The hate Mike Norvell is receiving from FSU fans seems unprecedented in the school’s history. The head coach’s troubled tenure is pushing fans to their limits, and most of them want him gone. To outsiders and laymen, the Norvell situation is either unpleasant or just unfortunate. However, for people like former Seminoles quarterback Danny Kanell, who’ve been closely associated with the school, Norvell’s unpopularity is at a new low after a 1-1 start to his seventh FSU year.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
“It is as bad and as toxic as an environment,” Kanell told the hosts of “The Next Round” podcast. “I’ve told you guys this, that offseason was that way; it has only gotten worse as the season has started. It is bad.”
The podcast shared the 52-year-old’s take on the persisting FSU-Norvell debacle in an X post on September 18. Kanell also shared his firsthand experience of witnessing the hostility Seminoles fans are subjecting Norvell to. The 1992 quarterback shared that fans booed Norvell every time the Bobby Bowden Field jumbotrons featured him.
“I was there,” Kanell said, recounting how fans showered boos on Norvell during the game, each time they saw him, and chanted ‘Fire Norvell’ after the Seminoles lost 27-24 to the SMU Mustangs.
While both Norvell and fans are accustomed to this public display of aggression, given his poor 8-18 record since the start of the 2024 season, a speculative post on X a few days ago caught everyone’s attention.
The X post allegedly showed moving trucks outside of his Tallahassee house. Because it came after FSU fired athletic director Michael Alford, the spotlight on Norvell’s job security increased. Although he currently holds a 39-35 record, Norvell dismissed news of a move when asked about the trucks outside his house.
“I don’t look a whole lot online. For me, all of our focus is on this team, and that’s where I live,” Norvell laughed off the rumors in a press conference earlier this week. “There can be plenty of speculation, there can be plenty of things that are out there, and I get the opportunity to show up every day, bring the right attitude, bring the right mentality, bring the right work, pouring into this team, pouring into these players. I believe in that.”
Norvell’s side of the story presents a different outlook on the situation altogether. He said that trucks were delivering furniture at his home, including a desk for his daughter. He seems unfazed by the looming threat to his stint with the Seminoles.
He signed an eight-year contract extension that ties him to the program until 2031. He is reportedly paid around $10 million annually, and his paycheck rises every year. Moreover, Norvell’s buyout is said to be between $46.7 million and $51 million if he’s fired without cause during or at the end of this season.
Mike Norvell undoubtedly will go down as a cautionary tale in SFU history. Whether his tenure has some more years left is to be seen.