Early championship odds paint a dim picture for FSU and Mike Norvell

The oddsmakers are taking a wait-and-see approach to FSU football for the 2026 season.

FanDuel has released some of their early odds for the 2026 season and the Seminoles are among the P4 teams that would be considered long shots at +22500. I can't remember a time when FSU had longer preseason odds, but as we know by now, preseason odds, preseason AP Top 25 polls, etc. etc....it's all meaningless once the games begin. Even last season the Seminoles' odds were +9500 and that was coming off a 2-10 campaign.

FSU has the sixth-best odds among ACC schools behind Miami (+1300), SMU (+10000), Louisville (+12500), Clemson (+12500) and Virginia (+17500), which, again, is as low as I can remember the Seminoles being within the balance of power in the conference.

FSU will have to prove the oddsmakers wrong in 2026

What this does say, however, is how little faith the oddsmakers have that Mike Norvell can field a championship-caliber team next season. The 2026 schedule isn't easy by any stretch, but for at team that hasn't won a true road game since November 2023, it probably seems a little more daunting than it is.

But that's still going to require the Seminoles to do something they've rarely done under Mike Norvell: overachieve. FSU football will have to prove doubters wrong. For many years, the Seminoles have gotten the benefit of the doubt with these odds based on the successes of eras gone by. At times, most notably in 2022 and 2023, FSU proved those guys right, but with the rapid changes in building a roster in college football, it's harder to sell the Seminoles as a real threat. 

The good news is the Seminoles can use this as ammunition. There's nothing I hate more than a team winning a championship and claiming nobody thought they could do it. The Belichick-era New England Patriots were the absolute worst at this. Yeah, sure no one thought the 13-win team with Tom Brady at quarterback could win a Super Bowl...

But in this case it would be accurate. Nobody thinks FSU is going to do squat in college football next season, and it's up to the Seminoles to prove FanDuel and all the other oddsnakers wrong.