TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida State fired coach Mike Norvell on Sunday, a move will cost the school a buyout of roughly $50 million that is among the largest in college football history.
The firing came a day after a home loss to Clemson.
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Norvell won 19 straight games from the middle of the 2022 season through an ACC title in December 2023. But the Seminoles went 10-22 since the start of the 2024 season, and Norvell’s hand-picked quarterbacks — DJ Uiagalelei, Tommy Castellanos and Ashton Daniels — all struggled with accuracy.
Florida State is 1-5 vs. Power 4 programs this fall, including a 36-24 loss to Clemson on Saturday in which the Seminoles were a five-point favorite. The Seminoles have not defeated one of their main three rivals (Miami, Florida or Clemson) since the 2023 season.
“Today is about a new beginning for Florida State and doing everything we can to support student athletes that we have here and taking the next step forward in what we’re doing,” Florida State President Richard McCullough said at an evening news conference.
Earlier in the afternoon, McCullough issued a statement saying that Norvell had been dismissed and thanked him “for his commitment and service to Florida State and wish him and his family the very best."
McCullough announced Rick Stockstill would be the interim head coach. Stockstill has been Florida State's director of scouting (offense). He previously was the head coach at Middle Tennessee from 2006-23, and Stockstill was a Florida State quarterback from 1977-81.
While Stockstill oversees the team for the next four regular-season games, McCullough hired Daniel Parker of Parker & Associates to lead a pair of concurrent searches: football coach and athletic director. McCullough dismissed athletic director Michael Alford on Sept. 14.
Now Parker will also be leading the search for a football coach.
“This is a big business decision. It’s the future, the fate of Florida State football,” McCullough said. “It’s the legacy that we have at Florida State and trying to get it right. That demands excellence on the field. And a trajectory going in the right direction. I’m just not seeing that trajectory (with Norvell). Yesterday was a bit of a defining moment for me going forward.”
Norvell went 41-39 in his six-plus seasons in Tallahassee, which also included a stunning loss to then-FCS Jacksonville State in 2021 and Memphis in 2024 in guarantee games. Norvell went just 24-30 in ACC games since 2020. His team’s incredible run three years ago to a 13-0 record — only to be left out of the College Football Playoff — seems long ago now.
His buyout is approximately $47 million, which is 85% of his remaining salary through the end of Norvell’s contract through the 2031 season. His contract does include offset language that would mitigate some of the buyout if he lands another job. Norvell was scheduled to make $10.3 million in 2026. Buying out his assistants would push the buyout far past $50 million.
Interim athletic director Bruce Warwick said Norvell was informed of the decision and called his wife, Maria. He then went into a regularly scheduled team meeting and talked to the Seminoles.
Warwick says Norvell “was very passionate, he was very emotional.” He relayed that Norvell wants to see the players find success and that he will be following them.
Florida State (3-5, 1-4) plays at Boston College (4-4, 2-3) on Saturday.
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AP Sports Writer Mark Long contributed to this report.
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