Mike Norvell enters Week 3 in the hottest seat in college football. He carries a 39-35 overall record at the Florida State Seminoles.
Norvell is 1-1 this season. The Seminoles finished 2-10 in 2024 and 5-7 in 2025.
His high point came in 2023, when Florida State went 13-1, won the ACC and narrowly missed the College Football Playoff after an injury to quarterback Jordan Travis. The Seminoles have gone 8-18 since that ACC championship game win.
Frustration has spilled into the stands. Fans chanted “Fire Norvell” after the Seminoles’ loss to SMU Mustangs dropped Florida State to 1-1 in a 27-24 home defeat.
Florida State fired athletic director Michael Alford on Monday, Sept. 14, signalling that he will have no say in head coaching decisions.
FSU President Richard McCullough addressed Norvell’s status that same day.
“I love Mike Norvell. He is a great human being,” McCullough said. “I have to tell you, nobody wants to win more than Mike Norvell. We want to win. Of course we want to win. College coaches are in the winning business. That’s what we’re working on.”
That reassurance means little if Norvell keeps losing.
FSU Already Weighing Its Replacement Options for Mike Norvell
Florida State has quietly begun exploring what comes next.
Bruce Feldman of The Athletic reported the ACC program is looking into the possibility of bringing back former head coach Jimbo Fisher should it fire Norvell.
“Jimbo’s rosters didn’t stink,” a source told Feldman. “His ability to adapt to modern football is what caught up with him.”
FanSided predicts a road trip to Miami on Oct. 17 as Norvell’s last stand.
Fisher was the head coach of the Seminoles from 2010 until 2017, compiling an 83-23 record while winning three straight ACC championships from 2012 through 2014.
His 2013 team went undefeated at 14-0, winning the ACC title and beating Auburn 34-31 for the national championship.
Fisher left for Texas A&M in December 2017. He struggled to establish Texas A&M as a national contender, going 45-25 across six seasons that ended with his firing in 2023. Texas A&M paid Fisher a $77.5 million buyout, the most in college sports history.
Fisher, 60, now works as an ACC Network studio analyst. He returned to Tallahassee before the SMU game, where fans chanted “We want Jimbo” as he arrived on campus.
Florida State Received Bad News Ahead of Alabama Game
Alabama could get its best offensive lineman back this week. Right guard Michael Carroll missed the win over Kentucky after being downgraded from doubtful to out.
He started six games at right tackle last season, earning Freshman All-American honors.
He shifted to guard this offseason and started Week 1 against East Carolina. Carroll played 74 snaps in that game without allowing a sack.
Alabama ruled him out against Kentucky with a concussion. ESPN’s Alex Scarborough reported Sept. 16 that Carroll is expected to play Saturday.
“He’s been back practicing this week after missing the Kentucky game,” Scarborough wrote on X.
Florida State Rumored to Replace Mike Norvell With Jimbo Fisher