Florida State’s Fall from Grace: A Catastrophe in College Football

The scene of Coach Mike Norvell from Florida State standing inert, trying to grapple with disbelief and rage over the Seminoles’ omission from the College Football Playoff in December, marks a pivotal shift. Up until that point, everything seemed within reach for the Seminoles. The conversations centred around not whether they could snag the national championship, but that they were here for the long run. The brand had undergone a revival; the legacy was upheld. But Dec. 3, 2023’s events rippled further than anyone could have imagined.

For the pragmatic college football enthusiast, it was nowhere near a shock that 13-0 Florida State — bereft of injured quarterback Jordan Travis — was overlooked for the playoff in favor of SEC victor Alabama. Depending on which team you’re rooting for, it might have seemed unjust, but the decision to omit a stellar team lacking its main quarterback for another top-tier team that had defeated #1 Georgia did not raise eyebrows.

However, the Florida State infrastructure reacted to the snub as if it was part of a larger plot. It targeted ESPN commentator Kirk Herbstreit, despite his non-involvement. It laid blame on ACC commissioner Jim Phillips, who would have been powerless to reverse the decision, even if he had pleaded personally with the members of the CFP committee. The fallout was dragged out for days, evolving into weeks, then extending into months, from which the Florida State program never fully recuperated.

Since finishing 13-0 after last year’s ACC championship game, they’ve suffered four straight losses, including Saturday’s 20-12 defeat against Memphis, a team Norvell had formerly coached for four seasons preceding his transfer to Florida State. Having started the season ranked in the top 10, Florida State has now been beaten by Georgia Tech, Boston College, and Memphis. This indicates that the 2024 season, essentially, is a washout at Tallahassee.

It eliminates the standard excuses — lack of readiness to play, taking opponents lightly, needing more time to mesh — they are in essence, simply an underperforming team. Unsurprisingly, this has led to other ACC teams rejoicing over Florida State’s misfortunes.

Florida State is presently in a legal battle to break free from a contract securing their broadcast rights through the ACC until 2036, and winning this case could potentially undermine the conference’s leverage in college sports. Is a move to a less competitive league required? Two primary hypotheses have been presented, both of which likely contribute to the situation.

The first argument is pragmatic. Heavily dependent on the transfer portal in the previous year for key players such as receiver Keon Coleman and defensive lineman Jared Verse, the 17 transfers they have brought in this year aren’t filling the significant production gap. The team’s running game is deficient, their passing game inadequate, and the defense underwhelming.

But this high variability from year to year could be standard in the current era where several teams are playing in the transfer game. Some years you land the best talent, and other years you make poor evaluations and come up short.

There are, however, extensive issues at Florida State this year suggesting a deep-rooted issue. This leads to the second speculation. Is it possible that the wider Florida State community failed to move past the events at the end of the previous season? Did they fail to channel the same energy and vigor into preparations for the 2024 season as they did in 2023? Were the Seminoles left in pieces over the Playoff committee’s decisions?

The answer to this question bears weight. With major financial constraints stemming from their attempts to leave the ACC, Florida State cannot instantly opt for a change of coaching. At the end of this season, Norvell holds a contractual entitlement of more than $60 million. For the foreseeable future, they’re stuck with each other.

Considering the 2024 season is essentially concluded, it’s time for introspection at FSU. There has been a severe derailment in the last 9½ months and it’s Norvell’s job to get things back on track. Can he perform the repair job? Due to their 0-3 start, Florida State sits atop the Misery Index, a tracking mechanism of which fan bases are experiencing the most distress, raising many questions.