FSU head coach Mike Norvell talks team health, fourth-down decisions after Wednesday's practice

Florida State Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell spoke with the media today after practice ahead of an at-home matchup against the No. 4 Clemson Tigers this weekend. The Noles are coming off a road game loss to NC State last weekend and are looking to bounce back from their six-game losing streak to the Tigers.

Battling through injuries, offensive lineman Robert Scott Jr. was able to play last weekend against NC State but was limited. in what he could do. Mike Norvell addressed his injury and said he’s excited for him to continue to heal.

“Rob is a very consistent player for us. Coming off the injury saying he was 100 percent, probably not, but he battled. Worked so hard, cared so much, did some good things, but then there’s some limitations that kinda showed up where he was restricted. I think he feels better this week than I think he did last, so I’m excited to continue to take those steps.” adding that he was “Grateful for him and the type of young man that he is.”

Freshman offensive lineman Julian Armella has seen game time against wins over Duquesne and Boston College and stood out this week in practice. Norvell said that he thought Julian was doing well and was excited about his future.

“Julian is doing well. I thought yesterday was one of the better practices he’s had. Playing as a freshman is challenging at that position,” he said. “There’s so many of the details and the techniques and the changing of pictures that you’ll see and having to be able to react, you know, Julian cares so much, and I’m excited about what his future is going to be.”

With so many questions from the fan base about fourth down play calling and kicker Ryan Fitzgerald’s recent misses, Norvell said that he has confidence in his kicker and that they are in-game decisions.

“Like I said, I’m very confident in what Ryan can do. You know, obviously, there's different things in each game, and a lot of factors play into it. As we get into games, we are gonna go with our thoughts on how we want to attack, and we are going to go with our thoughts on what some metrics say but also just, you know, the feel in the moment as well.”

“I think he’s regained a lot of the confidence, and it helped to see him do it in the game the other day as well.”

Talking about the Tiger's defense, he said that there are multiple NFL players on the defensive front.

“They got really good players, and they do a good job schematically showcasing those guys do well. They’re going to create multiple fronts. Big, strong, athletic up front, there are obviously six to eight NFL guys there in that, on that front.”

Norvell further recaps the performances of his freshmen and the Tigers matchup in his full interview below:

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