Rumors tying Jimbo Fisher to Florida State are the kind of thing that says as much about the Seminoles’ situation as it does about the coach himself.
Bruce Feldman’s report kicked off chatter that some people at FSU would like to see Fisher back in Tallahassee if Mike Norvell is fired. Yahoo Sports shared the note that Fisher reportedly “really wants the job” after spending eight seasons as the Seminoles’ head coach and winning a national championship in 2013.
For Miami, the noise is almost more amusing than alarming. Fisher would be a clear upgrade over Norvell, and he’d likely come at a price FSU can stomach more easily than a bigger-name swing. But the bigger issue is that changing coaches does not solve what’s actually broken in Tallahassee.
Miami’s rise has been built on infrastructure, not just the man on the sideline. Mario Cristobal is a strong coach and, in this view, an underrated one.
He’s not flawless, but he has shown a willingness to adjust, and that matters. Still, the Hurricanes’ progress has also come from the broader operation around him - GM Dennis Smith and plenty of people working out of the spotlight who scout players, build NIL packages, raise money, maintain the practice fields, make calls and handle the other behind-the-scenes work that keeps a program moving.
That’s the part Florida State has not matched. If the Seminoles think Fisher alone can walk in and fix everything simply because he’s better than Norvell, they’re missing the lesson Miami already learned. When Cristobal came back to Coral Gables, he did so with the understanding of what works in today’s college football and with the backing to build it.
FSU, meanwhile, has leaned on quick fixes after Michael Alford signed Norvell to that long-term extension. Miami took the harder route. It dealt with some growing pains and trusted that patience would pay off.
There’s even a chance Florida State moves on from Norvell before the Miami game on October 17. That would make sense. But firing him and swapping in Fisher would not magically solve the deeper problems.
Miami understood what it takes to win big and win consistently. The process took time, and it took patience. That’s the difference.
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For the Hurricanes, the timing matters because Jones is set to take a gameday visit for the Central Michigan game, a useful chance to make an impression before the recruitment gets crowded. He has said he wants to find the right fit, and with Power Five interest beginning to build, Miami will be trying to show why it can be more than just another school watching from the outside. [Read more 🡒]