Things got so bad for Florida State that even calls for a coaching change had trouble getting off the ground. A banner flying over Doak Campbell Stadium on Saturday delivered a blunt message to Florida State administrators: “FSU: Fire Novell • Peter Collins.”
The coach in question, of course, was Mike Norvell, not Mike Novell. Collins is the chairman of the FSU Board of Trustees.
It was a pretty significant typo for a message that didn’t leave room for interpretation.
Regardless, the message seemingly got through, as ESPN’s Andrea Adelson reported that FSU fired Norvell on Sunday.
Norvell became the fourth FBS head coach fired this season, following Maryland’s Mike Locksley, Baylor’s Dave Aranda and N.C. State’s Dave Doeren.
Even Dabo Swinney wasn’t laughing
The banner didn’t sit well with Clemson coach Dabo Swinney, who told reporters after the Tigers’ 36-24 win that “Florida State’s better than that.”
“They didn’t even spell his name right. It’s disrespectful,” he said. “… Whoever did that, you ought to be ashamed of yourself. Ain’t nobody trying to lose. This job is hard.”
How Florida State got here
Of course, the spelling mistake shouldn’t distract from the frustration behind it.
FSU’s loss to Clemson on Saturday dropped the Seminoles to 3-5 overall and 1-4 in the ACC, extending what has become a miserable stretch for one of college football’s proudest programs.
The Seminoles have lost 22 of their past 26 games against Power 4 opponents and haven’t won a game outside Doak Campbell Stadium since the 2023 ACC Championship Game.
Why firing Mike Norvell wasn’t easy
Norvell went 41-39 during his six-plus seasons at Florida State. Complicating matters: The university doesn’t have an athletic director (Michael Alford was fired in mid-September) and Norvell had a reported $47 million buyout.
Norvell’s firing gives FSU a chance to start over, but the Seminoles still face a daunting rebuild, the costly buyout and the challenge of finding a new coach without a permanent athletic director.
At least one fan had made his feelings clear, flying the banner over Doak Campbell Stadium demanding Norvell’s firing. There was just one problem: He misspelled the coach’s name.
Now, Norvell is gone. The misspelling, unfortunately, will live on.
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Mike Garbett is a content specialist working with McClatchy’s Content Innovation Lab.