern Washington).
FCS Football does not get the recognition it deserves. The only time these schools get featured on the big sports networks is when they play the bigger schools like Alabama, Clemson, and Notre Dame.
Instead, their games are mainly on ESPN+, FloFootball, and Stadium. This year, the FCS played a spring schedule and still could not get on national television except for the playoffs. So the only time the big sports networks get involved with FCS Football is during the playoffs.
Hunter joining Jackson State could open the door for more five-star recruits to join other FCS schools. This could also boost FCS Football to attract more fans to watch the games and possibly get more exposure.
The FCS Semifinals are this weekend, starting Friday with James Madison at North Dakota State, and South Dakota State battles Montana State on Saturday. The winners of these games will face each other in the FCS Championship on January 8th, from Frisco, Texas.
