The Florida State Seminoles are coming off their most lopsided loss of the season, but Mike Norvell isn’t questioning whether his team can respond.
Florida State fell 44-20 at Louisville on Friday after taking a 14-0 lead, dropping the Seminoles to 3-3 overall and 1-2 in ACC play. Next comes a rivalry trip to No. 3 Miami, and Norvell made clear Monday that he still expects his team to answer.
Warchant reported that Norvell rejected the idea that motivation is the issue and said Florida State has shown it can bounce back before.
Florida State’s Mike Norvell Expects Response Against Miami
“We’ve seen positive responses throughout the course of this season… they’re fully capable, and I believe that they will… I fully do expect this team to rise up,” Norvell said.
Florida State needs that response quickly.
The Seminoles were outscored 44-6 after building the early two-touchdown lead at Louisville. The Cardinals finished with 537 total yards, including 397 on the ground, while Florida State managed 362 total yards.
The loss also extended another troubling streak. Florida State has now lost 13 consecutive games away from Tallahassee when neutral-site games are included. Its last true road win came at Florida on Nov. 25, 2023.
Miami gives Norvell’s team little room to ease back into things.
The Hurricanes enter Saturday unbeaten and ranked No. 3, while Florida State has already lost twice away from home this season, at Alabama and Louisville. The rivalry game kicks off at 7 p.m. at Hard Rock Stadium and will air on ESPN.
Miami also won last year’s meeting 28-22 in Tallahassee after beating Florida State 36-14 in 2024. Florida State does own a 21-19 series edge in games played at Miami, but it has not won there since 2022.
Norvell isn’t treating the Louisville loss as something his players need outside motivation to overcome. His message is that the response has to come from a group he still believes is capable of giving one.
Mike Norvell Pushes Back on Outside Pressure After 3-3 Start
The pressure around Norvell has only grown with Florida State back at .500 midway through the season.
Logan B. Robinson of NoleGameday reported Monday that Norvell was asked whether the administration has become more involved in weekly communication following the 3-3 start.
“I don’t need somebody to tell me about my evaluation of a game,” Norvell said. “They’re not going to be a stronger critic of what our evaluation was than what I am.”
That answer came only days after Norvell called the Louisville loss an “extremely poor performance.”
Florida State’s season has already swung sharply several times. The Seminoles lost 27-24 to SMU, then fell 50-36 at Alabama before responding with consecutive home wins over Central Arkansas and Virginia.
The 38-7 victory over Virginia appeared to give Florida State momentum heading into Louisville. Instead, the Seminoles followed it with their worst loss of the season.
That is the cycle Norvell is trying to stop before Miami.
Florida State still has six regular-season games remaining after Saturday, including Clemson, Pitt and Florida. But another poor showing against its biggest in-state rival would only add to the questions surrounding the direction of the program.
Norvell isn’t promising that everything has been fixed in a week.
He is saying he expects his players to respond.
Against Miami, there won’t be much room for anything less.
Florida State’s Mike Norvell Makes Bold Promise Before Miami