Game Preview: Florida State Seminoles vs. Virginia Tech Hokies

Florida State has entered the final home game of the year. Could it be the final home game of Mike Norvell's tenure? There has been a lot of talk about his potential dismissal dating back to the dreadful loss on the road to Stanford.

Last weekend's loss to Clemson wasn't any better. Clemson was begging to lose that game, but FSU kept shooting itself in the foot. Mike Norvell said those are uncharacteristic mistakes, but when those same mistakes are happening over and over, those uncharacteristic mistakes become characteristic.

For the final home game, Florida State will welcome Virginia Tech to Tallahassee on a 3-6 record, and they've already fired their head coach. About half of you reading this just said, "It must be nice." This game will be at 7:30 p.m. EST in Doak Campbell Stadium on the ACC Network.

Oct 11, 2025; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Florida State Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell during the second half against the Pittsburgh Panthers at Doak S. Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-Imagn Images | Melina Myers-Imagn Images

Seminole Headlines

Repeated Costly Mistakes

Nothing was more telling of the last game against Clemson than the two-play sequence where Randy Pittman dropped a wide-open pass on fourth down that might've gone for a touchdown, and then the defense gave up a flea-flicker where Shamar Arnoux bit on the hand-off and couldn't get back to Cade Klubnik in time, then Edwin Joseph was mossed for the touchdown.

There was a very badly missed field goal, Lawayne McCoy following up an offensive pass interference down near the goalline with a personal foul call (it should've been on both players, but the call is the call), and Tommy Castellanos fumbling in the red zone.

It was a comedy of errors that kept adding up, and none of it was surprising.

Home vs. Away

Florida State has been a much better team at home, going 4-2, averaging 44.8 PPG. On the road, they're averaging just 20.3 PPG The biggest difference is that FSU has found themselves having to play from behind on the road, so they're averaging 37 pass attempts compared to less than 24 per game at home.

The rushing game has also been much more dominant at home. They're averaging 5.7 yards per carry at home compared to 4.3 on the road. A lot of that comes down to preparation and execution.

The defense has been about the same at home vs. on the road, just giving up about 50 more yards per game on the road (mostly rushing), but they are giving up nearly twice as many points on the road because the offense keeps making mistakes to give their opponents good field position. This game is at home, so hopefully it all swings in FSU's favor.

The Likelihood of this being Mike Norvell's Final Game

This is all anyone is wondering. Coaches are being fired left and right across the country, as we have now seen LSU, Penn State, Florida, Auburn, Arkansas, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma State, UCLA, and Stanford open up, and it was already going to be a tough market to find a good coach.

For that reason, and the amount of money it would take for Florida State to buy out Norvell and his staff, as well as buy out the coaches elsewhere to get them to Tallahassee, I find it extremely unlikely he's fired until after the season. And even then, I'm leaning towards him being back next season, especially if they sneak into a bowl game.

Everyone is in agreement that Norvell is probably not the guy, but you don't make a move without planning the next step, and that next step is very difficult to plan for right now.

Florida State would have to get embarrassed in this game, like a 38-7 score, for FSU to consider firing Norvell after this game. I'm not ruling that out, but I don't see that happening in this game.

Nov 1, 2025; Blacksburg, Virginia, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies quarterback Kyron Drones (1) throws a pass against the Louisville Cardinals during the second quarter at Lane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Bishop-Imagn Images | Brian Bishop-Imagn Images

Three Burning Questions

Can FSU stop Kyron Drones from running?

Kyron Drones is a true dual-threat quarterback, but his passing can be a little erratic. He's more than capable on the ground, though, something that has given FSU troubles the last two years. If Chandler Morris can run for 37 yards and 3 touchdowns, there is no telling what someone like Drones could do.

Just two games ago, Drones went for 137 yards and 2 touchdowns against Cal, then followed it up with 85 yards and a touchdown against Louisville. If Florida State can force him to be a drop-back passer, they should have a good chance of winning this game.

How is Virginia Tech performing under their interim coach?

Virginia Tech fired head coach Brent Pry after a 0-3 start that saw a blowout home loss to Old Dominion. Under interim coach Philip Montgomery, they've gone 3-3, with a couple of pesky wins over NC State and Cal, with that win against the Wolfpack coming in Carter-Finley.

Georgia Tech and Louisville beat them by about two touchdowns, but VT was able to make the Louisville game a lower-scoring affair. They've been no slouch in ACC play, only giving up about 14 yards per game more than they're gaining.

Their offense has had some iffy games against Wake Forest and Louisville, but they've been able to really establish a run game. In ACC play, they're averaging 217.6 yards per game and 5.5 yards per carry.

It helps that Kyron Drones is a great running quarterback, but running backs Marcellous Hawkins and Terion Stewart have combined for 971 yards on the ground but only one touchdown, as they seem to like Drones more down near the goalline.

Will Florida State do the Hokie Pokey to turn themselves around?

I'm so sorry, I couldn't help myself.

This game is likely the difference between making a bowl game or not, because given the way this team has played on the road, there's almost no chance they'll win both of their final games in Carter-Finley against NC State AND in the Swamp against Florida. However, they could pick one of them off.

But it starts with a win here. Even if people don't think Mike Norvell deserves another year, the players need as much additional practice time as possible. Even if half the team will either graduate or transfer, there are still pieces to build around moving forward, and it would be huge to get another few weeks of practice to develop those pieces.

There really isn't any turning around this season, but they can at least start to turn around the future.

Game Forecast

Florida State is favored by 13.5 points with an over/under of 54.5, per FanDuel Sportsbook.

If it feels like a mistake, it usually is one. And picking FSU Football to be successful at this point feels like a mistake. But I have a weird feeling FSU is going to run away with this game before looking lifeless in the final two games of the season.

VT's rushing attack worries me, especially with Drones, but they really haven't been able to throw the football. FSU goes out with a home win, ending 5-2 at Doak Campbell Stadium this season.

Florida State 34, Virginia Tech 20

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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