Florida State football team AD Michael Alford signaled patience amid growing hot-seat talk, saying the school will conduct a comprehensive review after the season and is “fully committed to helping Coach Norvell and the 2025 Seminoles strongly rebound,” per ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
FSU is 3-4 and 0-4 in ACC play after the goal-line loss at Stanford, and the buyout remains massive, so any change appears unlikely before year’s end. NFL rumors or quick-fix fantasies aside, the tension in Tallahassee is real, but the timeline still points to an evaluation in December, not a pink slip today.
After conversations with almost a dozen people tied to the program, The New York Times reports the root cause looks familiar: recruiting. “It has everything to do with recruiting,” said one person involved with FSU’s roster management.
Since the 2023 Orange Bowl blowout and CFP snub, the recruiting department has turned over at least 11 staffers, yet results lag for a program with title aspirations.
The Times notes Norvell has signed five of FSU’s six worst modern-era classes (247Sports Composite), none better than No. 12; only 10 top-100 signees across six classes compared to 32 in the six before his arrival; a glaring linebacker talent gap (just one signee ranked top-50 at the position); and a repeated pattern of losing the top pledge in five straight cycles, including KJ Bolden. Former players and insiders questioned whether the messaging still lands, and whether team pride and accountability have slipped.
The data show why FSU keeps leaning on the portal. Three-quarters of this season’s starts (115 of 154) have come from transfers, a stark contrast with 2023’s ACC champs, who featured more multiyear portal fits (Jared Verse, Trey Benson, Jordan Travis).
Against Miami last year, Florida State football team's starters had 40 cumulative seasons in the program; in this year’s loss, that number dropped to 16, with 13 newcomers (four on the OL). Staff churn adds to the churn on the field, with both coordinators replaced this offseason (Gus Malzahn on offense, Tony White on defense), and even roster pieces mismatched to the scheme, per a second roster-management voice. As two former starters put it on their podcast, moments like a teammate getting knocked out should reveal a program’s backbone, and too often, it hasn’t.
The hot-seat heat spiked after Stanford stuffed FSU at the goal line in a 20-13 finish. On3 framed Norvell’s status as “on the hot seat,” citing a buyout north of $54 million and a 1-11 ACC mark over the last two seasons. The remaining slate, Wake Forest, Florida, Clemson, Virginia Tech, and NC State, will decide whether this is a reset or a reckoning.
“It has everything to do with recruiting,” a roster manager reiterated to the Times. In Year 6, that refrain is why Norvell’s margin is razor-thin.
