‘Everything happens for a reason’: Florida State’s Jordan Travis aiming to be much more than a flash in the pan
Ava Arnold TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The moment all came together for the Travis family because oldest son Devon, a Major League Baseball player, forgot to take out his dog. Essentially, Kash — a 2-year-old Fawn French Bulldog — brought the family joy by taking a dump in the house.
The family was gathered at a friend’s house in West Palm Beach on Nov. 9. They were hanging out, eating and watching college football, specifically the Florida State-Boston College game that started at noon.
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There were two TVs on — one downstairs, one upstairs — but most people were upstairs and flipped back and forth between several games that had an early kickoff. They got so caught up in football that they forgot about Kash, who … uh … couldn’t hold it anymore.
Naturally, a few folks started yelling at Kash. Tony Travis, Devon’s father, calls Kash his “granddog” and wasn’t having it.
“I’m the one that protects the dog because the dog is like my best friend,” Tony said. “Everybody’s yelling at the dog and I’m like, ‘No, nobody’s going to spank my dog.’ ”
Tony scooped up Kash and hustled off downstairs to take the dog outside for a walk. Meanwhile, Devon and the others lost track of the FSU game. Certain the Seminoles were at halftime, they were flipping between other games.
When Tony came back inside, he glanced at the TV downstairs and saw his youngest son, Jordan, a Florida State backup quarterback, running on the field.
“I’m like, ‘Oh, my God. Is that Jordan?’ ” Tony said.
Tony’s excitement reached a fever pitch when Jordan kept the ball on a zone read, bounced outside to the right and raced his way to a 26-yard touchdown on his first career play with the Seminoles.
“I’m downstairs jumping up and down and screaming,” Tony said. “It’s me and the dog, and the dog is looking at me like, ‘What’s going on?’ I go upstairs and I say, ‘Guys, Jordan just scored a touchdown!’ ”
The 15 or so people in the room stared at him incredulously and said the FSU game was at halftime. Tony told them that they were on the wrong channel.
“You’re watching something else,” Tony said. “Jordan. Just. Scored. A. Touchdown.”
They still didn’t believe him. He was smirking, so a family friend took that as a sign he was fibbing. Finally, Tony gave up. When his tone changed, another family friend picked up the remote and changed the channel to the ACC Network.
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“And right when we flip on the channel, it’s the last second of Jordan putting the ball in the air and scoring the touchdown; it’s the highlight,” Devon Travis said. “It was a moment that … really, I can’t explain because it wasn’t supposed to happen like that.”
Tony was the only person who saw it live, but that didn’t keep everyone else from reacting as if it had just happened. They hugged, picked each other up, high-fived and shouted with excitement. They rewound the DVR and watched the play over and over.
For Jordan, the play is a blur. When he got on the field, he simply let his preparation guide him to allow his instincts and ability to take over.
“All I remember is sitting on the sideline and (offensive coordinator Kendal) Briles calling me in,” Travis said Tuesday. “That was probably one of the greatest feelings that I’ve ever felt in my life.”
Scoring a touchdown in his first game as a Seminoles was special. Doing so on his first-ever touch, after not playing through the first nine games of the season? That’s from a storybook.
And the story wasn’t finished. On his third carry of the day, with FSU looking for one more first down to ice the win, Briles called Travis’ number on another zone read. This time, he took it 66 yards to the house. His family and friends got to watch this one together live.
“As a family, we were just excited to see him on that stage, and performing that well, at that level,” Tony said. “It just made us feel like everything that we’ve done paid off. It takes a village to raise a kid. It wasn’t just me and it wasn’t just his brother. It was just everybody, so everybody was just equally happy.”
The circumstances make it even fonder in their memories. Willie Taggart had been fired six days earlier and FSU desperately needed a win in its quest to become bowl eligible. Travis basically punched the ticket after not taking a single snap the entire season. No one could’ve expected that.
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Devon almost forgot that he was watching his little brother play. He loves FSU football. He lives for it. His Saturdays and, normally, his weeks are governed by whether they win or lose. In that moment, he was simply a fan.
“That whole day, for me, that was up there with anything that I’ve ever experienced in my life,” Devon said. “Florida State being able to clinch the game on that play, and it being my brother — everything altogether just made it a day where I’ll never forget it.
“It was probably the best day of my life and the best feeling that I’ve ever felt inside.”
Travis carried the ball three times for 94 yards and two touchdowns against Boston College. Against Alabama State last week, when FSU officially became bowl eligible, he became the first player in school history with a 60-yard completion and a 60-yard rush in the same game.
“I mean, everything happens for a reason,” Travis said. “I don’t think about stuff like that. I just go out there and try to do my best. It worked out.”
While nearly two weeks had passed since he first got the chance to play, he was as relaxed as could be while describing his exploits in his first formal interaction with the media since preseason camp in August.
Travis treats the unnatural as if it’s routine. That isn’t arrogance. Rather, it’s the result of everything that’s gone into the pursuit of a childhood dream. He’s already achieved his goal, in a sense, but he wants more
Devon Travis has been in the major leagues with the Toronto Blue Jays since 2015, though he missed the 2019 season with a knee injury. He was drafted out of FSU in 2012 by the Detroit Tigers and traded to Toronto in 2014.
Devon played three seasons at FSU, and from 2010-12, the Travis family — dad Tony, mom Tammy, son Jordan and daughter Jada — missed just one home weekend series. Tony got permission to get Jordan and Jada out of school early so that they could swing the trip on a regular basis. Jordan was 10 when his brother was a freshman, and quickly was hooked on the Seminoles.
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“He was basically bred into it as a child,” Devon said. “I guess he really never looked back. Jordan, being my little brother, and me disliking schools like Florida and Miami and him coming to the games and hearing the fans scream and all that — he really took to it.”
Jordan was playing Pop Warner football at the time, and would bring a mini-football on the trip and play catch with his cousin, Jojo, right outside Doak Campbell Stadium and in front of Dick Howser Stadium. He didn’t know a ton about the history of FSU, but that didn’t matter. He knew he was a fan.
He was thrilled when he met then-FSU quarterback E.J. Manuel, and though Devon already had moved on, Jordan came to idolize Seminoles quarterback Jameis Winston in 2013.
“We wound up falling in love with Florida State,” Tony said. “It was always his dream.”
Jordan wanted to be an athlete at Florida State, too, like Devon. Rather than playing in front of the crowds at Dick Howser, though, he wanted to hear the roar at The Doak.
Travis spent his first two years of high school at Palm Beach Central. When he became the starting quarterback as a sophomore in 2015, he completed just 45.4 percent of his passes for 861 yards, three touchdowns and eight interceptions, and rushed 73 times for 482 yards and two touchdowns. The Broncos finished 2-8 that season and Jordan transferred to The Benjamin School, a private school in North Palm Beach.
The Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator was Eric Kresser, who backed up Danny Wuerffel at Florida for three years, then transferred to Marshall for his senior season in 1996. With future NFL Hall of Famer Randy Moss as his primary target, Kresser passed for 3,400 yards and 35 touchdowns to help lead the Thundering Herd to a 15-0 record and the Division I-AA championship that fall.
Kresser spent three seasons (1997-99) with the Cincinnati Bengals, then got into coaching. On top of his duties at Benjamin, he also works as a private quarterback coach.
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After Travis transferred into the program, he began to work with Kresser with the team and individually. The time they spent together allowed Kresser to fully evaluate his new quarterback.
“He had tons of ability, obviously, but he was a little raw at quarterback coming in,” Kresser said. “And he made tremendous strides his junior and senior year.”
The duo spent the summer training together, working on basic mechanics as well as elaborate concepts. They focused on Travis’ footwork; he learned to align his timing with the routes that would be run on specific plays. He attempted to coordinate the end of his drop back with the breaking point of the routes through constant repetition. When the season got closer, Kresser shifted to watching film, studying coverages and preparing for the 2016.
Devon attended some of Jordan’s practices. Mostly, he was unimpressed. “I’d be like, ‘Ehh. He’s big and he’s faster than everybody. He’s good, but it’s nothing crazy,’ ” Devon said.
Kresser changed that. Travis transformed from a quarterback who mostly was just a runner to a dual-threat quarterback who could do run and pass. He understood where throws needed to go and when they needed to get there. He fully grasped concepts and coverages. of that growth came in that summer of 2016.
“He was pretty instrumental in his development as a quarterback,” Devon said. “He really taught Jordan to not just be the athletic Jordan, but the Jordan that can really sling that thing.”
It didn’t take long for Travis to translate what he learned to games. In the first game of the regular season that fall against Belle Glade Glades Day, Travis passed for 303 yards and three touchdowns, and rushed for 85 yards and two scores. Most important, he led a two-minute drill at the end of the game to secure the 43-41 win.
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“I thought that showed a lot of character and a lot of intensive coolness as a quarterback,” Kresser said. “Just being level-headed and not getting up too high or down too low, he’s a cool kid. That was the moment that I saw what his potential really was.”
That coolness actually sort of irritated Devon.
“What I’ve always noticed is he’s pretty unfazed by all situations,” Devon said. “And I mean good, bad and indifferent. If he throws a pick or scores a touchdown, it’s almost the same trot off the field. And it’s always really bothered me. In high school in a big game or on a nice play, it would always bother me because I’m the type of person to where — I’m pretty flat line, but if something really cool happens, I’m going to let it out. Jordan was never like that.”
Tony agrees.
“He could score five touchdowns in a game and the highest thing you’ll see from him is him coming down and jumping and giving someone a high five,” he said. “I’m like, ‘C’mon, man! You got to get pumped!’ ”
Jordan completed 57.4 percent of his passes that season for 2,017 yards, 21 touchdowns and three interceptions. He also rushed 69 times for 384 yards and 11 touchdowns as Benjamin went 7-3.
He took another step as a senior, completing 61 percent of his passes for 2,190 yards, 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also rushed 77 times for 905 yards and 16 touchdowns and guided Benjamin to a state playoff berth; it lost in a Class 3A regional final to eventual state champ Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna.
Along the way, Travis developed into a three-star prospect, and Kresser again stepped up.
“He helped Jordan in the recruiting process of understanding where would be best to go and understanding how coaches are going to talk to him and the false bravado and the false positivity that’s brought from coaches,” Devon said.
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Travis didn’t get an offer from FSU; the only in-state offers came from UCF and USF, along with ones from, among others, Louisville, Appalachian State and North Carolina. He made an official visit to Louisville In January 2018 and signed with Bobby Petrino and the Cardinals the next month.
Although they starred in different sports, Travis always pushed himself to get to the next level and be like his older brother. He was Devon’s “little buddy” growing up. Big bro took him everywhere. He was shown the right way to do things and what it was like to be a college athlete. He watched practices, and he also went to parties. Thus, it was rewarding for those who helped guide him that he signed with Louisville.
“All those moments, to me, are some of the moments that I hold dearest to my heart,” Devon said. “I was happy to see him go his own direction and find his way on his own because a lot of it really was him following what he felt was right.”
But things didn’t go as planned at Louisville. The 2018 season opened with a 51-14 beatdown at the hands of Alabama, and narrow wins over Indiana State and Western Kentucky followed. The everything went off the rails for Petrino and the Cardinals, with seven consecutive losses dropping Louisville to 2-8. Petrino was fired, and the Cardinals lost twice more to finish 2-10.
Travis played in just three games even though erratic quarterback play by Malik Cunningham and Jawon Pass was a reason for all the losses. Travis entered the NCAA transfer portal in November.
“It was something that him and my family really struggled hard on,” Devon said. “My dad, specifically, he’s very much so a believer in wherever you start, you don’t stop until you’re finished. Some very serious issues came up where it just made sense to where they finally made the decision together, Jordan and my parents, that it was in his best interest to go into the transfer portal and figure out what was going to be next. And they really weren’t sure what was going to come from it.”
Kendal Briles, who’d recruited Travis at Baylor and Florida Atlantic, was hired as offensive coordinator at Florida State in December 2018. Soon after, that old connection was rekindled, and four days after Briles was hired, Travis transferred to FSU.
“Kendal Briles was literally the entire force behind that,” Devon said. “He was really the person that was driving the wagon and pushing for Jordan to come to FSU.”
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Briles’ system fits Travis’ skill set, making use of his arm and legs in an up-tempo, spread attack that emphasizes making plays in space. Even better, Travis finally was at his dream school.
“Honestly, no, I did not,” Travis said in August when asked if he thought he’d ever play at Florida State. “After I went to Louisville, I was planning on being there for the rest of my college career. But, once again, God works in mysterious ways.”
Travis felt welcomed by the coaching staff. FSU felt like home, as it was the same FSU he had experienced as a kid when Devon starred in baseball.
“Jordan keeps things very tight and is not an easy kid to get a lot out of, but I knew deep down how special that was for him and then how much it meant to him,” Devon said. “That was really the best part about it for all of us: To see how happy he was from it.”
When he chose FSU, the Seminoles had a need at quarterback. That need intensified when incumbent starter Deondre Francois was dismissed from the program in February. Everything seemed to be falling in line perfectly headed into spring practice in March. First, though, Travis needed a waiver for immediate eligibility to be granted by the NCAA.
Meanwhile, on March 10, it was announced that Wisconsin’s Alex Hornibrook would transfer to FSU and would arrive in the summer. As a grad transfer, Hornibrook was eligible immediately.
Travis had to overcome three obstacles in his pursuit of that waiver; in essence, he needed three waivers. One ACC rule prevents a player from transferring within the conference. Another ACC rule requires a transferring player to have been in residence at his original school for at least a year before he is eligible to transfer. Finally, the NCAA mandates that a player has to sit out a year when transferring from one FBS school to another.
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In February, the ACC decided to get rid of the rule requiring a player to be in residence at his school for at least a year before transferring. As for the intraconference aspect, Florida State received cooperation from Louisville about the transfer. That left the NCAA rule.
While all this was going on, Travis fully participated in spring practice without knowing if he would be allowed to play in the 2019 season.
“It was very stressful,” Travis said of the process in August. “But my supporting cast — my family, my coaches, my teammates — everyone helped me get through it. I know at the end of the day, God had a plan for me.
“(Devon’s) probably been the most supportive person to me. That’s my guy. He’s my best friend. He’s been there for everything. He’s been giving me encouragement every day and pushing me. Even on tough days, he’s calling me every day and just pushing me through it.”
Florida State submitted Travis’ waiver request, which included a one-page statement he wrote, to the NCAA in April. It was denied in June. The Seminoles appealed the decision to the NCAA’s Committee on Legislative Relief, which approved the waiver in late July. Next up was the ACC; FSU had held off on formally submitting a request to the league until getting word from the NCAA. It took until August, but the ACC ruled Travis eligible for the 2019 season.
Taggart called Travis when the news came, but he didn’t answer because he was driving. Instead, Taggart called Tony, and Jordan eventually got the good news from his dad.
As one wait came to an end for Travis, another one began. A bit less than two weeks after he was ruled eligible, James Blackman was named the starter over Hornibrook, with Travis the third-teamer.
Travis had played well in the spring game in April, going 22-of-28 for 241 yards. But Blackman and, especially, Hornibrook had far more experience. So Travis would have to wait. Again.
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“Florida State is Florida State,” Devon said. “It’s a lot of meaning behind that and there’s been a lot of great players that have come through that university and put on that uniform and excelled at a very high level. And not all of them walked in Day 1 and were able to just take over and become that guy.
“Those were my main messages to him, ‘Hey, you got to put in your time. You got to put in your work. You can’t control much other than your attitude and the work you put in every day. Continue to bring it every day, continue to put your best foot forward and you’ll get an opportunity.’ ”
Travis understood he had to be patient. More than that, he embraced his competitors.
“He handled it well. He didn’t talk about it,” Tony said. “You never hear him say anything bad about anybody there. Him and Blackman, they’ve got a very good relationship. Once Hornibrook came, they got a good relationship. They’re the veterans and he’s basically like the little freshman learning from them. He learned as much as he could. And he’s very protective of those guys as well.”
Travis had been through a similar situation at Louisville, but he didn’t enjoy that kind of bond with the other Cardinals quarterbacks.
“He’s just like a big brother,” Travis said of Blackman. “Every single day, he’s just pushing me to get better. If I make a good throw, he’s there just pushing me and saying, ‘Good throw.’ He’s always the main person and the first one there.”
Travis said his actual big brother, Devon, helped him remain patient.
“I try to be just like my brother,” he said. “He’s had everything in the world and he’s still one of the most humble people I’ve ever experienced in my life. I try to base myself off of that. … You just have to have positivity and confidence. If you’re positive and you have confidence, you can do whatever you want to do.”
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Travis’ family and relationships within the program were key in keeping that perspective intact.
“He had his big brother to lean on,” Tony said. “We’re a pretty close-knit family. We always tell him, ‘Hey, God’s got a plan for you. When it’s your time, it’s your time. So, just take advantage of it when it comes.’ He understood that. He trusts Coach Briles. Coach Briles has been recruiting Jordan for a long, long time. They developed a real good relationship.
“He knew his time would eventually come, so he just had to wait.”
Briles approached interim coach Odell Haggins early in the week as FSU prepared for Boston College. He told Haggins he wanted to get Travis involved in the game plan.
“I said, ‘Kendal, run your offense. You make that decision. Let’s go with it. I’ll support you,’” Haggins said. “And I went to Jordan, fist-bumped him, said, ‘Hey, you a Seminole, brother. Our standards here are very high. You get in there, you make the plays, you do what you supposed to do.’ And I left it at that.”
Travis noticed he was getting more reps than usual early in the week, but there was nothing official said to him. He hadn’t played in the first nine games of the season, so there wasn’t much reason for him to believe that anything was about to change.
“Honestly, I really didn’t expect to play,” he said. “I always just try to stay ready every single game because you never know what’s going to happen.”
Travis had been impressive in practice, including stints as the scout team quarterback, throughout the season. But there was something different that week. FSU never ran that many zone reads with Travis taking the snap. If they were using it this much in practice, would it be used in the game?
Early in the third quarter against BC, it became a reality. And when he iced the game in the fourth quarter, the common refrain among media and fans was, “Where the hell has this guy been?”
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The internal reaction was much different.
Junior wide receiver D.J. Matthews: “I see it all the time. Those were plays we expected him to make, honestly. We called a touchdown before he even caught the snap. … We know what he’s capable of.”
Sophomore receiver Tamorrion Terry: “I always knew he had it in him. He just needed that chance. Coach gave him that chance and he took advantage of it.”
Blackman: “He’s a hard-working kid. Coach Briles did a great job of having him ready to be able to take on that moment. And when he got in, he took full advantage of it and walked in the end zone.”
Junior cornerback Stanford Samuels III: “As soon as he got in the game, the defensive side of the ball was saying he was going to score. We know what he’s capable of when you get the ball in his hands, and I’m just glad he made those plays when we needed them to be made.”
The common thread is simple: Florida State players knew what Travis was about, and he finally got a chance to show off to the public.
“I’m sure that those touchdowns against Boston College were great, but I don’t think he’s content with that,” Devon said. “It was special, but the excitement that he’ll express back is very small in comparison to the excitement that we’re expressing. That’s just because he understands that it was cool, but there’s a lot more work to be done if this is something that he wants to be able to sustain.”
To become what he wants to be, Travis has to duplicate the moments he’s had against Boston College and Alabama State throughout an entire game, and then for multiple games, and then an entire season. He also needs more playing time for that to happen.
“I think he’s going to be a great quarterback,” Kresser said. “I honestly think Jordan Travis is the answer for Florida State to come back and get back to where they’re supposed to be. He’s the key component that can make that ship go.
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“If these coaches give him an opportunity — a real opportunity — to go in and play, they’re going to see the same thing that I saw in high school.”
Travis stayed consistent even when he wasn’t playing. Many in his situation may have checked out on the season. Instead, he kept his head down and stayed at it. That hasn’t gone unnoticed and is something that can help set a standard for a program in the midst of a rebuild.
“Travis, he has been a soldier all year,” Haggins said. “He was working hard and didn’t play. Now, when his time was called, he went out and did a great job. That’s what Florida State is all about: Everybody doing their job and executing your job.”
The same annoyingly calm demeanor that got on Devon’s nerves when his brother was in high school paid dividends throughout the process. Devon has come to appreciate it.
“Now that I’ve seen it live with not just football players but athletes in general, it’s a pretty special trait to have,” he said. “No matter how cool whatever just happened is, you’re going to have to do it again. And you’re going to have to do it again and again and again, and it kind of never ends. That flat line, slow heartbeat is what he’s always thrived off of.”
Travis’ personality provides stability within a situation that’s anything but. Florida State is in transition, set to have its third coach in 23 months. It’s also finishing a third consecutive mediocre season.
Travis can’t control any of that. He won’t try to, either. He’s focused on continuing to round out his game. He can’t just be a runner (he’s attempted seven passes, completing three, in his two games) if he’s going to help the program turn things around.
“My whole life, I’ve always been a quarterback that uses his arm,” Travis said. “I haven’t been much of a quarterback that ran. It’s kind of surprising now that it’s kind of what I’ve shifted to. Honestly, I’m just trying to get my arm back to how it used to be and get stronger. And just get better every day.”
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He could have as many as three more seasons after this one. He wants results quickly, but he also has plenty of time.
“He probably has all the potential in the world to be a force that can lead a team to some pretty satisfying seasons,” Devon said. “As his big brother, I want to tell you he can go 14-0 and be like Jameis Winston, who was a role model for Jordan. I want to believe he can be that guy, but the best way I can explain it is Jordan’s always been a guy that just leads by example…
“He’s always on a mission and he’s never really satisfied with any amount of success he has. It just speaks volumes to the type of player that he could be because it’s really what you dream of as a coach or as a fan is someone who always wants more.”
“More” is a non-specific goal. That could be starting a few games, or starting multiple seasons, or winning a title, or making it to the NFL. There’s no way of knowing what lies ahead for Jordan at this point, but the hopes are high.
Kresser, the ex-Gator, is remarkably high on Travis, comparing him to Russell Wilson and Lamar Jackson.
“That’s where his potential is: He’s got a chance to be the best,” Kresser said. “But he really just needs an opportunity to grow. He can’t become the best sitting on the sidelines. He really needs to grow as a college player and get a few years under his belt. I think he can help the Florida State program for the next three years while he grows. And then, individually, I think he’ll end up being a first-round pick.”
Travis’ supporters will be there regardless. Jada, who’s a senior in high school, plans on joining him at Florida State next year. Tammy is arguably more into the atmosphere and culture surrounding the school. Devon, for obvious reasons, is a diehard fan. Tony is pumped.
None of that going to change regardless of what happens next.
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“He really loves the game,” Tony said. “While we were at Louisville, I think he kind of lost the love for the game. Once we got to Florida State, he was trying to find himself again. The situation wasn’t the best, which is a part of life. Everything doesn’t work out the way you want it to, but you just have to keep trying. Now, he actually has a love for the game.”
Something changed for Travis after the 45-14 loss at Clemson. He hadn’t played in a game, but he called his dad and expressed some emotion.
“I don’t know what happened, but a switch went back on and Jordan was like, ‘Dad, I think I can play,’ ” Tony said. “I’m like, ‘What? You think you can play? You’ve doubted yourself all this time?’ He goes, ‘Dad, I can do it.’ I was like, ‘All right.’ ”
Four weeks later, Travis burst onto the scene.
“I don’t want to be that dad where you think your kid is the greatest thing in the world,” Tony said. “I don’t think like that. I don’t live through the kids like that. I’m just excited for him to be in garnet and gold because we bleed garnet and gold. Everybody in my family, we just love it. He’s home now, so I think he’s in a good place. The rest is on Jordan.
“We’re cheering for him, but the rest is on Jordan.”
(Top photo of Travis family (from left, Devon, Tammy, Jada, Tony and Jordan): Courtesy of Tony Travis)
