The prevailing wisdom in Tallahassee is that Mike Norvell is a lame-duck head coach heading into his final season at Florida State as the program’s decision-makers wait for his buyout to drop to a more reasonable number. For much of the offseason, Norvell’s recruiting efforts reflected that reality with a class situated outside the top 50 nationally.
A three-commit hot streak landing four-stars Jernard Albright, Jayden Miles, and Sean Green on consecutive days served as a bit of optimism for the fanbase. And though the Gregory Batson decommitment on Wednesday rained on that parade, the class is still in a better spot with Albright, Miles, and Green in the fold.
If the commitments didn’t generate enough positivity for Florida State fans, maybe Green’s post-commitment comments could be the sliver of hope to hold on to.
“Definitely, just the brotherhood was big for me this weekend,” Green said of his official visit to Tallahassee. “I love how they have a brotherhood. Being able to hang out with them this past weekend, I could just feel how they’re all connected, and I could see how humble they are.”
Sean Green sees a tight-knit bunch of Seminoles and that’s a bit of a surprise
For a program that has been unable to get off the mat since its unfortunate exclusion from the 2023 College Football Playoff, that family vibe may not be what you would expect to find. The fact that the program is still together with a head coach on a scorching hot seat is good news, but if that wasn’t enough, Green’s quote about Norvell’s recruiting efforts may pique your interest.
"Definitely Coach Norvell,” Green told Rivals’ Chad Simmons about the member of the coaching staff who was most active in his recruitment. “It’s a tight race between Coach Norvell and Coach Harris because Coach Norvell texts me almost three times a week, saying good morning, asking how I’m doing, and how practice went.”
Sean Green lauds Mike Norvell’s much-maligned recruit efforts amid hot streak
It may be unfair to consider Norvell to be on a hot streak after Batson’s decommitment. Losing the three-star, in-state linebacker is a considerable blow that thrusts the Seminoles back outside the top 50 in the national rankings. Still, even being bookended by decommitments from Mekhi Williams and Batson, this run is the most positive momentum he’s generated throughout the offseason.
In some sense, it’s just that time of year when recruits are taking official visits and commitments are getting made. Really, it doesn’t mean much until pen is put to paper, either during the Early Signing Period or before, with a meaningful NIL deal. In another, though, Norvell seems to be taking more of a hands-on approach with top recruits, and it paid off with a major recruiting win over Georgia and other powerhouse programs that were after the No. 46 wide receiver in the country.
Norvell doesn’t have much to recruit with. FSU spent heavily on a stadium renovation, and the major donors are seemingly keeping their powder dry to eventually pay his buyout. So, maybe, for the first time in his tenure, he’s going to put the effort into high school recruiting that’s necessary to build an elite class.
If you buy into Green’s comments, then that could be worth something if Norvell manages to hold onto the job with an impressive turnaround in 2026. The cruel irony, however, is that it’s almost certainly too little too late.
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