The Mike Norvell era in Tallahassee has been hanging on by a thread, with Florida State clinging to any hope that he can return the Seminoles to their winning ways. After Norvell led Florida State to an undefeated regular season and an ACC Championship Game victory, many have wondered how the program has fallen this far. The answer is simple: Norvell has whiffed on his transfer portal additions offseason after offseason.
DJ Uiagalelei replacing Jordan Travis never made sense for the scheme, and the offense was a total mess because of it. Tommy Castellanos was never a consistent enough passer to run the offense, and the play in the trenches sunk the team in 2025. Relying on transfers as much as Mike Norvell has, the Seminoles can't afford to miss, and on Saturday the early results were concerning.
Facing a team like New Mexico State, Florida State should always look light years ahead in terms of talent, and shouldn't face much resistance on its way to a blowout victory. While the Seminoles were the more talented team, New Mexico State didn't look far off, and if they had just a little bit more talent on the lines, the game would've gotten interesting.
Mike Norvell missed on his roster evaluations again
Mike Norvell brought in countless transfer quarterbacks for visits this offseason, and for one reason or another couldn't land anyone until the Seminoles picked Auburn backup and former Stanford starter Ashton Daniels. On Saturday Night, Trey Hedden was the far more impressive quarterback, keeping his team in the game while under pressure the whole night.
The Seminoles wide receiver room should be the area where New Mexico State can't keep up with the likes of Duce Robinson and Micahi Danzy, and early on it looked like that may be the case. Even with Danzy's early 44 yard catch, the duo finished with a combined 101 yards, and neither was the best receiver on the field. Instead, the duo of Brodie Malone-Bradford and TK King combined for 174 yards and 2 touchdowns, beating the secondary with ease at times.
Speaking of beating the secondary with ease, the players Florida State pushed to keep, even after they tried to transfer, should make the defensive backfield the strength of this team. The best NFL prospect on the roster, Ja'Bril Rawls, was beaten for 80 yards and a touchdown. Ashlynd Barker also tried to transfer, and returned, and he gave up 5 catches on 6 targets for 38 yards.
The biggest concern should be the relative ease at which New Mexico State pressured Ashton Daniels as the offensive line struggled. RT Chimdia Nwaiwu allowed 5 pressures and a sack, LT Xavier Chaplin picked up a pair of penalties and allowed a pressure, and C Bradyn Welch-Joiner allowed a pair of pressures. The group wasn't that great run blocking either, but Ousmane Kromah kept bouncing off tackles.
The Seminoles certainly could've been operating, trying not to show too much, with games against SMU and Alabama next on the schedule. Even if that were the case, Florida State shouldn't have to outscheme teams; they should be able to easily outclass an opponent like New Mexico State with talent alone.
Mike Norvell better get to work this week, working through some of the biggest issues, otherwise the Seminoles could be 1-2 fast.
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