When the 2026 college football season began, there were some coaches on the hot seat. One of them was Mike Norvell at Florida State. Through the first four weeks of the season, the veteran Seminoles coach didn’t really do much to take the heat off of him.
Two weeks after a 50-36 loss at No. 7 Alabama and one week after a 34-7 win over Central Arkansas, FSU resumed its ACC schedule with a home game against Virginia on Saturday afternoon.
This was the beginning of a pivotal stretch for Florida State and Norvell. It was the beginning of a four-game stretch before their second bye of the season. However, in that stretch was Virginia, Louisville, Miami, and Clemson. A win over the Cavaliers is what FSU needed, and they got it, 38-7. After the win, Norvell dropped a rather bold statement for a coach on the hot seat.
Florida State Coach Mike Norvell Drops Bold Claim After Win Over Virginia
The visiting Cavaliers scored first for a 7-0 lead. However, the final 38 points were scored by Florida State, which led 17-7 at halftime and never looked back in the second half. After the win that improved his team to 3-2, Norvell made a bold claim that will be tough for FSU to back up beginning next week.
“I believe this can be a really good and dominant football team,” said Norvell, per Alison Posey of WCTV Sports. “We still haven’t played a 60 minute game yet, but those last 45 were really impressive.”
For a team that has struggled the last two seasons and was 2-2 going into Saturday’s game, that was a bold statement. However, against Virginia, over the last three quarters, they were the better team.
Quarterback Ashton Daniels, an Auburn transfer, rushed 17 times for 136 yards and five touchdowns, which is a Florida State record for a QB. He was also 12-for-19 through the air for 183 yards. It was FSU’s first win over a power conference opponent this fall.
Florida State Faces Daunting Schedule To Become Bowl Eligible
As mentioned above, the next three Seminoles games are road games at Louisville and Miami, before hosting Clemson. The final four games are not an easy stretch as well. A road game at Boston College in November and then Pittsburgh a week later, before home games against North Carolina State and Florida to close out the season.
“I believe this team could play at a much higher level than we did today,” said Norvell, per Posey.
If Norvell is going to survive and make it to the 2027 season, then his team is going to need to play at a much higher level than they did against Virginia.
Florida State decided to keep Norvell after a disappointing 2025 season, mainly because of his buyout. If he is fired before the end of the 2026 season, he’s owed roughly $51 million according to On3. If he’s fired during the season, it drops to $45 million after the season is complete.
Despite the win over Virginia, becoming bowl-eligible and winning six games still might be tough given the schedule they have remaining.
Florida State Coach Mike Norvell Drops Blunt Quote After Blowing Out Virginia