Talk about a wild season for FSU and Coach Mike Norvell. After their incredible undefeated run in 2023, FSU’s 2024 stock dipped like the 2007 market crash, finishing 2-10. Fans immediately started calling for his buyout. However, FSU’s board kept the faith and decided to go all-in on Mike Norvell for 2025. So far, this season has been another nightmare, and people have been seriously questioning whether Norvell lost his mojo. However, with the win over Wake Forest, FSU DBs favor Mike Norvell amid the hot seat.

After the game, Edwin took it to X and cleared the air between him and the boss with an emotional message: “He pushes me the hardest because of the love we got for each other, He truly cares about us and not the number on our jersey, My emotions ran high before but It doesn’t represent that last name on the back of my jersey and the respect I grew up on, Learn and Grow.”

This moment became a visible reminder that the team stayed unified and that the drama was behind them. Despite all the “fire Mike Norvell” talk going around in Tallahassee, that sideline celebration was a game-changer because it showed the team wasn’t giving up on Norvell.

Just a couple of weeks earlier, during a tough 20-13 loss against Stanford, defensive back Edwin Joseph was even caught on camera looking pretty heated with Norvell. The outside noise was getting deafening, with many wondering if the team had lost faith in their head coach. But the much-needed weekend win against Wake Forest, a 42-7 smackdown, felt like one more week of employment for Mike Norvell and a sigh of relief for Florida State.

Even after a rough stretch, during which they had an overall record of 5-13 since signing his big contract, the players were still fighting for him. The win snapped the losing streak and moved them to a respectable 4-4 on the season, with a 1-4 record in the ACC. This single-handedly put the ‘Mike Norvell doesn’t give 2 cents about the locker room’ narration on ice.

If Mike Norvell leads the team to eight wins this season, he might even curve the firing zone. According to ESPN, the Seminoles are expected to make a bowl appearance.

Gasparilla Bowl for the Florida State Seminoles, per ESPN

ESPN writers Mark Schlabach and Kyle Bonagura both think Mike Norvell and Florida State could end up playing in the Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa on December 19. Bonagura predicts they’d face USF, while Schlabach says UConn would be the opponent.

A matchup with USF would be exciting, as the Bulls have been one of the top Group of Five teams this year – they even beat Florida in Gainesville without breaking much of a sweat. Playing in Tampa would also draw an enormous crowd of FSU fans. Before that happens, though, the Seminoles still have some work to do.

They play Clemson next, a team that’s surprisingly lost its last two home games. Then they’ll travel to Tallahassee to take on Virginia Tech, followed by road games at NC State and Florida to wrap up the regular season. The schedule isn’t as demanding as it seems on paper.

If FSU keeps playing like they did in their big win over Wake Forest (the Demon Deacons) or even in their season-opener upset against No. 8-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, then earning a bowl game spot looks pretty possible.