Football
Special teams coordinator Adam Scheier, Chimdia Nwaiwu and Deante McCray all spoke with the media on Thursday ahead of FSU’s first scrimmage of the fall this Saturday:
There’s not a lot of positive hype for FSU at the moment; Brad Crawford is predicting FSU to make a bowl but he expects it to be a major struggle:
Analysis: Nobody wants to hear this in Tallahassee, but expect the Seminoles to struggle in 2026, leading to Mike Norvell’s exit. Florida State’s veteran coach ultimately controls his own
fate after taking over play-calling duties, knowing this season could be his last, but there wasn’t enough talent accumulation in the offseason to tackle one of the league’s toughest schedules. If the Seminoles fail in their quest to reach seven wins, one of the ACC’s biggest jobs will be vacant in November. Pick: Under 6.5
One thing I think he’s wrong about; if 6-6 FSU makes a bowl I do not believe the administration would move to fire Mike Norvell; maybe he’ll have rehabbed his reputation enough to take another job outside of the P4 but I don’t think FSU would spend $33 million plus to fire a coach that makes a bowl game.
FSU Pro Day is set for today, with top prospect Darrell Jackson Jr. meeting with the media to discuss his offseason and his path to the NFL Draft; one of the key points of discussion was his decision to return to FSU:
“It taught me a lot about myself. I just wanted to be a vocal leader for my team and be someone my team can lean on, even in adversity,”
”It ‘s been a great experience coming back, I don’t regret it.”
Recruiting
If I had a nickel for every boderline five star quarterback to visit FSU from Arlington Heights, Illinois in the past week I’d have two nickles which is not a lot but it’s odd that it’s happened twice in the past week — the most recent visitor is Jake Nawrot, who is ranked 40th overall in 247Sports’ Composite Rankings as he’s seen his stock soar over the past few months. Zach Blostein of 247Sports caught up with him for a recap on the mult-day visit and the visit received high marks:
“It’s been great. Coach Norvell’s energy is amazing. The moment I walked in, he made me feel really special. And the whole program, seeing it in person. It is insane how big it all is. Taking it all in and just coming from the north, it’s definitely different with the weather. How big everything is. Coach [Austin] Tucker and coach Norvell. They’ve been amazing. It’s been great to talk with them
Three-star RB Sergarion Gunsby was on campus yesterday; I think he’s better than his current 85 three-star rating on 247. I see flashes of a bigger TreShaun Ward when watching him press the hole and find open space:
Baseball
It’s a whiteout this weekend at Howser for FSU vs. Duke, with Friday and Saturday’s games both sold out:
Starters for both teams for the weekend series have not been announced.
FSU is 19-5 on the season, 5-1 in the ACC, 14-1 at home, 4-1 on the road, 1-3 at a neutral site and 5-3 against ranked opponents. The Seminoles are coming off a midweek loss to Florida in Jacksonville after a home series win over No. 10 NC State last weekend, their second top-15 series win to begin the ACC season. Six of Florida State’s last 13 games have been run-rule wins, including one in both of its first two conference series. This weekend’s series is part of a nine-game stretch of games held within the state of Florida and three of seven in Tallahassee.
As a team, Florida State is hitting .297 with 232 hits, 34 home runs, 53 doubles, four triples, 133 walks, 205 runs scored and 177 RBI. The pitching staff has a 3.62 ERA with 80 earned runs allowed on 144 hits with 258 strikeouts and 94 walks in 199.0 innings.
Freshman designated hitter Kelvyn Paulino Jr. leads the team with a .404 batting average and sophomore first baseman Myles Bailey has 26 hits, 12 home runs, 31 RBI, 31 walks and 31 runs scored. Sophomore infielder/outfielder Noah Sheffield and freshman outfielder John Stuetzer both have seven doubles, while junior outfielder Chase Williams and Stuetzer have six stolen bases in eight attempts. On the mound, junior lefty Wes Mendes is 5-1 with a 1.59 ERA, having struck out 46 and given up six earned runs on 19 hits in 34.0 innings. Junior right-hander John Abraham has made nine appearances, all but one out of the bullpen, and has 30 strikeouts and a 0.42 ERA in 21.2 innings.
Florida State is 84-30 all-time against Duke, including 46-11 at home, 27-12 on the road and 11-6 at a neutral site. The last two matchups have been in the ACC Championship, a 14-7 win in the 2025 quarterfinal after a 16-4 loss in the 2024 title game. The Blue Devils come to Tallahassee for the first time since 2024, when FSU took two-of-three. The Seminoles also won the series in Durham in 2024. In a series that began in Tallahassee in 1954, Florida State has two 13-game win streaks, from 1997-2001 and again from 2002-2005, with just one loss in between those streaks. Following a solo defeat in 2005, another five-game win streak followed, for a 31-2 stretch.
With the return of the Marching Chiefs, it should be a raucous environment this weekend:
Softball
No. 10 FSU softball takes its 18-game winning streak on the road against Clemson:
Clemson enters this weekend’s contest 23-10 and 6-3 in ACC play. The Tigers are coming off a big 8-0 run-rule victory at No. 24 South Carolina on Wednesday night.
The Tigers have ranked wins over Oregon, Georgia, Mississippi State and South Carolina.
This weekend provides a huge RPI opportunity for the Seminoles as Clemson sits at No. 19 in the RPI while FSU is 10th. The Noles have played just five games against teams inside the top 25 of the RPI and are 1-4 in those games.
Clemson was the top team to receive votes outside of the top 25 of the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 Poll.
FSU has dominated Clemson in its short history, and the two teams have played in some high leverage games.
FSU leads the all-time series against Clemson 7-1 including a 3-0 advantage in Clemson.
The Tigers got the best of the Seminoles last year in the ACC Championship Game with a 2-1 win over FSU. The Noles had won the previous seven meetings.
The one and only time FSU has played in Clemson was in 2023 which featured a top 10 matchup. The sixth-ranked Seminoles swept No. 4 Clemson and outscored the Tigers 14-3 in the three games.
Isa Torres joined the Seminole Sports Network to discuss her scorching hot start to the season and a new NCAA all-time record:
All Sports
No. 13 FSU men’s swimming and diving is competing at the NCAA Championships, with the squad securing another All-America honor:
Sophomore Logan Robinson earned a 14th-place finish in the 200 freestyle, posting a 1:31.56 in Thursday’s prelims. With the finish, he earned All-America distinction, awarded to the top 16 finishers.
Florida State also competed in its third relay of the week, the 200 freestyle relay. Senior Max Wilson, sophomore Michel Arkhangelsky, Robinson and junior Gustav Olsson combined for a 1:16.11 finish, the fifth-fastest time in program history. The quartet finished 18th overall.
Arkhangelsky also raced in the 100 butterfly, finishing 40th in prelims with a time of 46.41.
Florida State is represented by eight student-athletes at the 2026 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships, held March 18-21. The Seminoles will return to action Friday, with swimming prelims beginning at 10 a.m. ET. Wilson is set to compete in two individual events, the 100 backstroke and 50 freestyle, and will also swim in the 400 medley relay alongside Arkhangelsky, senior Tommaso Baravelli and Robinson.
The top eight finishers in every event will advance to finals and will determine places 1-8 through the A-final. Athletes who finish 9-16 will not compete in a B-final; their final placement and point totals will be determined based on their preliminary rankings. Relays are timed finals and will all take place during finals sessions.
FSU outdoor track and field teams wrapped up the first day of the Terry Long FSU Relays on Thursday:
Zianna Curtis opened her season with a fifth-place finish in the women’s hammer with a personal best mark of 52.85-meters, marking the eighth-farthest throw in program history.
The women’s 4×100-meter relay consisting of Liana Tyson, Lucy May Sleeman, Oludoyin Soremi and Micayah Holland, placed first with a time of 44.09.
The men’s 4×100 followed with the fastest time of the day led by Neo Mosebi, Micahi Danzy, Durian Moss and Amare Williams with a time of 39.19.
Freshman Alexa Schwartz led all six attempts in the Javelin Throw, placing first overall and the third furthest throw in program history with a mark of 55.17m.
Florida State took the top two spots in the women’s shot put, after Nafy Thiam who holds the second-farthest throw in indoor history placed first overall at 16.82m. Thiam mark ranks third in program history, while Kaitlyn Bullock finished second at 14.58m.
Despiro Wray earned his first collegiate victory after placing first overall in the men’s shot with the tenth-farthest throw in program history at 18.25m. Shamar Reid followed in second at 18.16m.
Maggie Bartlow placed first overall in her outdoor collegiate debut with a time of 17:11.48. Finn Thomas captured first in the men’s 5,000 with a time 14:54.38. Gino Palazzalo placed second at 15:13.99.
The Seminoles will conclude competition on Friday, starting with the women’s discus throw at 12:30 p.m.
No. 50 FSU men’s tennis faces off against No. 4 Virginia and Virginia Tech this weekend:
The Seminoles will play at the Scott Speicher Memorial Tennis Center on Friday to face No. 4 Virginia at 5:30 p.m. before concluding the weekend against Virginia Tech at 1:00 p.m.
Florida State Is 11-10 on the season, including a 7-3 record at home. The Seminoles have won two conference matches to begin conference play with road victories from Boston College and Georgia Tech earlier in the season.
In 2024, Florida State claimed its first-ever ACC Championship with a thrilling 4-3 comeback victory over back-to-back national champions, Virginia. The Seminoles had snapped a 62-match winning streak over the conference foe that dated back to February 13, 2021. The Seminoles became the first ACC Champions to win four matches in a four day span since the conference tournament expanded to include a fourth day in 2002.
The Cavaliers (15-3, 7-1 ACC) enter Friday’s matchup with wins over North Carolina and NC State. No.1 Wake Forest snapped a seven-game winning streak for Virginia after a 4-2 upset. Virginia is looking for its eight-conference win on the season and sixth road victory.
Virgini’s Dylan Dietrich was named the ACC Player of the Week on Tuesday following two top 25 performances over the weekend. Deitrich recovered from a dropped first set to defeat No. 21 NC State’s Martin Borisiouk, who is ranked No. 17, in the Cavaliers’ 4-1 win on Friday. In Virginia’s Sunday matchup at Wake Forest, Dietrich won in straight sets against No. 21 DK Suresh Ekambaram.
Florida State and Virginia Tech (5-11, 2-6 ACC) meet for the 21st time in program history, with the Seminoles holding an 11-9 edge in the all-time series. The two teams faced off twice in 2024, with Florida State claiming both matchups. The Seminoles earned a 6-1 victory over the Hokies during conference play at the Speicher Tennis Center before opening the ACC Championship with a convincing 4-1 win to advance to the next round on the way to securing the first ACC title in program history.
FSU women’s tennis faces off against No. 22 Clemson on Friday and Georgia Tech on Sunday:
Florida State enters the weekend riding an eight-match winning streak against Clemson, including a 4-0 sweep in their most recent meeting in 2024. The Tigers split their two matches last weekend, falling 4-2 to No. 21 Virginia before defeating Virginia Tech.
The Seminoles hold a 24-17 advantage in the all-time series with Georgia Tech, dating back to 1984, and have won the last two matchups, including a 4-3 win in Atlanta in 2023. Georgia Tech is coming off a win over Kennesaw State and will host No. 32 Miami on Friday before facing FSU.
Senior Cade Cricchio and sophomore Mary Boyce Deatherage are coming off an undefeated weekend on Court 3 doubles, earning wins over pairs from Virginia and Virginia Tech. The duo improved to 9-7 overall and 5-1 in ACC play.
Junior Eva Shaw and Deatherage continue to lead Florida State in singles, each tallying 11 wins.
No. 5 FSU beach volleyball will face off against Boise State and No. 20 Arizona at the Big 12 Preview:
Last weekend in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, FSU earned three of five dual points to secure a victory and continue their win streak against the Broncos. Bailey Higgins and Myriah Massey made quick work on court five, recording the first dual point at 21-10, 21-14. Audrey Koenig and Alexis Durish put together a thrilling three-set dual on court one, ultimately clinching the match 14-21, 23-21, 15-10.
Florida State hasn’t seen Arizona since 2019, when the Wildcats travelled to Tallahassee for the Seminole Beach Battle. FSU has walked away victorious after both matches between the programs, having won 3-2 in Honolulu, Hawaii and 4-1 at home. This meeting will be the Noles’ 13th ranked opponent match of the season.
Saturday consists of matches based on Friday’s outcomes. Live stats and updates can be found on Seminoles.com.
