Coach Mike Norvell and the Florida State Seminoles are back after a disappointing 2025 season, but 2026 has brought more questions than answers so far. Norvell's team hit the field for the first time this season in Week 0, and the Seminoles walked away from the win with obvious issues along the offensive line.
During the 34-17 win over NMSU in Week 0, the Seminoles displayed an offensive line that lacked the power needed to dominate opposing defenses. The struggle to protect up front left the rest of the Seminoles' offense with little to consistently work with. With that performance, Norvell plans on further evaluating the offensive line even though the team has just days to prepare for the No. 19 SMU Mustangs.
Mike Norvell will continue to monitor the offensive line as the schedule quickly heats up
Position battles can often result in multiple players arguably earning the spot, but the coach needs to make a tough decision about who actually sees the field. Other times, however, nobody truly sets themselves apart from the rest of the pack in order to claim the starting role. Norvell has praised his offensive line but still will not commit to a final group of five players even as the season progresses.
Ahead of the major game against SMU on Monday night, Norvell confirmed that he is still "absolutely" evaluating his offensive line. Norvell did not go into detail about what the evaluations have consisted of, but one would hope that the staff is looking for a way to fix the glaring issues on the ground. The line did not look much better protecting Daniels either, which could become a serious problem moving forward as the skill gap between teams shifts in the opposite direction.
The Seminoles were not able to consistently open up holes for the running backs, and doing so will only become more difficult for the team. Running back Ousmane Kromah made the most of the inconsistent blocking with some big runs in particular, but the offensive line needs to do a better job at giving a very talented back like Kromah cleaner opportunities to run.
Starting tackle Chimdia Nwaiwu perhaps had the worst overall performance of the game, but Norvell has not been quick to announce a potential swap along the line. What is perhaps more concerning is that Nwaiwu struggled across the board in Week 0, and Florida State's pass blocking did not look good even without his performance in consideration. A bad performance against SMU could look far different, but Norvell is not ready to commit to making any serious changes to his offensive line.
Mike Norvell may have missed his chance to tinker up front
The decision from Norvell has been an interesting one considering the lack of in-game snaps given out to the backup linemen against NMSU. The score was certainly closer than Norvell would have liked, but the opportunity to give players like Paul Bowling, Chastan Brown, or Jonathan Daniels in-game reps was there. Norvell has praised Bowling in particular as someone fighting for a starting job, and the decision to go with the same line the entire game seemed contradictory.
While Norvell and the Florida State staff prepare to enter Monday night with an offensive line still under the microscope, the Mustangs will deliver a polished product. Notable transfers Malcolm Alcorn-Crowder and Christian Davis are expected to start across from the Florida State offensive line, and the combination of speed and power the two possess could be too much for the current Seminoles' offensive line.
There are no signs indicating that any changes will be made ahead of the game against SMU. Norvell may very well wait until after the game, when Florida State hits a bye week, before making any decisions. SMU is certainly a program that could give Norvell serious headaches all game if he is unable to commit to finding any true solutions along the offensive line.
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