Florida State Football: Mike Norvell says Seminoles entering 'identity week'

The Florida State Seminoles football program is at a pivotal point in their fall practices. After going at it for more than a week, Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell declared the upcoming week for his team “identity week.”

“It’s gotta be a grind. I mean, you have to; you need to,” said Norvell. “You need to have that, and for us, it’s where we’re gonna push and challenge. I think as you jump into practice ten, you get into that this stretch, this identity week. We’ll have a great sense come next Saturday of what this team is going to be. We’ll challenge them here at the end of practice in a couple of different things, and you watch them respond.”

The Seminoles have had a solid showing in their fall camp. But as they draw nearer to the start of the college football season, Florida State has to put it all together and hopes of redeeming themselves from their tumultuous 2021 season.

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Norvell is enthused about what lies ahead for his team in the upcoming weeks; the grind and push for excellence. But are they?

“They better be. For us to be who we want to be, it’s gotta show up. When you’re sitting in a meeting room, anybody can say it, but in the moment of truth, when you’re out there on the field, and you don’t feel good, and you just had a bad play, with coaches, circumstances, and atmospheres all against you, what’s going to show up then? That’s real identity. So as we go into this week, those are the moments I’m looking for. That’s what I want to see because that’s life. We’re going to try to create adversity and give them opportunities to respond, to showcase that. The opportunity is in front of us.”

Norvell explains how movement along offensive line created ‘a mixed bag’ during scrimmage

Offensive line is not a recent strength of the Florida State football program. Of course, Mike Norvell is finally trying to turn the unit around in year three. But in the first scrimmage of the fall, the big fellas up front are still experiencing some positional shifting and the growing pains that come along with that, according to the head coach.

Norvel expressed after that practice scrimmage that the line is still trying to find its footing. Meanwhile, the coaching staff is puzzling themselves over where to slot each player and experimenting with which combinations work best. Here was his update on the group following their first scrimmage:

“Especially talking about the guys up front, I mean it was kind of a mixed bag in a lot of sense. You know, moving guys around, trying to look at different combinations. I mean it was…some uncomfortable moments first. Especially probably some of the newcomers, or some of the younger guys on the O-line. But, you know, I think all that work is there to benefit them.”