TALLAHASSEE — Mike Norvell is 12-7 in November as Florida State’s head coach. While two were victories over FCS teams, the Seminoles have produced five rivalry wins (three vs. Miami, two against Florida) in previous Novembers in the Norvell Era.
If he is to remain the Seminoles’ coach, Norvell will need to not just defeat Wake Forest on Saturday but also stack victories in November.
FSU has chances ahead, facing five unranked opponents. But there are also two rivals that have fallen on hard times: Florida (3-4) has dismissed coach Billy Napier, and Clemson (3-4) is facing the prospect of its worst season under coach Dabo Swinney since a 6-7 mark in 2010.
Perhaps this can filed under the “both things can be true” category: FSU’s four straight losses are perplexing, especially given the season-opening win against Alabama, but the opportunities are there to find confidence and respect in November.
“It’s all about the result,” Norvell said. “When you find yourself in a negative stretch where you haven’t been able to overcome that, you go and you look at it collectively big picture and then you try to break it down into each phase positionally, personnel-wise, and there’s different dynamics of things that have showed up that have cost us.”
If FSU had protected the football (limiting interceptions and fumbles) or played with better discipline (13 penalties at Stanford), the storyline to the season could be far different. The self-inflicted mistakes don’t erase four losses, but they explain a reasoning. It’s easy to see how FSU could be 5-2 instead of 3-4.
There are plenty of X’s and O’s in every game, but we often forget games are played between the ears. Are the Seminoles still focused and bought in to win or will some pack it in? Are leaders still leading? Does Norvell’s voice still carry weight among players? These questions should be answered with how FSU plays vs. Wake and it will shape the forecast for the rest of November.
“We’re just sticking together really well,” said FSU offensive lineman Richie Leonard, a Cocoa native. “Even through the ups and downs of the season, I don’t see any lack of fight anytime we step out on the field, any lack of effort, anything of that sort. I definitely like what I’m seeing.”
