LOUISVILLE, Ky. – State of Florida followed his best performance of the season with his worst. Another plane ride, another loss and the same story that has been unfolding for over a thousand days. Resilience and tenacity did not travel with Mike Norvellthe program of recent years.
FSU had Louisville on the ropes, but it wasn’t to be. A game of rope that Muhammad Ali would have enjoyed took place at Derby City on Friday evening.
The Seminoles got off to a strong start before their momentum came to a screeching halt on a failed fourth-down attempt early in the game, with FSU leading 14-0. The Seminoles went for the jugular and failed. What followed was a haymaker that dropped them to the canvas as Louisville pulled back. Isaac Brown ran 97 yards for a touchdown.
After that, it was never the same again. The team that had won the first round was suddenly reeling, struggling and just trying to hang on for their lives.
Jeff Brohm’s team at Louisville identified a weakness and exploited it time and time again. The Cardinals racked up 400 rushing yards before kneeling to end the game.
FSU’s offense, which had managed to sneak through the heart of Louisville’s defense on its first few drives, suddenly couldn’t find a first down as the scoreboard shifted away from the Seminoles and quickly began moving in the wrong direction.
A strong start, what FSU lacked in its strong performance a week ago, was erased in moments. The Seminoles could have been a contender, but instead they looked like the same old testing horse they have routinely become for league opponents in recent years.
Louisville struck again, and again, and again, and again. Sometimes it was blows and body blows. Other times it was big swings and punches. The Cardinals seemingly clinched them in the final 45 minutes.
For the first time in 2026, it felt like the FSU football team had surrendered and accepted its fate while there was still plenty of time left on the clock. The Seminoles didn’t try to make this a fight that went all the way to the end. This is a disappointing development that serves as a reminder of how the previous two versions of this team failed when things got tough and the calendar turned to October and, ultimately, November.
A .500 football team now abandons Friday night experience to take on the current ACC juggernaut on the road next Saturday.
It feels like this fight is already over before it even begins. When the adversary is a hated rival within the state, it’s a pretty worrying notion.
And that brings us back to the most important point, the same one that has been the center of attention for at least 355 days, dating back to FSU’s defeat at Stanford last season: running the football program.
Norvell remains employed, in most observers’ estimation, because of the financial burden of what he is owed, whether or not he coaches the Seminoles.
FSU’s leadership — those above Norvell who ultimately make decisions about his employment — are standing in the corner, watching FSU get pummeled on a regular basis, but they just won’t throw in the towel.
They continue to watch the haymakers land and the knockouts pile up, but they’re not willing to say enough is enough.
Gn sports
