Florida State finished with a 5-7 record in 2025, which makes it even harder to retain players on their roster. The Seminoles have already been hit with multiple instances of troubling news. Plus, head football coach Mike Norvell was retained for the 2026 season by the administration, which was discussed negatively by the fan base.
Florida State football cannot seem to catch a break, as the program has been in the shadow of its arch-rivals Miami (making the College Football Playoff and beating Texas A&M) and Florida (hiring a new head football coach in Jon Sumrall).
It feels like ever since the program was snubbed in the 2023 College Football Playoff in favor of a one-loss Alabama Crimson Tide squad, the Seminoles have been treading water where they have tried to stay afloat.
With that said, Florida State is allowed to bounce back positively. One development that could ascend the Seminoles' chances of being successful is the return of wide receiver Duce Robinson.
Things have been so quiet on the Robinson situation for the Seminoles. The legacy player was acquired via the transfer portal last offseason, where he recorded 56 receptions for 1,081 yards and six touchdowns during the 2025 season (according to ESPN Stats and Information).
The former USC product was a bright spot in the Seminoles' offense last year. Obviously, Robinson has a connection with the university since his father (Dominic) was a former player, but the pass catcher will have a new quarterback under center with signal-caller Thomas Castellanos declaring for the NFL Draft. Robinson and Castellanos were close friends on and off the gridiron.
Robinson has a nice skill set to build around with his 6'6" frame, but will he be considered at least a third-round selection? That money and sense of security from the NFL could be too good to pass up.
January 5th is the "deadline" for underclassmen that are not participating in the College Football Playoff to declare early. With that said, the transfer portal window opens up on January 2nd, so the Seminoles could likely show their hand earlier on how they feel about the return of Robinson if they pursue wide receiver help.
To be honest, I realize that Florida State is a "sinking ship" with all the bad mojo happening around the program, but the fan base should feel at least a bit hopeful that Robinson still hasn't announced anything yet with the season being over for about a month now.
This makes me feel like the coaching staff thinks there is a chance that the sensational pass catcher returns to Tallahassee in 2026, and what a wonderful Christmas gift that would be!