Florida State is putting Sebastian Janikowski in a rare class on August 29.
The Seminoles announced Wednesday that their season opener against New Mexico State will be the day Janikowski’s jersey gets retired, a fitting honor for one of the most decorated kickers the sport has ever seen.
When it happens, Janikowski will become the 13th player in FSU history to have a jersey or number retired. He’ll join a list that includes Deion Sanders (2), Jameis Winston (5), Peter Warrick (9), Derrick Brooks (10), Chris Weinke (16), Charlie Ward (17), Fred Biletnikoff (25), Terrell Buckley (27), Warrick Dunn (28), Ron Sellers (34), Ron Simmons (50) and Marvin Jones (55).
Janikowski’s FSU run was short, just three seasons, but it was loaded with production and hardware. He helped the Seminoles win the 1999 national championship and left as both the school’s and the ACC’s all-time scoring leader. He also shares the school and conference record for field goals made in a game with five, and he co-holds the career field goal percentage mark at 76%.
His breakout started early. In 1997, Janikowski earned Freshman All-America honors after setting what was then a school record with a 56-yard field goal against Wake Forest.
The next season, he pushed the standard even higher, breaking Florida State and ACC single-season records with 27 field goals and 123 points while leading the NCAA with an 84.4 percent success rate on field goal attempts. In his final year, he went a perfect 47-for-47 on PATs and made 23 field goals, the most in the NCAA, while topping the ACC with 116 points.
Janikowski is the only two-time Lou Groza Award winner in college football history, and he was also a two-time First Team All-American.
His career didn’t stop in Tallahassee. Janikowski spent 19 years in the NFL after becoming one of only five kickers ever taken in the first round of the draft. He was inducted into the FSU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013 and is on this year’s ballot for the College Football Hall of Fame.
In Other News...
Florida State Basketball Enters A New Era With A First For The Program
Florida State basketball is about to add a new look as the program steps into a sponsorship model that has never been part of Seminole athletics before. Florida State Athletics announced a multi-year partnership with ReliaQuest, making the company the official jersey patch partner for the men's basketball team beginning in the 2026-27 season, with the logo set to appear on all game jerseys.
The deal marks the first jersey patch sponsorship in Florida State Athletics history, a notable shift for a program now tying its identity to a corporate partner in a more visible way. The school framed the move as a shared commitment to innovation and excellence, and it gives the basketball program a fresh layer of distinction as it prepares for a new era on the floor. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State's Secondary Just Took A Tough Hit At Safety
Florida States secondary took a significant blow with Karson Hobbs sidelined after a season-ending knee injury, a setback confirmed by coach Mike Norvell. The Notre Dame transfer had been working through a position change and giving the Seminoles another option in the back end, which made his progress one of the more quietly important developments in camp and early-season preparation.
Hobbs absence leaves Florida State thinner at safety, especially with the staff still sorting out the best pieces behind its top group. The encouraging part is that he is expected to recover, but for now the Seminoles have to absorb the loss of a player who was starting to fit into the rotation and could have helped stabilize a position that does not have much margin for error. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Football Faces An Awkward Revenue Question Fans Will Notice
The NCAAs new approval of commercial patches on uniforms has opened another lane for athletic departments to chase revenue, and plenty of schools have already moved quickly to lock in sponsorships across multiple sports. Florida State has taken a step in that direction with its announced Reliaquest patch deal, though that agreement is tied to basketball and begins in the 2026-27 season, leaving the broader push around uniform branding very much in motion.
What stands out for Seminoles fans is that football, the sport that drives the biggest spotlight and the biggest dollars, still does not have a patch deal in place. In a market where athletic departments are weighing every new revenue stream and trying to keep pace with the national heavyweights, the absence of a football sponsorship only adds another layer to the discussion about how aggressively Florida State is monetizing its brand and where the next move might come from. [Read more 🡒]