TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Clemson coach Dabo Swinney spent part of his postgame news conference Saturday night in Tallahassee standing up for the coach he had just beaten, after a plane towed a banner over Doak Campbell Stadium calling for Florida State to fire Mike Norvell.
The Tigers won 36-24. Before kickoff, a plane circled the stadium with a banner that misspelled Norvell’s name and also targeted Peter Collins, who chairs the Florida State board of trustees.
Swinney raised the subject on his own. He called the stunt shameful and an embarrassment, said it was disrespectful to Norvell and the Seminoles players, and pointed out that the banner left the letter r out of the coach’s name. He described Norvell as a good man and a strong football coach, and said fans should back the team and judge the season once it is over.
The loss left Florida State at 3-5 and 1-4 in ACC play. Norvell, in his seventh season, has gone 10-22 since the Seminoles won the 2023 ACC title, and his contract carries a $47.1 million buyout if he is let go before Dec. 1.
Oddsmakers had the Seminoles winning by six. Instead, Clemson kept a streak alive: Florida State has not beaten the Tigers in Tallahassee since 2014.
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