Noles News: FSU will enter November with what record?

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Football:

If all three players representing FSU at the ACC kickoff have an excellent year then you’re looking at a FSU that won either 8 or 9 games in 2026. ESPN’s FPI has FSU’s schedule as a top-25 schedule in the country, they’re going to have to bring their A-game for a successful 2026.

Speaking of 2026, what will FSU’s record be after the first two months of the season?

The answer to that question could very well be the defensive back room; FSU will be starting redshirt juniors and seniors in this year’s secondary but there are a number of talented first and second year players that will have to see snaps this fall.

Tom Herman has been added to Florida State’s coaching staff for the 2026-2027 season. Mike Norvell has resumed play-calling following the retirement of Gus Malzahn but it’s clear that he wanted another veteran presence with play-calling ability in the room.

The move is certainly an interesting one for head coach Mike Norvell, who clearly feels that he needed more help on his offensive staff after the abrupt retirement of former offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn in February. While certainly a late add in the offseason with fall camp starting in less than a month, Herman should bring a new perspective and take some of the offensive load off of Norvell’s plate.

Recruiting:

247 graded FSU’s recruiting class by position and I only needed to see the offensive line grade to fully agree.

This is the most glaring hole in the class and there’s no sugarcoating it. FSU hosted one official visitor at the position — DaJohn Yarborough — and couldn’t close on him. Yarborough ultimately chose to take his talents to Cal. Herb Hand has not demonstrated consistent recruiting ability at this level, and the offensive line situation entering 2026 (where all five starters are new) makes the lack of momentum in this class even more concerning. Until there’s a pulse here, this grade doesn’t move.

One official visitor for the offensive line over the entire summer (who commits to Cal) feels like intentional sabotage of the football program.

Another grade I agree with is defensive line; considering the state of FSU’s program and how premium defensive line recruiting is in the south FSU did a good job here to land some quality prospects.

DEFENSIVE LINE: A-

LeJeune is the headliner of this class as the Top247 four-star who chose FSU over Cal and Washington after a long recruitment in which the Seminoles were his first offer nearly two years ago. The big qualifier here is whether he sticks around until December with Cal still involved in his recruitment to some degree

FSU has one DB committed and there’s a decent chance they land the most talented prospect on their board in top-100 safety Ta’Shawn Poole on Friday.

All Sports:

We are one month away from the return of FSU Soccer and the National Champs getting ready for a repeat:

FSU continues to reload after bringing in the top-rated class in the portal.

The offseason grind continues for Men’s Basketball; Florida State has the 22nd best odds to win the National Title in 2027.

Pro Noles:

Jamie Arnold has been shining in AA ball in the Oakland Athletics’ farm system:

ProFootballNetwork ranked the top 100 players in the NFL and Brian Burns came in at No.43 after an excellent 2025 season.

Though he was coming off a down year when the Giants acquired him after the 2023 season, Brian Burns has found new life in New York. In each of his two seasons with the team, he’s graded in at least the top eight in PFN EDGE Impact Scoring, landing at No. 3 overall with a 90.9 score in 2025.

Not only did Burns’ 16.5 sacks last year mark a career high for him, but they also ranked second in the entire NFL. Since he entered the league back in 2019, his 71.0 sacks are the fifth-most of any player in that span. He’s a certified sack artist who also placed sixth among edge rushers with an 86.0 run-defense score last year.

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