Dillan Gibbons, FSU players trying to turn snub into Christmas joy for Florida Boys & Girls

Selflessness, resiliency and overcoming adversity.

Those three characteristics have been the key components for Florida State football players to have under the leadership of head coach Mike Norvell as he's brought the program back from irrelevancy to the national stage in four seasons.

Once again faced with the adversity of being snubbed from the College Football Playoffs despite an undefeated season and conference championship, the Seminoles are showing off the first two characteristics in grand, charitable fashion.

FSU players Jordan Travis, Trey Benson, Keon Coleman, Ja'Khi Douglas, along with the entire offensive line and alumnus Dillan Gibbons have joined together to bring a positive outcome to the situation. They have started a GoFundMe which will benefit the Boys' and Girls' Clubs in Big Bend (Tallahassee), Tampa Bay, Gainesville, and Coral Gables through Gibbons's non-profit "Big Man, Big Heart."

"At the end of the day, those are the kinds of guys you want next to you," Gibbons said.

Since 2021, Gibbons and Travis have raised money to give back to the Boys and Girls Club of the Big Bend to find children who would benefit from a great opportunity. In that first year, the duo raised over $10,000 for the event through a GoFundMe page, allowing 30 children from the organization to go shopping at Walmart with FSU players.

"That's one of my favorite events," Gibbons said. "I love Christmas time. I love giving back to the little kids. There's nothing cooler than walking around a Walmart with a football player with a $200-$250 gift card to get to pick out some Christmas gifts and spend some time with guys like Jordan Travis and Keon Coleman."

This year's event will be a little different, with No. 5 FSU (13-0) preparing to face No. 6 Georgia (12-1) in the Orange Bowl on Dec. 30 in Miami Gardens.

With bowl prep taking priority, Gibbons said the in-person aspect of the charity is not as accessible this season, especially when trying to pull around 75 players from practice and their normal game week routines.

"That was that was kind of tough for Jordan and for me," Gibbons said. "I mean, I was like half of what we were trying to do. But me and Jordan got talking last week and we decided to put up the GoFundMe again and basically just raise money for the Boys and Girls Clubs across the whole state of Florida.

"So I've been able to indicate all the Boys and Girls Clubs and get all their contact information. So what we're going to do is we're going to raise this money, hopefully, everybody will donate $13 for all 13 [clubs], raise around $20,000, and then break that down into equal distribution through the Boys and Girls Clubs in the state of Florida.

"That will help families within the Boys and Girls Club community get through the Christmas time, maybe put another meal on the table, maybe get a couple of extra gifts."

Gibbons played two seasons for FSU football (2022-23) after transferring from Notre Dame. He is now married and working in Tampa Bay for Weatherford Capital, a family-owned private investment firm founded by former Seminole quarterback Drew Weatherford.

To view the GoFundMe, visit https://gf.me/v/c/gfm/fsu-undefeated-hearts.

As of Sunday evening, in two days of the charity drive, $21,520 had been raised, already over the $20,000 goal.

"There's a lot of saltiness coming from a lot of Florida State alumni and this is a positive thing to do," Gibbons said. "I'm sure a lot of players can post all kinds of stuff about the College Football Playoff Committee, but instead we want to raise some money, we want to be champions in our community.

"And all those players on Florida State's team, they're sharing that Tweet right now and sharing the GoFundMe are trying to do the most they possibly can with their names, image and likeness. Not only making money, not only taking in [NIL] deals, whatever that might be, but they're giving back to the community and that says a lot because players have a lot on their plate."

HOW TO WATCH ORANGE BOWL

Who: No. 5 FSU (12-0) vs. No. 6 Georgia (12-1)

When/where: 4 p.m., Saturday, Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens

TV/Radio: ESPN/94.9 FM

Live game updates: www.Tallahassee.com; @Ehsan_Kassim, @jackgwilliams and @JimHenryTALLY on X, formerly Twitter

Reach Ehsan Kassim at ekassim@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Ehsan_Kassim. You can also follow our coverage on Facebook (NoleSports), Instagram (tlhnolesports) and YouTube channel (NoleSportsTD).

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Dillan Gibbons, Jordan Travis, FSU football continue Christmas charity