Why the FSU football roster is a melting pot under Mike Norvell
TALLAHASSEE — Watch Florida State’s highlights from last week’s lopsided win over Syracuse, and the No. 4 Seminoles’ adroit use of the transfer portal is clear.
There’s Keon Coleman (Michigan State) making one-handed catches while joining Peter Warrick as the only FSU players with 100 receiving yards and 100 punt return yards in the same game.
There’s quarterback Jordan Travis (Louisville) accounting for three touchdowns and tying Christian Ponder for the most wins ever by an FSU starting quarterback (23). There’s future first-round pick Jared Verse (Albany) recovering a fumble and Jaheim Bell (South Carolina) making a big third-down catch.
But their successes overshadow the foundation Mike Norvell is building. FSU isn’t entering Saturday’s marquee game against No. 16 Duke as a College Football Playoff contender because of the portal alone. The Seminoles are in the championship hunt because Norvell has maximized a uniquely blended roster.
Look no further than the tone-setting, three-and-out defensive series that started the game. On the first play, Shyheim Brown and Kalen DeLoach converged for a sack. Fentrell Cypress broke up a pass on the next play, then pushed a receiver out of bounds to end the drive.
The three players at the center of those three key plays all took very different paths to FSU.
DeLoach was one of nine blue-chip recruits Willie Taggart signed during his last recruiting class. He could have transferred but stuck with the new staff and has blossomed into one of FSU’s top defensive players as a super senior.
Cypress instantly became one of the portal’s most sought-after players when he decided to leave Virginia. He chose FSU and has started every game.
A high school signee, a holdover and a transfer. That’s emblematic of this melting pot of a roster.
Norvell’s high school recruits are especially interesting because they’re so easy to overlook.
Transfer Braden Fiske (Western Michigan) has been disruptive on the interior of FSU’s defensive line. But he didn’t force the key fumble Saturday. That was the work of Joshua Farmer, who committed to the Seminoles as a high school junior during the early weeks of Norvell’s tenure.
Transfer Trey Benson (Oregon) ran for 200 yards against Virginia Tech, but he wasn’t the top rusher against the Orange. That was Lawrance Toafili, a Pinellas Park High product and member of Norvell’s first signing class.
Coleman earned his accolades after making some of FSU’s most impressive plays of the season. But so did five-star freshman Hykeem Williams, who used a sensational cut to race 44 yards for his collegiate touchdown and, crucially, made a block on the outside to help spring Toafili’s 50-yard touchdown rush.
“Man, he is absolutely ascending,” Norvell said.
Just like the rest of the Seminoles — a rare mixture of traditional recruits, portal pickups and leftovers that have meshed seamlessly to fuel FSU’s playoff push.
FSU football injury updates
Standout receiver Johnny Wilson “progressed really well over the weekend” from an injury, Norvell told reporters Monday. That’s an encouraging sign for his availability this weekend. Bless Harris also is expected to return; he started three games at left tackle earlier this season.
Norvell said Travis “is going to be good” despite apparent discomfort with his left hand/arm against Syracuse.
Week 9 kickoff, TV information
Some TV selections and game times were announced Monday for the Oct. 28 games:
- West Virginia at UCF: Noon, FS1
- Florida vs. Georgia: 3:30 p.m., CBS
The ACC hasn’t decided start times and TV designations for Florida State’s game at Wake Forest or Virginia’s game at Miami.