Florida State’s offensive line looked like it had a pretty clear shape heading into the final stretch of fall camp. Xavier Chaplin was set at left tackle.
Bradyn Welch-Joiner was penciled in at center. Andre Otto had the inside track at left guard.
That left one spot, and all signs pointed to Troy transfer Paul Bowling being the odd man out.
Mike Norvell may have complicated that picture.
After practice on Monday, Norvell said the job is “about finding the best five,” adding that the mix could change depending on the situation and shift during the season. When he was asked about young linemen pushing for snaps, Bowling was the first name he mentioned.
That matters because Bowling has made a real case. The true sophomore played 682 snaps last season, almost all of them at center, and he finished the year with just 16 pressures allowed and one sack.
He also moved to left guard for the final two games. Even though that production came at a lower level, it has apparently given him enough of a foothold to challenge FSU’s other young interior linemen - and maybe even push past Pabst or Otto at guard.
It’s a notable twist for a group that was already rebuilt once. Coming off Florida State’s disastrous 2024 season, Norvell brought in Herb Hand to coach the offensive line and remade the unit with five transfer starters. That group took a major step forward, but all five were in their final season of eligibility, which forced Norvell, Hand and first-year general manager John Garrett to reload again this offseason.
The Seminoles added five more linemen through the portal, and four are expected to start. Otto is the presumed starter at left guard, while Chaplin is locked in on the left side, Welch-Joiner is slated to handle center, and the right side still has Nate Pabst and Chimdia Nwaiwu in the mix at guard and tackle.
Bowling changes that equation. If he’s ready now, Florida State has to find a way to get him on the field, and that could create a real battle on the right side over the final days of camp.
That’s especially true because Pabst can play both guard and tackle. Hand has enough flexibility to test several combinations, and that may be exactly what happens as the Seminoles get ready for New Mexico State in Week 0. Florida State opened preparation for that game on Monday, with the season opener against New Mexico State set for August 29 at Doak Campbell Stadium.
There’s still time for this to settle, but it doesn’t sound settled yet. Norvell said the staff is looking for the best five, and the most likely path now seems to be sorting out three right-side combinations: Bowling and Pabst, Bowling and Nwaiwu, or Pabst and Nwaiwu.
For now, center through left tackle looks fixed. The right side is where the intrigue lives.
In Other News...
Florida States Backfield Just Earned Respect Now Comes The Hard Part
Florida States backfield got a notable nod this week when Ousmane Kromah and Quintrevion Wisner were both named to the 2026 Doak Walker Award watch list. Its a small piece of preseason recognition, but it says plenty about how the Seminoles running game is viewed heading into the fall, especially with Florida State joining a short list of programs nationally to place multiple backs on the watch list and standing as one of only two ACC teams to do it.
Kromah and Wisner have each built enough of a track record to draw attention, and now comes the tougher part: turning that respect into production once the games count. The watch list honors are nice, but for Florida State the real question is whether this tandem can match the hype, carry the offense when needed and give the Seminoles a ground game that can hold up against the better defenses on the schedule. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Enters 2025 With Mike Norvell Under Immediate Pressure
Florida State opened 2025 on the outside of the AP preseason Top 25 again, a familiar and frustrating place for a program that has spent much of the Mike Norvell era trying to climb back into national relevance. It is the fifth time in seven years under Norvell that the Seminoles have been left out of the poll, a reminder that last years struggles and a modest transfer portal haul have not yet changed the bigger perception around the program.
The path back will not be easy, either. Florida States schedule includes four ranked opponents, with Miami, SMU, Louisville and Alabama all waiting to test whether the Seminoles are ready to rejoin the conversation. Norvell enters the season with the pressure already building, and how this team handles the early months could determine far more than just its place in the rankings. [Read more 🡒]
Florida States Biggest 2026 Question Is All About Where The Money Went
Florida State kept Mike Norvell in place for a seventh season, even as the conversation around the program has shifted from coaching stability to whether the investment around him is being allocated the right way. The Seminoles poured more than $20 million into the roster, with a clear emphasis on skill positions, and the expectation in Tallahassee was that an aggressive offseason would help reset the programs trajectory.
The question now is whether the most important spot on the field got enough of that attention. The Athletics offseason quarterback rankings suggested Florida State may not have landed at the same level at quarterback as some of its other additions, leaving Ashton Daniels in a less favorable tier than several of the passers brought in elsewhere. For a program trying to justify both its spending and its direction, that is the kind of mismatch that can loom over an entire season. [Read more 🡒]