Mike Norvell Under Fire Over FSU’s ‘Biggest Embarrassment’ Amid Transfer Portal Blow

It isn’t every day your top local recruit ditches you for a school across the country while your head coach is out here playing tee-time tag with Kirby Smart and Urban Meyer. But that’s exactly what happened to Florida State. While Mike Norvell was busy flexing his short game at some charity golf event, the kind of 4-star edge rusher you build defenses around slipped right through FSU’s fingers. So, where did he end up?

Cam Brooks. That name alone got folks in Tallahassee heated. The 6-foot-4 pass rusher from Thomasville, Georgia—just a short drive from Doak Campbell Stadium—said nah to the Noles and committed to Cal Golden Bears. Yeah, California Cal. West Coast, 3,000 miles away, no ACC championship dreams, Cal. Let that marinate.

FSU had this kid on lock. Or so they thought. They hosted him, showed up at his crib, and gave him the whole red carpet treatment. Even got him scheduled for an official visit in June. But then, out of nowhere, Brooks posts the commitment graphic and says he’s Berkeley-bound. Cal isn’t even in his time zone, let alone his backyard. So what went left?

On April 29th, FSU insider Ira Schoffel hopped onto the Warchant podcast and didn’t hold back. He flat-out torched Norvell on his pod: “If this [Cam Brooks] kid—this young man—who’s also, like, smart, upstanding citizen, like everybody loves him, four-star defensive end—I don’t know that he’s going to end up being the next great defensive end. I do know that he’s a four-star who wants to come to your school, is 30 minutes up the road, and has been talking about Florida State his whole life.” Imagine losing home-bred talent who dreamt of rocking gold and garnet his whole life because you didn’t make him a priority. That isn’t going to sit right in Tallahassee.

Ira Schoffel doubles down and twists the dagger deep into Mike Norvell’s core: “If they lose this kid, man, to me, it’s the biggest embarrassment yet. And there’s been a ton of them. We can go through all the embarrassments they’ve had in recruiting, and a lot of them I’ve tried to excuse away. If they do not get Cam Brooks, it is the biggest embarrassment they’ve had yet. It would be like—and I said this to somebody the other day—it would have been like Florida State losing Antonio Cromartie and Ernie Sims back from Lincoln High School and North Florida Christian.”

Truth is, Brooks wanted FSU. He’s been talking about the Seminoles since Pee Wee ball. He’s a good kid, smart, respected, not some diva chasing NIL bags. Just a baller who felt Cal made him more of a priority than the school he grew up watching. That’s wild. That’s the L of all Ls. And it isn’t just Brooks.

Just days before, another 4-star edge, Trenton Henderson, said he was canceling his visit to FSU. Two top-tier local dudes, both gone. FSU’s D-line recruiting board is looking thin now. And Norvell? He’s grinning next to Urban Meyer on a golf cart like he just won the ACC.

Mike Norvell fumbles former 5-star weapon

If Cam Brooks was the punch to the jaw, Hykeem Williams was the roundhouse to the ribs. Remember him? The former 5-star wideout who had beef with Travis Hunter and had Noles Twitter drooling in 2023? Well, he just hit the portal and bounced to Colorado. Prime Time strikes again.

Williams barely got his shine in Tallahassee. In two years, he caught 21 passes, barely cracked 260 yards (267 yards to be precise), and found the end zone twice. Not exactly what folks expected from the No. 5 wide receiver in the 2023 class. But let’s keep it a buck: this man was low-key buried in a WR room deeper than a Netflix backlog. Still, you don’t lose that kind of weapon without it raising some red flags.

Deion Sanders isn’t playing. Travis Hunter gone? Jimmy Horn Jr. gone? He needed fresh legs. Hykeem’s 6-foot-2, 215-pound frame fits that bill real nice. And unlike in Tallahassee, he might actually get targets in Boulder.

So now Norvell’s looking at a portal exodus and a recruiting dry spell, all while fans wonder what the plan even is. Portal-heavy strategy? Cool. But you can’t keep whiffing on hometown stars and expect fans not to flip. Especially when Cal makes you look like JV. Look, Norvell isn’t new to pressure. He clawed FSU out of a mess after the Willie Taggart era and had the Noles sniffing playoff territory not long ago. But now? After a 2-11 nightmare, your biggest recruit chooses Cal over you while your top WR bounces to Prime’s house? Whew.

It isn’t just about the Ls. It’s about perception. Recruits watch this stuff. They see who gets prioritized. Who gets phone calls. Who gets tweets. If FSU doesn’t get Cam Brooks back on board during that June visit, the dominoes might start falling. And fast. So, next time Mike Norvell’s lining up a birdie putt next to Gus Malzahn, maybe somebody should ask: who’s recruiting your backyard while you’re out here swinging clubs with the ops?