FSU football: Mike Norvell message after 0-4 start

On Monday, during Florida State Seminoles football’s weekly presser, head coach Mike Norvell was asked about his message to recruits following the team’s 0-4 start.

The following is his answer transcribed, with video of the answer below (and will updated with better quality video.)

The [recruits] watch the games too. they see the opportunities, the opportunities for themselves...and they have a belief in who they are and that’s what I want to be around.

There’s been a lot of change in this program in the last few years, and that affects all. That affects recruiting, that affects the guys that have to come to work every single day when there’s change in the standard of operations, when there’s change in how you do things, when there’s change in what you’re looking for, the priorities of the individuals.

Well, those guys, when you lay out the vision of what you want, you live it out every day...the best recruiters we have here, are the players. Because they’re the ones who get to talk about what it is day in and day out. How our coaches care about our players, how our coaches invest, the focus on teaching fundamentals, the focus on putting playmakers in the opportunity to make plays.

But we’ve got to go out there and we got to do a better job in every one of those areas. But I’m looking for guys that want to be a part of that process too. The guys that want to be successful guys, that want to be challenged guys that are willing to step up and step out and go do something that you know, they’re gonna have to defend what “why are you going why there?” because it’s the best dang fit for them.

It’s an opportunity where they’re gonna go get pushed, they’re gonna get developed, they’re gonna have an opportunity to play it, you know, one of the greatest places in the country, right with a wonderful fan base that cares.

I mean, look, I’m pissed off that we’re 0-4, right, and we can bring up how many years it’s been, I don’t really give.. I mean, that’s not I can’t control that. I can control this team at this moment and right now with the opportunity. So we’re gonna work our butts off to go get better. And we’re going to do it the right way. And we’re gonna have a standard of how we operate, it’s going to be the same standard that we’re gonna ask him to do in the classroom the same standard of everything that we do.

I’m holding myself to it because I got to be the example. you know, what does that mean? I’m not gonna make a mistake, I’ll probably make a mistake. Might make one today, you might make one tomorrow. That’s, it’s gonna, I will respond to that. And so that’s the team I want. Because I’ve seen it work. I’ve been a part of teams that you know what, they’ve been on a losing streak. They didn’t get caught up with all the crap that was on the outside and everybody telling you what you can’t do and oh, this is the issue and that’s, yeah, it’s easy to point out that that but who wants to be a part of the solution?

And I have those guys here. I have those guys right now in the locker room. Because it’s real easy when it’s 31-7, right, which you feel it? I mean if I was a fan, I’d be pissed off 31-7. Some of them stayed, some of them didn’t. But the ones that did got to see got to see a team that responded, that played their butts off to the end. Was it a success? No, it was a failure. We did not win that game. We came up short — but they did not stop. They continued to believe. And for the guys that we recruit, for the coaches that are on this staff, for players that are on this team, that’s what I want. Because if you have that, you might have your butt knocked down, but you’re going to respond the right way.

Yes, we are 0-4. but we have today. and Lord willin, we wake up tomorrow, we have tomorrow. What we do with that, I have a lot of confidence in.