Florida State coach Mike Norvell brings old-school feel to spring booster tour
After spending the evening with a few hundred Florida State supporters last week in Pensacola, head football coach Mike Norvell will make two more stops on the Seminoles Boosters spring tour this week.
Norvell will attend a smaller function today in Orlando — the event will only be open to Bowden Society members — and then he will meet the masses again on Wednesday in Miami.
There will be 10 tour stops in all, with four being private affairs open to only members of the Bowden Society — donors who have agreed to pledge $50,000 over five years. Tickets to the other six events — in Pensacola, Miami, Tallahassee, Atlanta, Fort Lauderdale and Tampa — are open to the public.
While spring booster tours have disappeared from many university calendars in recent years, Norvell said he was excited to get back on the road and interact with Florida State fans. It’s something he hasn’t had many opportunities to do since the COVID-19 pandemic struck the United States in early 2020 — shortly after he became head coach.
“I love being around our fan base,” Norvell said during the Pensacola tour stop. “I love being around our supporters. It takes everybody for our program to continue to push and continue to grow the way that we want it to. For me, I want everybody to be a part of that process too.
“Anybody can get on and watch me or watch games or do that, but it’s another thing when you get to have those face-to-face interactions. And to build the relationships.”
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The Seminole Boosters spring tour has taken many forms through the years, from golf outings and banquets with Bobby Bowden to casino nights and fishing tournaments when Jimbo Fisher was head coach. Willie Taggart participated in several speaking engagements as well.
While Norvell is not hitting the links like Bowden did for so many years, the Pensacola event did have a similar feel to the coaching legend’s tours. Norvell posed for photos with every attendee who wanted to wait in line, and he spent time personally greeting visitors before the program started.
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He also brought a pair of players from the panhandle — Pensacola’s Darius Washington and Niceville’s Azareye’h Thomas — to interact with the fans.
“It’s good to have two guys that are within different stages of their careers and their timeline here at Florida State,” Norvell said of the fifth-year veteran Washington and sophomore Thomas. “Both of those experiences are great to be able to share. And just for those guys to be able to represent the program. Not only are they great players on the field, but who they are off the field is something I’m really proud of.”
While the primary purpose of the tour is to raise money and recruit new donors for Florida State, which is still working to fund its football-only facility and other projects, Norvell said he believes fostering goodwill is important as well.
He also looks forward to bringing more players out on the road so they can connect with the fan base.
“It’s always important to understand who you represent,” Norvell said. “Just what our program means to others, and the responsibility that we have.”
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WATCH: Ira Schoffel and Tom Lang discuss the Norvell spring tour and comparisons to former events.
Talk about this story with other die-hard FSU football fans on the Tribal Council.
