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Jimbo Fisher apologizes for using "retarded"

Florida State Seminoles head coach Jimbo Fisher apologized for using the word "retarded" in response to a question about the BCS rankings.

Streeter Lecka

Florida State Seminoles head football Jimbo Fisher coach apologized on Monday for using the word "retarded" in response to a question about the latest BCS rankings.

"That's not the way I think," Fisher said. "It was a poor choice of words. I didn't mean to offend anyone in any way."

Though the comment was off-the-cuff and meant innocuously, the word "retarded'" is seen as being highly offensive to those who are mentally handicapped, and to those who have loved ones who suffer from various illnesses.

Fisher's comment, in which he replied "how retarded is it?," was in reply to being asked about Florida State's BCS ranking -- behind behind three SEC schools who have two losses, compared to Florida State's one loss.

Fisher's Seminoles have just two games remaining in the regular season -- a date against Maryland this coming Saturday, and then a showdown against No. 6 Florida on Nov. 24. If the Seminoles can come away with a win against the Gators, they could easily jump up the BCS rankings once again -- and leapfrog some of those two-loss SEC schools.

Hopefully, even if the Seminoles fall in the rankings or stay where they are, Fisher will think before he says something offensive in future press conferences.

Photographs by cstreet.us, thelastminute, turtlemom nancy , fesek, kthypryn, justinwright, sue_elias, pointnshoot, and scrapstothefuture used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.