Will the third time be the charm for Florida State football coach Mike Norvell in grabbing a quarterback out of the transfer portal? For his job security, he’d better hope so. After striking out with his last two choices, it feels like this is a move he needs to nail.
After being snubbed from the College Football Playoff in 2023 after winning the ACC Championship Game and being undefeated, things have not gone well for Norvell when it comes to the quarterback position. With QB Jordan Travis sidelined with an injury, the College Football Playoff committee selected one-loss teams Alabama and Texas over the Seminoles.
Looking to get his team over the top, Norvell added former Clemson and Oregon State signal caller DJ Uiagalelei. That was a disaster. This past season, he added former Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos. Again, it led to another season where FSU missed bowl eligibility.
For the third straight season, Norvell is searching for his next quarterback. He landed a commitment from a former Stanford and Auburn quarterback on Tuesday.
Auburn Transfer QB Ashton Daniels Commits to Florida State
Norvell hosted three quarterbacks recently from the portal: UNLV’s Antony Colandrea, Auburn’s Ashton Daniels, and Florida’s DJ Lagway. It didn’t take long for Florida State to get a commitment from Daniels, who has one season of eligibility remaining.
“FSU is a dream school for me to be able to finish my college career,” Daniels said. “This coaching staff and the people involved with this program have shown me what it means and takes to be a Seminole, and nothing excites me more than that. I already love this place and community and can’t wait to attack this offseason with my brothers and give this community what they deserve.”
If this ends up being Norvell’s QB1 in the fall, is it going to be good enough to save his job? Daniels played in four games for Auburn. He threw for 797 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions. Daniels also rushed for 280 yards and two touchdowns. His best game was on November 8 when he threw for 353 yards and two touchdowns in an overtime loss at Vanderbilt.
Against Alabama in the final game of the season and the Tigers needing a win to become bowl-eligible, Daniels threw for 259 yards, one touchdown, and one interception in a 27-20 loss.
Is Ashton Daniels Florida State’s QB1 in 2026?
If this ends up being Norvell’s quarterback, then it is not going to sit well with Seminoles fans. After the failed Castellanos experiment, Daniels’ numbers and style are similar, but the results need to be different.
Considering Norvell had Colandrea and Lagway on campus, settling for Daniels is going to put more pressure on the head coach in 2026. Florida State is going to need the Stanford version of Daniels, who threw for nearly 4,000 yards and 21 touchdowns, while rushing for nearly another 1,000 yards and six touchdowns in 2023 and 2024, to show up in Tallahassee.
If not, and Colandrea and Lagway end up somewhere else, then the heat will really be on Norvell in 2026 if things go south early.
Florida State Lands Former SEC Quarterback Through Transfer Portal