Florida State’s Norvell has Horrific Attitude Toward Losing
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At his weekly
press conference on Monday, Florida State coach Mike Norvell addressed the
media about the Seminoles’ 50-36 loss to No. 10 Alabama on Saturday. Norvell
waxed not so eloquently, and with no angry passion, about his team’s performance, and collapse, against the Crimson Tide.
Norvell commented
on how the Seminoles held a 21-6 lead 28 minutes into the game. He praised his
quarterback, Ashton Daniels, who passed for 377 yards and two touchdowns, and
added two rushing touchdowns. Yes, Duce Robinson finally became a weapon in the
offense, with six catches for 135 yards (22.50 yards/catch) and a touchdown. But
that is where the positives stop.
Daniels
also threw three interceptions, costly turnovers that killed Florida State
drives and resulted in missed opportunities to put Alabama up against the ropes
with some body blows. The Florida State defense folded under pressure, like
origami.
They
allowed 220 yards rushing and 24 points scored against them in the second half.
Normally, that is grounds for some “spicy rhetoric” when describing a team’s
performance in a loss. But you will not see that from Norvell.
“You get a chance to be in that situation, competing in
the into the fourth quarter, one-score game, in a place that's very difficult
to go and win at,” said Norvell, in a normal, conversational tone. “I thought we put ourselves in
position but, did not get the job done. But I am proud of
the fight of our players.”
The same reason that a win
is a win, is why a loss is a loss. The fact that you were ahead 21-6 makes it even worse.
It appears
more and more each week, that Norvell is not the kind of guy to pound a table
at a press conference after a loss, like Brian Kelly displayed after LSU lost to
USC in the 2024 season opener.
Nor is he
a Saban type of guy who blows a blood vessel on the sideline because of a
defensive penalty called on Alabama, with a 56-3 Crimson Tide lead in the
fourth quarter against New Mexico State in 2021. But that is exactly why Saban
won six national championships at Alabama.
And he is
certainly not cut from the same cloth as Texas A&M coach Mike Elko, who had
this to say after his ninth-ranked Aggies lost to Kentucky on Saturday, “Hat's off to
Kentucky," Elko said. "They came in here, and they beat our a**. Not good enough from us on any level. Coaching, playing, performing,
physicality. Anything.”
Florida State should (and probably
will) beat Central Arkansas on Saturday. But with the remainder of their ACC
schedule being a brutal gauntlet, Norvell’s horrifically lackadaisical attitude
toward his team’s performance in a loss, will be a major reason why Florida
State may not win another game. And, why Norvell may not survive the chopping
block past the road game at Miami.
Not putting the fear of God in the
players gives these underperforming young adults a false sense of security,
that mediocrity is acceptable as long as you put in the same effort.
Change is warranted at Florida State.
This kind of underperforming style of play, and failure to develop and improve
from week to week, certainly cannot be left unchallenged. A little fiery
disposition displayed by the head coach from time to time never hurt anyone.
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