Florida State coach Mike Norvell is sitting in a hot seat that is getting hotter by the day. After Monday night’s 27-24 home loss to No. 19 SMU, fans and football experts are asking if 2026 will finally be the end of his seven-season run in Tallahassee. The Seminoles opened the year beating New Mexico State, but this latest collapse brings FSU right back to its massive financial headache that makes firing him a hugely complicated financial decision.

Florida State went 13-0 and won the ACC title in 2023, which earned Norvell an eight-year, $84M extension through 2031. But everything went downhill since then. The Seminoles painfully crashed to 2-10 in 2024 and 5-7 in 2025. Norvell has stayed on the job mostly because of his hefty contract. Cutting him loose would cost the school $51M buyout clause, though that price tag drops to around $45.6 million if the university waits until the season ends. They’d also have to run through the loop of getting acclimated to a new coach again.

Speaking live from Bobby Bowden Field at Doak Campbell Stadium, On3 analyst Andy Staples described the mood inside the venue as purely toxic. “Like this might have been the worst possible outcome because they got teased with the possibility of a win and then all of the things that have been pissing them off for the last two years happened in the final five minutes to cost them a win,” He said.

“And it’s just that it was crazy because they’re just fluctuating back and forth. I was talking to a bunch of people around here today, and yes, they want change, but then when the game kicks off, they’re fans. They love their school. They want their team to win. And it’s really tough to reconcile.”

What makes the frustration boil over is that Florida State actually had every opportunity to win this game. The Seminole defense forced four SMU turnovers, including two key interceptions in the second half.

Sophomore running back Ousmane Kromah rushed for a career-best 116 yards to keep FSU alive. Yet, the offense completely stalled when it mattered most, converting on a painful 2 out of 15 third downs. Leaving the defense on the field for too long led to the late field goal that decided the match.

The Mustangs turned the ball over four times and still won. They kicked a late 20-yard field goal with 21 seconds remaining to win 27-24. On3’s Andy Staples noted that this was exactly the kind of game FSU needed to win to show it was finally moving forward. But the Seminoles let another easy win slip away, leaving the program stuck in the same frustrating “purgatory” it has been trying to escape since 2024.

A power outage hit Doak Campbell Stadium before kickoff, making the night more bizarre and delaying the game by nearly two hours, during which the PA system, scoreboard, and helmet communication were knocked out. The game finally kicked off around 9:15 p.m. ET, after being on the verge of getting cancelled.

Staples also noted that the frustration with Florida State and Norvell inside the stadium was impossible to miss. When a video board message featuring Norvell was played during the break, fans booed him loudly for announcing that the marching band would perform at Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Florida State fans have watched the same problems play out for two years, with missed chances and fourth-quarter collapses becoming familiar. Though Norvell emphasized fixing the mistakes from Week 1, the same issues showed up again against SMU, with miscommunication and penalties once again raising questions about his future in Tallahassee.

Now, after the disappointing loss against the Mustangs, Florida State heads to Alabama after a bye week, followed by Miami, Central Arkansas, Virginia, and Louisville. If the Seminoles stumble there too, the conversation will shift from whether Norvell should be fired to when he will be out of the program.