Heading into 2026, the Florida State Seminoles are facing a pivotal season after back-to-back abysmal seasons. Mike Norvell likely would've been fired by now if not for the fact that his buyout has saved his job. This season has to be a promising year for the Seminoles, otherwise it could end up being Norvell's last.
Part of the issue for Mike Norvell is the fact that while the Seminoles have trended down, others around him are taking steps in the right direction. In-State Miami just played for a National Championship while Florida at least recognized that they made a mistake and fired Billy Napier after a bad season.
Florida State's recruiting woes stand out amid In-State rivals' success
As Mike Norvell and his staff try to prove they're still right for the job, the pressure isn't going away as their in-state rivals couldn't be doing better. As things currently stand, Florida State holds the Nation's 33rd ranked recruiting class. While the figure could be much worse, 33rd isn't nearly where Florida State's potential is.
That's showcased by the fact that both Miami and Florida hold top 10 recruiting classes in the country, headlined by some elite recruits.
Miami has the Nation's 5th ranked recruiting class, headlined by two 5-star commitments after they flipped 5-star cornerback Donte Wright away from Georgia. Mario Cristobal has rebuilt Miami into a National Championship contender, which is only going to make life harder on Mike Norvell to get Florida State back to contention.
The Florida Gators hired Jon Sumrall, who's already looking like a better fit than Billy Napier was in Gainesville. Sumrall has already built the Nation's 7th ranked recruiting class, headlined by 5-star interior offensive lineman Maxwell Hiller.
When you compare the blue-chip pieces in Florida and Miami's classes to the one Mike Norvell's building, you can quickly see why the Seminoles are falling behind. Florida State holes just 1 top 300 commitment which isn't nearly good enough.
This summer, Florida State is going to need to go on a serious tear to show that Norvell is changing how he builds his rosters. Being too reliant on transfers landed Norvell in this mess, and if he continues down this path, the Seminoles are going to have a hard time avoiding the up-and-down seasons with this roster.
Add us as a preferred source on Google