The Florida State fanbase has spent years treating a possible Jimbo Fisher reunion as somewhere between impossible and unforgivable.
That conversation is changing.
With Mike Norvell under mounting pressure and athletic director Michael Alford fired Monday, Fisher’s name has resurfaced around Tallahassee. Fans chanted “We want Jimbo” when Fisher returned to campus as an analyst for the ACC Network before the Seminoles’ loss to SMU.
Warchant’s Tom Lang reported that Fisher has been actively positioning himself for the Florida State job if it opens, including reaching out through former players, alumni and people with connections to university leadership.
Jimbo Fisher Reportedly Wants Another Shot at Florida State
Lang opened his report by acknowledging how much the idea has taken hold among Florida State fans.
“The debate over a Florida State / Jimbo Fisher reunion is all the rage among the boards and fanbase these days,” Lang wrote. “But what chance does the remarriage actually have?”
According to Lang, Fisher’s interest isn’t theoretical.
“Absolutely,” Lang wrote when addressing whether Fisher would want the job. “Over the past few months and recently as this week, I’ve been told that Jimbo has expressed interest through the following channels: Broadcast media brethren, FSU alumni/those with connections to the powers at Florida State, former players.”
Lang added that Fisher is “actively working to learn as much as possible about operations at FSU in 2026” so he can make the strongest push possible if the position opens.
There could also be a financial incentive for Florida State to listen.
Lang reported that Fisher would currently be willing to return for significantly less than the going rate for a coaching hire, estimating something in the $4 million to $5 million range compared with salaries approaching $8 million to $10 million elsewhere.
That doesn’t mean Florida State is ready to bring him back.
Lang said there have been “no indications” from people familiar with FSU’s thinking that Fisher would be a top candidate if Norvell’s job opens.
Florida State Fans Warm to Jimbo Fisher Reunion
The fact that the conversation exists at all says plenty about how far things have shifted, though.
Among @FSUFootball fans, a remarriage with Fisher has been all the rage on the message boards and social media.
Where do things actually stand, should the job come open?
t.co/wg0pRam88r📸 – USA Today / Reuters Connect
Fisher went 83-23 at Florida State from 2010 through 2017, winning the 2013 national championship, three straight ACC titles and a school-record 29 consecutive games. But his exit wasn’t exactly clean.
Leaving for the SEC’s Texas A&M, he harbored plenty of resentment with the Seminoles faithful, especially after the the program unraveled in the years that followed.
But Norvell’s current slide has perhaps changed the temperature with the fanbase.
Florida State is 8-18 since the start of 2024, and Norvell fell to 39-35 overall at FSU after the 27-24 loss to SMU. Alford’s firing added another layer of uncertainty before Saturday’s trip to Alabama.
Seeing those results, Fisher suddenly doesn’t sound as radioactive to parts of the fanbase as he once did.
Lang’s final point may be the most telling, however.
“Fisher’s interest is not new. The idea of working for a lower salary is not new,” Lang wrote. “The steps he is taking to best position himself for the job are significantly more proactive than when things fell apart for Mike Norvell last November.”
That still doesn’t make Fisher the favorite, or even a likely choice.
But with fans openly chanting for him, message boards debating the reunion and Fisher reportedly working behind the scenes to position himself for the opening, the idea of Jimbo Fisher coaching Florida State again isn’t being laughed out of Tallahassee anymore.
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