The 2024 season with FSU football has been a disaster. It's unacceptable, and Mike Norvell knows it. It's why he announced the firing of three coaches on Sunday evening with two games remaining in the season. It's never a good thing to fire people, but it's a business that affects a myriad of things, including people in the local economy who depend on FSU football having a great product so they can make a living.
FSU has never been this bad in my lifetime(I'm 46), but Mike Norvell sent a strong message in his Monday press conference. He indicated there has already been strong interest in the three open positions(there'll be more once the season concludes). I wrote about what I think happened for FSU football to become the worst Power Four team in 2024 here.
Mike Norvell knows what it takes to build a program. He's seen and done it in short order and believes they'll do it again at FSU.
"We are gonna bounce back, we're gonna bounce back quickly." "It is with every part of my spirited being to get this right, and we're going to get it right. We're gonna bounce back, we're gonna be on track to be to where we need to be going. The message to the players and everyone around the program is your best is gonna be required."
"Our choice now is to go fight for our improvement, to believe in each other, to believe in what the standard and expectation it is to be a part of this program...because there will be no let up, there will be no pullback, it doesn't matter who it is. To be a part of this program there will be one way that we're operating moving forward and it will be with everything that I got and all those that surround me."
Based on Mike Norvell's comments above at that press conference, I'm in the ballpark with what happened. Ultimately, I think Mike Norvell allowed guys to get too comfortable and the accountability wasn't there across the board.
I think Mike Norvell let guys relax too much after the snub, and that goes for players and coaches. I think he realizes that. Here's the challenge. If you have children and you have rules that you enforce. What happens the one time you don't enforce those rules? The child's expectations change and you have to fight to re-establish the rules and enforce them again.
Luckily, Mike Norvell can bring in new kids who didn't experience the rules getting relaxed. He can bring in new coaches with new voices to re-establish those rules with young guys on the team. That dynamic, and holding guys accountable, so they'll want to hold one another accountable, along with recruiting more talented players is the key to Mike Norvell's turnaround.
Who he chooses to hire will dictate if he's right that they'll turn things around quickly. The great thing about FSU is it has proven more than anywhere else, that success can come quickly with the right staff.