Florida State gets Clemson on Saturday night with kickoff set for 7 p.m. ET at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, and the game will air on ACC Network.
The weather outlook calls for 80 degrees and cloudy skies at kickoff, with east-northeast winds around 10 mph. AccuWeather says there’s about a 50% chance of rain at the start, dropping to 12% by 8 p.m.
FSU’s latest availability report brought a few notable updates. Defensive back K.J.
Kirkland is listed as a game-time decision, while starting cornerback Quindarrius Jones is out. Nehemiah Chandler has moved into a starting role, with Ricky Knight III shifting into a reserve spot behind him.
Jordan Crutchfield is also joining Knight in reserve.
There’s been plenty to like on the FSU side lately, starting with kicker Gabe Panikowski. He is 21-for-21 on field goal attempts in his NCAA career, including 6-for-6 this season, and he’s the only active qualified kicker in any NCAA division with a perfect career mark among those with at least 15 attempts.
Up front, defensive lineman Rylan Kennedy has been a steady force. He ranks 12th nationally in sacks and 22nd in tackles for loss this season, and he leads Florida State in both categories. He’s also recorded at least 1.0 sack in four straight games.
Quarterback Ashton Daniels has been piling up big numbers, too. He leads the ACC and ranks fourth nationally with 15.26 yards per completion. Against Virginia, he threw for 183 yards, rushed for a career-high 136 yards and accounted for five touchdowns, making him the only FBS player since at least 1995 to hit those marks in a game.
For the season, Daniels is 106-for-181 passing with 12 touchdown throws. He’s also added 354 rushing yards and 11 rushing touchdowns, and that total on the ground through seven games matches the most by a Seminole since 1995, when Antone Smith did it in 2008 and Dalvin Cook did it in 2015.
Wide receiver Duce Robinson has been FSU’s top target, leading the team with 22 catches for 407 yards and four touchdowns. Last week, he was named a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, making him Florida State’s first finalist since 2010.
Off the field, the school’s athletic department search remains a major storyline. On Tuesday, Oct.
27, Florida State president Richard McCullough posted a social media message urging patience in the hunt for a new athletic director. Three days later, Board of Trustees chairman Peter Collins told the board that FSU "underperform(s) woefully on monetizing our brand" and said the search would begin next week.
Michael Alford was fired Sept. 14, and Jim Henry broke down what that could mean for both the AD search and Mike Norvell’s future.
In Other News...
Florida State's Mike Norvell Backlash Just Turned Into A Public Spectacle
The pressure around Mike Norvell has moved well beyond message boards and postgame grumbling. Florida States recent struggles have spilled into the public eye, capped by a viral plane banner that flew over Doak Campbell Stadium with a misspelled message aimed at the coach, a vivid sign of how far the frustration has spread around a program that has not finished with a winning season in three years.
Florida State is sitting at 3-4 this season, and the noise around Norvell only grows louder with each setback. The Seminoles already fired their athletic director in September, and the president has addressed the fan unrest as the school weighs a situation made more complicated by Norvells eight-year extension through 2031 and the hefty buyout attached to any firing. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Pressure On Mike Norvell Just Turned Public
Florida States frustration with the state of the football program has now spilled into public view, with fans organizing a plane banner protest calling for changes. The effort was financed through a GoFundMe campaign that raised $3,500, a sign of how organized and visible the discontent has become as the Seminoles continue to search for traction.
The message was meant to be pointed, though it also drew attention for a misspelling of Mike Norvells name. Meanwhile, president Richard McCullough has already acknowledged the poor results and discussed the situation at a recent Board of Trustees meeting, but no decision has been made on Norvells future as Florida State gets ready to face Clemson. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Fans May Send A Brutal Message Against Clemson
Frustration has been building around Florida State football, and it is starting to spill beyond the record itself. Seminoles fans have grown restless with the programs performance under Mike Norvell, while some are also unhappy with how the university has handled his tenure, creating a tense backdrop as Clemson comes to town.
The matchup carries extra weight because Florida State has not beaten Clemson at home since 2014, and the current losing streak has only sharpened the mood. Now there is speculation that some fans could stay away from the game altogether, a message that would land as much with the administration as with the team, especially with the financial stakes of any future move on Norvell hanging over the program. [Read more 🡒]