Mike Norvell Says FSU Needs to 'Get Better Every Week' to Prove Program Is 'Back'

Florida State head coach Mike Norvell is more concerned with his team improving each week than worrying about whether the program is "back" to its historical level.

Norvell spoke with ESPN's Andrea Adelson on Monday following Sunday's 24-23 victory over LSU.

"That game, it didn't need to be as close as it was. We made some mistakes that can cost us, so we better learn from the experience that we had last night and go get better. If you want to show you're back, go win every game and get better every week and with every practice. That's what you have to do. I'm glad our guys are excited about the steps we've taken. But if we don't continue to take steps, then none of that is going to matter."

Adelson noted that multiple players said Florida State was back after the win.

It is easy to understand why they would say something like that, especially after an emotional roller coaster of a game. Not only was it a signature victory over an SEC power, but it also required the ACC team to survive a wild fourth quarter.

LSU trimmed the deficit from 14 to seven with just more than four minutes remaining and appeared to get the ball back with one final chance after a defensive stop. However, Malik Nabers muffed the punt, giving Florida State the ball in a goal-to-go situation and all but ending it.

That is, until Treshaun Ward fumbled a pitch and gave the ball back to the Tigers.

All LSU did from there was march 99 yards and score on the game's final play. Yet Shyheim Brown blocked the ensuing extra point and preserved the one-point victory for his side.

Norvell's team is now 2-0 after a convincing win over Duquesne in the opener. ACC games against Clemson, Miami, North Carolina State, Wake Forest and others loom, as does the season finale against the archrival Florida Gators.

If Florida State stumbles in some of those, Sunday's dramatic win will be a distant memory for a program that has struggled to play to its typical standard of late. The team is coming off four straight losing seasons and hasn't won double-digit games since the 2016 campaign.

That isn't an acceptable run by Florida State standards, but the stage is set to turn things around in 2022 after a 2-0 start.