Things are so bad at Florida State, the school appears on the brink of buying out Mike Norvell's contract, despite not having anything close to enough money to make the math work. How did we get here?
I think this is a fair assessment and us FSU fans are also trying to figure out what happened. I think there are two areas that you did not cover.
The first is high school recruiting. Norvell is criticized for relying on the portal too much; i dont think that is his intentional strategy, its just a weakness. his staff has not been good at identifying and bringing in the recruits that are going to elevate the program. (His most impactful player the entire 6 years is Jordan Travis who was inherited).
And second, some may not want to acknowledge this, but Norvell has simply had some bad luck. He had no connection to FSU or the state when he was hired, but that’s ok, hes personable and can introduce himself to all the high schools in Florida - unless there is a global pandemic and he cant meet with anyone in person. He worked for 2 years to build a solid relationship with a generational high school talent (Travis Hunter) that didn’t want to take the easy route (UGA) but was willing to work to build something special. Then FSU’s most famous alumni recruits against FSU and signs him. Is Hershel Walker recruiting against UGA? Is Tim Tebow recruiting against Florida? Of course not, this only happened to Norvell. Then add in the snub, just unprecedented what had to happen across college football for that to happen.
So I don’t know where FSU goes from here, how do you “fix” it going forward and who can you bring in to to that. Im ok with giving Norvell a chance to pull out of this spiral, but after Sat night’s game, seems very unlikely.
Steve — thanks for the note. You’re absolutely right. I think there are clearly flaws in what Mike has done the last couple years, but it is worth remembering just how unique his situation has been, from COVID to Hunter to the snub.
I’ve got another deeper dive into some FSU talk coming tomorrow too. But this is a really good point worth more attention too.
Norvell talks about accountability but the team, and recruiting efforts, don’t reflect that. I think he’s just too nice of a person for this level of job, unfortunately.
I think this is a fair assessment and us FSU fans are also trying to figure out what happened. I think there are two areas that you did not cover.
The first is high school recruiting. Norvell is criticized for relying on the portal too much; i dont think that is his intentional strategy, its just a weakness. his staff has not been good at identifying and bringing in the recruits that are going to elevate the program. (His most impactful player the entire 6 years is Jordan Travis who was inherited).
And second, some may not want to acknowledge this, but Norvell has simply had some bad luck. He had no connection to FSU or the state when he was hired, but that’s ok, hes personable and can introduce himself to all the high schools in Florida - unless there is a global pandemic and he cant meet with anyone in person. He worked for 2 years to build a solid relationship with a generational high school talent (Travis Hunter) that didn’t want to take the easy route (UGA) but was willing to work to build something special. Then FSU’s most famous alumni recruits against FSU and signs him. Is Hershel Walker recruiting against UGA? Is Tim Tebow recruiting against Florida? Of course not, this only happened to Norvell. Then add in the snub, just unprecedented what had to happen across college football for that to happen.
So I don’t know where FSU goes from here, how do you “fix” it going forward and who can you bring in to to that. Im ok with giving Norvell a chance to pull out of this spiral, but after Sat night’s game, seems very unlikely.
Steve — thanks for the note. You’re absolutely right. I think there are clearly flaws in what Mike has done the last couple years, but it is worth remembering just how unique his situation has been, from COVID to Hunter to the snub.
I’ve got another deeper dive into some FSU talk coming tomorrow too. But this is a really good point worth more attention too.
Norvell talks about accountability but the team, and recruiting efforts, don’t reflect that. I think he’s just too nice of a person for this level of job, unfortunately.
I remember Bobby saying that about Mark Richt… and honestly, he may have been right.