FSU head coach Mike Norvell fires back amid criticism in recruiting

On3 imageby:Tim Verghese09/27/21

TimVerghese

Florida State head coach Mike Norvell launched into an impassioned speech as he explained what he and his staff are telling recruits as the Seminoles have sputtered to an 0-4 start to the 2021 season, the Seminoles’ worst start since 1974.

“They watch the games too,” Norvell told media on Monday. “They see the opportunities, they see the opportunities for themselves and they have a belief in who they are. And that’s what I want to be around. It’s easy to go maybe an easier route to something that is established. There’s been a lot of change in this program over the last few years. And that affects all.”

He continued.

“The best recruiters we have here are our players,” Norvell said. “Because they get to talk about what it is day in and day out. How our coaches care about the players, how our coaches invest, the focus on teaching fundamentals, the focus on putting playmakers in opportunities to make plays. But we’ve got to go out there and we’ve got to do a better job in every one of those areas.”

Despite the Florida State’s disappointing start to the season, Mike Norvell and the Florida State staff is recruiting at an elite level. The Seminoles hold commitments from seven players in the 2022 On300 rankings, including the top athlete in the country in Travis Hunter Jr.

Hunter is rated the No. 2 overall player in the country, and is expected to contribute immediately for Florida State, potentially on both sides of the ball.

Norvell and Co. also remain involved with the likes of Marvin Jones Jr, the top player in the country, defensive back Earl Little Jr, the No. 21 prospect in the country, athlete Kendrick Law, the No. 37 prospect in the country and four-star wide receiver Kevin Coleman, among others.

Mike Norvell will look to keep the class intact, and look to land the top targets the Seminoles remain involved with, as the disappointing 2021 season trudges on.

“I’m looking for guys that want to be a part of that process too,” Mike Norvell said. “The guys that want to be successful, the guys that want to be challenged, the guys that are willing to step up and step out and go do something that they’re going to have to defend ‘Well Why are you going there, why there?’ Because it’s the best dang fit for them. It’s an opportunity where they’re going to go get pushed, they’re going to get developed, they’re going to have an opportunity to play at one of the greatest places in the country with a wonderful fanbase that cares.”

Florida State is unlikely to make a bowl game for the third consecutive year and finish with a losing record for the fourth consecutive year, a far cry from the success the Seminoles were used to under Jimbo Fisher and Bobby Bowden.

The Seminoles opened the second year of the Mike Norvell era with an impressive performance against Notre Dame, though Florida State wound up losing in overtime, but followed up the performance with losses to Jacksonville State, Wake Forest and Louisville.

Mike Norvell and the Seminoles face Syracuse on Saturday, looking for their first win of the season.