Of the three national championship seasons that Florida State has to its name, the 1999-2000 season was arguably the most successful. The team was the first and is now just one of three teams in the history of college football to have held the No. 1 ranking in the preseason and final AP Poll. Along with the national title, that season saw quarterback Chris Weinke win the Heisman Trophy.

In his time in the Garnet and Gold, Weinke completed 650 of 1,107 pass attempts for 9,839 yards and 79 touchdowns, which were all school records. In 2001, Weinke was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the fourth round of the NFL Draft. Weinke’s professional career ended in 2007, however today he is the quarterbacks coach/ co-offensive coordinator for Georgia Tech.

READ MORE: Defending Conference Champion Florida State Tops ACC Preseason Poll

With the 2024 season quickly approaching for both teams as they once again meet on the gridiron, this time to start the season, Weinke shared his thoughts on not only coaching against his former team but doing so on an international stage.

“Yeah, I mean, I’m not going to sit here and say it’s not exciting for me, right? That’s my alma mater. I’m proud of where I went to school. I’m proud of where I graduated from but I am coaching at Georgia Tech, okay? And that’s the first challenge on our schedule this year. Happens to be on a big stage, which we like,” Weinke said according to Georgia Tech on SI.

“I haven’t necessarily thought a bunch about it yet as we continue to get closer and start honing in and game planning for those guys and locking in on them. I think the juices will be flowing. And I think the most important thing is it’s an exciting opportunity for our kids, right? You’re playing against a team that had a lot of success last year Their roster has changed a little bit. Our roster changed a little bit, not necessarily on our side of the ball. Okay, we’ve had a few pieces, but our focus right now is to be the best that we can be each and every day. And when our mindset changes to start to focus on them, I think it’ll get ramped up around here,” Weinke continued.

The last time the two teams faced each other was in 2022 when the Yellow Jackets came to Tallahassee. That victory was the first of a 19-game win streak for the Seminoles that spanned over two seasons.

The conference foes are set to meet in the 2024 Aer Lingus College Football Classic on August 24th in Dublin, Ireland. FSU is 15-11-1 against Georgia Tech all-time.

READ MORE: Former FSU Football Star Chirps Michigan Wolverines’ Rookie During Rams Training Camp

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ATLANTA (AP) — Former President Donald Trump returns Saturday to Georgia, which he lost four years ago, to campaign in a state that both Democrats and Republicans see as up for grabs yet again.

Trump’s 5 p.m. EDT event alongside his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, comes just days after Vice President Kamala Harris rallied thousands in the same basketball arena at Georgia State University in Atlanta.

Both parties are focusing on Georgia, a Sun Belt battleground that just two weeks ago, Democrats had signaled they would sideline in favor of a heavier focus on the Midwestern “blue wall” states. President Joe Biden‘s decision to end his campaign and endorse Harris fueled Democratic hopes of an expanded electoral map.

“The momentum in this race is shifting,” Harris told a cheering, boisterous crowd on Tuesday. “And there are signs Donald Trump is feeling it.”

Biden beat Trump in the state by 11,779 votes in 2020. Trump pressured Georgia’s Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to change the outcome. Trump was later indicted in Georgia for his efforts to overturn the election, but the case remains on hold while courts decide whether the Fulton County district attorney can continue to prosecute it.

In announcing Saturday’s rally, the Trump campaign accused Harris of costing Georgians money due to inflation and higher gas prices, which have risen from pandemic-era lows at the end of the Trump administration. The campaign also noted the case of Laken Riley, a nursing student from the state who was killed while jogging in a park on Feb. 22. A Venezuelan citizen has been indicted on murder charges in her death.

Trump and his allies have repeatedly labeled Harris the current administration’s “border czar,” a reference to her assignment leading White House efforts on migration.

But in recent days, Trump has lobbed false attacks about Harris’ race and suggested she misled voters about her identity. Harris has stated for years in public life that she is Black and Indian American.

At her rally in Atlanta, Harris called Trump and Vance “plain weird” — a lane of messaging seized on by many other Democrats of late — and taunted Trump for wavering on whether he’d show up for their upcoming debate, currently on the books for Sept. 10 on ABC.

Saying earlier that he would debate Harris, Trump has more recently questioned the value of a meetup, calling host network ABC News “fake news,” saying he “probably” will debate Harris, but he “can also make a case for not doing it.”

The fact that both Harris and Trump have been focusing resources on Georgia underscores the state’s renewed significance to both parties come November. Going to Atlanta puts Trump in the state’s largest media market, including suburbs and exurbs that were traditional Republican strongholds but have become more competitive as they’ve diversified and grown in population.

In a strategy memo released after Biden left the race, Harris campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon — who held the same role for Biden — reaffirmed the importance of winning the traditional Democratic blue wall trio of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania but also argued that Harris’ place atop the ticket “opens up additional persuadable voters” and described them as “disproportionately Black, Latino and under 30” in places like Georgia.

Next week, along with her eventual running mate, Harris plans to visit that Midwestern trifecta, along with North Carolina, Arizona and Nevada. On Friday, she will make another stop in Georgia.

___

Meg Kinnard reported from Chapin, South Carolina. Barrow can be reached at https://x.com/BillBarrowAP and Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP.

FLOYD COUNTY, Ga. – Three former Georgia Department of Corrections officers, a GDC investigator, and a former Floyd County deputy have been arrested after the Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents say they played a role in the assault of an inmate being transported in Floyd County. 

The Floyd County Sheriff’s Office asked the GBI to investigate the incident on June 4. 

The sheriff’s office says Deputy Logan Nelson was terminated two days later and charged with violation of oath of office, conduct unbecoming of a deputy, and unsatisfactory performance. 

The GBI arrested four additional people on Friday: 

• Josha Riddle, 32, of Lafayette, was charged with aggravated assault, terroristic threats and acts, battery, and violation of oath of office. 
• Billy Lingerfelt, 63, of Lafayette, was charged with aggravated assault, terroristic threats and acts, battery, and violation of oath of office. 
• Donna Pettyjohn, 56, of Lafayette, was charged with conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, conspiracy to commit terroristic threats and acts, conspiracy to commit battery, false statements, and violation of oath of office. 
• Hannah Rittweger, 32, of Adairsville, was charged with conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, conspiracy to commit terroristic threats and acts, conspiracy to commit battery, false statements, and violation of oath of office. 

All four are being held at the Fulton County Jail. 

Details surrounding the incident have not been released. 

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office at 706-291-4111 or the GBI regional investigative office in Calhoun at 706-624-1424. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS (8477).