After bad loss to Stanford, FSU must part ways with Norvell

The Florida State Seminoles are in a tailspin and could go winless during the rest of the 2025 season. Head coach Mike Norvell’s seat is getting hotter and hotter, and FSU leadership needs to move on from him.

On3 is reporting that Florida State decision-makers were expected to hold “informal phone calls” on Sunday to discuss Norvell’s future in Tallahassee. That’s not a good sign for him.

The latest debacle for the Seminoles came late Saturday evening, as FSU traveled to a Stanford team that isn’t all that good. Florida State had an opportunity to tie the game, but the Cardinal stopped FSU at the goal line with no time left on the clock to preserve a 20-13 win for Stanford.

The Seminoles entered this Week 8 clash as a heavy betting favorite, but with this setback, Florida State has dropped a whopping nine consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference encounters.

Florida State is winless in the ACC this season

In 2023, FSU went undefeated in the regular season and claimed a conference crown, but it was left out of the four-team College Football Playoff. Ahead of the 2024 campaign, the Seminoles were projected to win the ACC again, but Florida State was woeful, going just 2-10 overall and 1-7 in league affairs.

Hoping to turn things around in 2025, FSU began 3-0, including a stunning triumph over Alabama in the season opener. That 3-0 start propelled the Seminoles into the top 10 nationally.

Since then, though, Florida State has dropped four straight, and it is searching for its first ACC victory. Granted, that four-game losing streak includes losses to three of the ACC’s best teams in Virginia, Miami and Pittsburgh. But falling to Stanford was unacceptable.

Now, FSU leaders could elect to see how the remainder of the 2025 campaign plays out. Norvell also has a buyout that exceeds $50 million.

Coming up in the 2025 regular season, Florida State will host Wake Forest and Virginia Tech. The Seminoles (3-4 overall, 0-4 in the ACC) will play at Clemson, NC State and Florida.

There are winnable games on the Seminoles’ docket, but the way they’re playing these days, it’s conceivable that FSU could go winless or only win a game or two more. Florida State should rip the band-aid off now and part ways with Norvell.