Florida appeared to be the more dysfunctional program before playing Florida State University on Saturday, but the Gators rolled over the Seminoles 40-21 in front of 90,007 fans at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
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Florida is no longer in contention to land Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin, prompting the fan base to call for athletic director Scott Stricklin’s job.
On Sunday, reports surfaced that FSU intends to keep Mike Norvell as its head coach for 2026 while making changes in areas of recruiting and player evaluation. The product on the field Saturday didn’t look promising for Norvell and the Noles.
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Following the loss, Norvell suggested he was open to making changes on the coaching staff before next season.
“There will be a time and place for all parts of that evaluation,” Norvell said about evaluating the coaching staff via Warchant.com. “I do believe we’ve shown growth … but we’ve got to do a better job.”
Earlier this week, FSU offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn gave a cryptic answer about his future with the program, saying he was focused on beating Florida.
“Yeah. My intent is to help us get bowl eligible and win this game, and that’s exactly what my focus is,” Malzahn said.
That didn’t happen, and some changes in Tallahassee could be coming soon.
Norvell has higher expectations for FSU in 2026.
“We’ll meet tomorrow afternoon,” Norvell said. “We’re going to work, assess, address everything necessary to go get it better, get it fixed … This is a championship-level program and we need to be competing for championships.”
Florida State’s season looked promising when it defeated then-No. 8 Alabama 31-17 in Week 1. However, the Seminoles finished the regular season with a 5-7 record.
Norvell is 38-34 overall and 22-26 in ACC play after six seasons with the program. He will likely begin next season on the hot seat.
For more on the NCAA, head to Newsweek Sports.
