Everybody knows Mike Norvell is starting the 2025 season on a hot seat. If a fall from grace could be charted, Florida State’s plummet from 13-1 glory to a 2-10 catastrophe might deserve its own wing in the college football Hall of Shame. Once dancing at the playoff in 2023, the 6th-year HC now finds himself squirming in a cauldron of heat. The Seminole fans aren’t just restless; they’re unforgiving. And in a world where seven wins might triple last year’s tally, mediocrity isn’t a balm. It’s a billboard for change.
As CBS analyst Josh Pate sees it, Mike Norvell is coaching for his job in 2025. In a new episode of Josh Pate’s College Football Show on May 27, he laid down his raw stance—“I still can’t believe that this is a real thing. Mike won the ACC during an undefeated regular season two years ago, and we are now taking about him in do-or-die territory.”
This is a man who once wore the ACC crown. He’s now lugging a 33-27 record with just a couple of winning seasons and a single bowl berth. And the drastic drop-off in their season record didn’t do them any favors.
“They were minus 11 drop-off last year,” Josh Pate said, sounding the alarm. “That’s the only time that’s ever happened at the Power Four level where a team won 11 fewer games the next year than they did the year before.” The only other program to suffer such a collapse was the 2011 Southern Miss squad under Ellis Johnson. That’s not the company Mike Norvell ever wanted to keep. And with his seat getting hot, the HC didn’t just shuffle the deck; he blew up the whole table, which Pate calls “the reset vibe.”
Dec 2, 2023; Charlotte, NC, USA; Florida State Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell on the sidelines during the second quarter against the Louisville Cardinals at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
Out with the old and in with the bold. Mike Norvell brought in Gus Malzahn and Tony White as the OC and DC, respectively. Still, buzz doesn’t mean belief unless the real action plays out. And there’s still the lack of recruiting momentum adding to their woes. “Three of their past four classes have been outside the top 15, so there’s not this foundational bedrock of homegrown talent,” Josh Pate added.
That’s the difference with other HCs like USC’s Lincoln Riley and Auburn’s Hugh Freeze, who are also on the hot seat heading into 2025. While FSU hauled in the No. 18 in the current recruiting class, it pales compared to the Trojans’ No. 15 and the Tigers’ No. 6. But there’s one electric wildcard in Norvell’s deck.
Can Thomas Castellanos change the narrative around Mike Norvell?
Maybe Thomas Castellanos is the biggest potential game-changer that Mike Norvell and FSU bet on this offseason. The Boston College transfer ran for 1,366 yards and 18 TDs last season. He’s elusive, dynamic, and, perhaps most importantly, the kind of QB that gave Alabama fits in 2024.
As On3 analyst JD PicKell said, “The kind of quarterback that gave Alabama trouble a year ago is exactly the same kinds of quarterback that Florida State’s rolling with here with Tommy Castellanos.” That’s timely considering the Tide comes to Tallahassee on August 31 to open the season.
PicKell further noted, “I like the way he fits the system. I like Gus Malzahn. I like a lot about this. He still has to go out there and prove it.” Vegas has FSU’s win total pegged at 7.5. It’s respectable, but is it redeeming? Not unless it’s a stepping stone to something greater.
A $64M buyout is trending for Mike Norvell on Google. So the pressure is real. For Mike Norvell, 2025 isn’t just about winning. It’s about rewriting a legacy already slipping into folklore for all the wrong reasons.
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