Louisville exposes Mike Norvell’s Florida State problem

What Happened

Louisville erased a 14-0 deficit Friday, Oct. 9, and beat Florida State 44-20 behind 35 unanswered points, sending the Seminoles to their 13th consecutive road loss and sharpening the pressure on coach Mike Norvell. The turning point came with Florida State threatening to make it 21-0. Rather than put the ball back in quarterback Ashton Daniels’ hands on a run-pass option, Norvell called a swing pass to true freshman Jasen Lopez. On Louisville’s next snap, Isaac Brown ran 97 yards for a touchdown. “For Mike Norvell, this may very well go down as two yards and a cloud of doom,” Yahoo Sports columnist Mike Bianchi wrote. Florida State is 3-3 after following last season’s 5-7 finish with another road collapse. A loss at Miami on Saturday, Oct. 17, would leave the Seminoles 3-4 and put Norvell’s future at the center of the ACC conversation. Florida State has not publicly addressed whether his job is in immediate jeopardy.

THE PATE STATE READ

Norvell’s team followed a 5-7 season by reaching 3-3, then lost another road game after building a 14-0 lead. That is why the scrutiny extends beyond one play. It has not shown it can hold them together when the game turns. Florida State has not announced a coaching decision, and the Miami game has not been played. The result there will separate a damaging loss from a deeper collapse, with Norvell’s reported $49 million buyout hanging over the decision. Norvell now has a productive running game to trust, a defense that just allowed 397 rushing yards and a rivalry game that can move the program’s argument in one direction or the other.(Josh has not yet commented.)