Florida State softball fans have been disappointed over the past few seasons. The Noles were runner-up in the Women’s College World Series in 2023, lost in the Super Regionals in 2024 and 2025, and failed to get out of their regional in 2026.
That’s not a great trend for Coach Lonni Alameda, as she looks for the right formula to win another national title in a sport that’s changing overnight. One program, Texas Tech, has taken an interesting approach over the last two years, spending more than anyone else, likely tampering and paying for some of the best players from other teams. Ironically, they have lost to the rival Texas Longhorns in back-to-back national title series.
There are rumors that Texas Tech is trying to poach players from Florida State. Here's to hoping they can see it takes more than money to find success.
Frankly, Texas Tech lost some games in 2026 that they had no business losing with all the talent they bought. They barely beat FSU. Some people will argue that Texas spent a ton of money on their team, but Texas didn’t literally try to poach the best players from other programs like Texas Tech.
Related Story: FSU great Jaysoni Beachum plans to enter the transfer portal
I’ve argued that Lonni Alameda needs to use the transfer portal again to get Florida State softball back to competing for national titles. I’m not saying take the Texas Tech approach, but Florida State can’t depend on 3-4 freshmen every year to play out of their minds for a realistic shot to compete with elite teams. I think this season was proof, because FSU had some really good freshmen.
However, Texas Tech proved that its approach isn’t necessarily right. It’s all about finding the right players to fill the right holes, team chemistry, and coaching. I have no doubt that Coach Alameda is among the top coaches in college softball. The last few seasons, Florida State has either not had good enough pitching or hitting when playing the best teams nationally. It’s like they are one dominant pitcher or power hitter away. That’s how most teams are operating in the portal, trying to fill those types of needs, and it’s the right way to do it. Clearly, Texas Tech is proving that sheerly throwing money all over the place isn’t good enough.
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