The demise of FSU football

[18IsTheMan]

It's been remarkable to see what has transpired in Tallahassee. Consider that, prior to hiring Willie Taggart in 2018, FSU had a run of 41 straight winning seasons and 36 straight bowl games.

How is it even possible to mess that up? That's as flat-out automatic as you can get. Can you even wrap your mind around it? If you were a FSU fan born in 1977, you'd have made it to your early 40s knowing nothing but winning seasons and bowl games. Every year. For your entire life. And we're not talking about scratching out 7 win seasons. 24 of those 41 seasons had 10+ wins. Eight of them were 8-9 wins.

Fast forward and FSU is suddenly staring down the barrel of their 5th losing season in 7 years. For perspective, they had 5 losing seasons total from 1963-2017.

No matter the program, it takes the right guy. If it's THAT easy to mess up something as automatic as FSU, think about how hard it is to find the right guy to turn a middling program around.

 

[Gamecock72]

The main issue IMO, is they lean too heavy on using the portal to build a team instead of just using it to fill in key areas of need while still using high school as the main source of players.

 

[18IsTheMan]

The main issue IMO, is they lean too heavy on using the portal to build a team instead of just using it to fill in key areas of need while still using high school as the main source of players.

That has certainly been Norvell's issue. 5 years in and he has yet to recruit and develop a single QB. The only good QB he had, he inherited from the previous staff. Norvell has demonstrated that heavy reliance on the portal is either boom or bust. But, seeing how bereft of talent a school like FSU is in a coach's 5th season is stunning. The premier team in one of the most talent-rich states in the nation should not be as untalented as FSU is this year.

 

[The Reel Ess]

This also highlights the negative side of trying to build in the NIL era.

 

[92Pony]

I almost feel sorry for FSU and their fans. I'd most certainly delight in this befalling any team with orange as their primary color though!!

 

[18IsTheMan]

I almost feel sorry for FSU and their fans. I'd most certainly delight in this befalling any team with orange as their primary color though!!

I don't often feel sorry for coaches, given the massive golden parachute they have, but I do kind of feel bad for Norvell. Before their game against Ga Tech, he was interviewed by GameDay as he strolled around the field there in Ireland. He had a confident air about him. Now he seems like a shell of his former self, reduced to using the same old coach speak platitudes after every loss that you get from lower tier coaches.

 

[18IsTheMan]

Also, FSU is off to their worst start in 50 seasons, since starting 1-6 in 1975. Impressive feat by Norvell. Not even Taggart was that bad.

 

[Gamecock72]

That has certainly been Norvell's issue. 5 years in and he has yet to recruit and develop a single QB. The only good QB he had, he inherited from the previous staff. Norvell has demonstrated that heavy reliance on the portal is either boom or bust. But, seeing how bereft of talent a school like FSU is in a coach's 5th season is stunning. The premier team in one of the most talent-rich states in the nation should not be as untalented as FSU is this year.

Yep. Sure a great team can be built from the portal but the chances of doing it year after year are slim.

 

[Piscis]

I read an opinion piece that said FSU was a look at the future of college football. The author said NIL and the portal have ruined the game and FSU is simply the first program to suffer since Norvell jumped so deep into the portal/NIL waters. The players have almost no connection to the school or the program outside of the NIL money and when things go sideways they have no motivation to play for pride or love of the school or program. The players are simply waiting out the season until they can jump back in the portal and look for another NIL deal at a program that looks better.

 

[PrestonyteParrot]

I read an opinion piece that said FSU was a look at the future of college football. The author said NIL and the portal have ruined the game and FSU is simply the first program to suffer since Norvell jumped so deep into the portal/NIL waters. The players have almost no connection to the school or the program outside of the NIL money and when things go sideways they have no motivation to play for pride or love of the school or program. The players are simply waiting out the season until they can jump back in the portal and look for another NIL deal at a program that looks better.

I think that vision has been expressed on this board by many posters and that the game of CFB is going down the tubes rapidly. Those in charge of the game are in it for the $$$$$ and are complicit in its demise or just blind.

 

[muscleknight]

College football players association
High school player draft
Collective bargaining agreement
Player contracts

 

[Piscis]

College football players association
High school player draft
Collective bargaining agreement
Player contracts

NFL JV is what you are describing. I have zero interest in that kind of football league.

 

[18IsTheMan]

The players have almost no connection to the school or the program outside of the NIL money and when things go sideways they have no motivation to play for pride or love of the school or program.

This is probably a MUCH bigger factor than most people realize. Many players today are not at all invested in the teams they play for. Team pride and all that are now extinct for the most part.

 

[Gamecock72]

I read an opinion piece that said FSU was a look at the future of college football. The author said NIL and the portal have ruined the game and FSU is simply the first program to suffer since Norvell jumped so deep into the portal/NIL waters. The players have almost no connection to the school or the program outside of the NIL money and when things go sideways they have no motivation to play for pride or love of the school or program. The players are simply waiting out the season until they can jump back in the portal and look for another NIL deal at a program that looks better.

I do not believe it will be as drastic as FSU has misused the portal. Most of the top teams do not use the portal to build their teams. They just use it to fill in some gaps but still use HS to fill in most spots.