How should a team bounce back after finishing 2-10 the previous season? Or will the team even have enough to bounce back after such a season? FSU’s case in the 2025 off-season is similar. Even if Mike Norvell wanted to make a grand comeback, the circumstances won’t allow him to. The team, although it has made several high-profile changes to its coaching staff, starting with the hiring of Gus Malzahn as OC and Tony White as their DC. Still, there may not be enough left to work with as far as players are concerned.
Mike Norvell experienced significant attrition going into the offseason, as several players quickly jumped to the transfer portal just after the season finished. As many as 17 players transferred, including some big names. Malik Benson departed to Oregon, Patrick Payton, a highly touted defensive end, went to LSU, and Deuce Spann departed, emptying the receiving corps of whatever was left in it. But Mike Norvell addressed these changes as far as he could.
Despite the 2-10 finish, FSU is still a ‘power’ program touted to do great things in the near future. That’s the reason FSU pulled off a top 20-ranked recruitment class in 2025. The class, which boasts some great prospects like Kevin Wynn (DL), LaJesse Harrold (Edge), and Jayvan Boggs (WR), also has some great transfer additions among the 16 players Mike Norvell roped in. But, despite that, the wide receiver room in FSU still doesn’t live up to the ‘power’ standard.
Brian Smith, an FSU insider, discussed the concerning lack of experience and depth in Mike Norvell’s FSU wide receiver room in his April 19 podcast video. “Florida State, they don’t have the greatest depth as it is at wide receiver…They don’t have a lot of other players, I mean, they don’t have enough players to run what they need at practice, to be honest…Wide receiver room is going to be one of the youngest in the country. Now, they almost have to take somebody from the portal“.
FSU had signed Deuce Robinson from the USC Trojans, who received 396 yards last season at an impressive average of 17.2 yards per reception. Then there is Squirrel White, who joined from Tennessee and had 803 receiving yards in 2023 and 381 yards in the 2024 season. Both of these players look promising, but apart from them, no one can provide that immediate support in the receiver room.
Lawayne McCoy had just 53 receiving yards last season on 6 receptions and was on the sidelines most of the time. Then there is Elijah Moore, a blue-chip prospect who joined last season as a true freshman but didn’t see any playing time. The FSU’s wide receiver room is filled with experience and untested talent. Moreover, receivers jumping into the transfer portal is another concern.
Jalen Brown’s troubling exit exposes Mike Norvell’s woes
So far, three receivers have jumped into the transfer portal. Those being Hykeem Williams, Jordan Scott, and Jalen Brown. All three players were crucial for FSU’s receiver room, which is now looking for experience and depth. Still, Jalen Brown’s exit has more to it than just a ‘transfer’. The player, as reported by Brian Smith, was arrested on possession charges and, according to several reports, dismissed from FSU just 12 hours later.
Smith then highlighted how much of a loss it would be for FSU after losing a player like Jalen Brown. “Texas A&M, LSU, Miami, Florida State, Notre Dame, Michigan, you name it. Jalen Brown was recruited by everybody. He signed with LSU and transferred to Florida State. But he’s one of the fastest kids in the state of Florida coming out, he is one of the fastest high school kids I’ve ever seen.” Smith then added a sad part about Jalen’s arrest. “Surprised because he’s a really laid-back kid who went to an elite high school. But you never know. Sometimes young men make poor decisions, I’m sure Jaylen will bounce back.“
Jalen’s arrest will undoubtedly be a big blow to FSU. The wide receiver spent one season at LSU before transferring to FSU in 2024. Last year, he received 75 yards but was still looking to be one of the leading receivers in Mike Norvell’s setup. Brown was a top 100 prospect and also ran a 100-meter dash in just 10.6 seconds in high school. The arrest and subsequent transfer will be detrimental for both the player and Mike Norvell, who will need to urgently look for reinforcements on the portal.
The post More Woes for Mike Norvell as FSU’s Future Takes Turn for the Worse After Jalen Brown’s Troubling Exit appeared first on EssentiallySports.