FSU’s Biggest Issues Before SMU & Is Norvell on Thin Ice? | Florida State PrimeTime LIVE 24

Florida State Primetime Live presented by FanDuel Host: Jackson Burleson Topic: FSU’s biggest issues before SMU + is Mike Norvell on thin ice? Length: ~38:30 Intro & Housekeeping (0:00–0:53) Welcome, apology for starting late. Subscribe, hit the bell, comment on Saturday’s game and the Labor Day SMU matchup. Host will be at FSU-SMU in person Sept. 7: tailgating, fan interviews, extra content. Asks who else is going. New Mexico State Recap — Positives (0:53–11:33) FSU won 34-17. Not the statement win fans wanted, but some clear bright spots after rewatching film. Running game / backfield (biggest positive) Usman Kromah (Cromo): 14 carries, 115 yards, 1 TD. 52-yard run showed shiftiness and “run through contact” fundamentals even when OL blocking was inconsistent. Host calls him the starter. Depth: Sam Singleton + Contrerion Wisner make this the best RB room in the ACC. Rotation and injury insurance are real. Singleton: 164 all-purpose yards. Patient as a returner, speed on screens, receiving TD on a rollout from Ashton Daniels. Coaches have raved about his hands. Norvell stayed committed to the run instead of abandoning it early. FSU should be able to run on anyone if the OL develops chemistry. Quarterback flashes Two explosive passing plays stood out: First drive: Daniels to Makai Danzy over the middle, big chunk into the red zone. Opening play: Daniels to Deuce Robinson for a first down. Fourth-down conversion to Robinson in the second half (after a questionable 3rd-and-10 run call). Final TD drive: Daniels navigates pocket, pump fake, cross-body laser. Arm talent and ability to make throws are there. Interception didn’t rattle him. Defense highlights Quandarius Jones INT killed a 6.5-minute New Mexico State drive that was converting third downs. Prevented an early momentum swing in a restless Doak crowd. Run defense: NMSU held to 47 net rushing yards, 2.0 YPC. Screens snuffed out (Tony White: “read it like a book”). Pass rush improved late as NMSU OL wore down. Chris Jones (LB from Southern Miss) stands out with violent one-on-one hits. Physical, fast defense with flashes. Talent beat New Mexico State even if execution was sloppy. A win is a win after recent losing seasons. 1-0 is better than 0-1. Chat note: ~$4.5 million in pledges already left for next year. New Mexico State Recap — Negatives (12:28–19:40) Host does not dwell on Norvell’s job security (“is he on thin ice? Absolutely. That’s obvious”) but lists the on-field problems. Defensive miscommunication and blown coverages. Tony White: some guys knew what they were doing, some didn’t. Corners often too deep pre-snap. Third-down defense: NMSU 10-of-17. Soft coverage routinely picked apart. Jabril Rawls beaten on a touchdown route. Only 5% run-stuff rate. One non-sack TFL. Daniel Lyons limited to ~8 snaps for unspecified reason, zero stats. 8 penalties. Costly red-zone flags and early sacks forced Daniels to scramble. Four of five OL starters are new transfers. Continuity is missing. Play-calling looked vanilla (possible they were hiding things from SMU). Not the dominance expected vs. a CUSA team, even if this NMSU squad is improved. Secondary did not impress. Coaches acknowledged it: Norvell cited blown coverages that cost touchdowns; White pointed to processing under the lights with 80k+ in the stands. SMU Preview (19:40–end) Labor Day, Sept. 7. Host attending live. Odds (FanDuel at time of show) SMU -3.5 | O/U 53.5 | SMU ML -162 | FSU +124 Host expects the number could drift to -5.5 or -6 after FSU’s uneven opener. Personally leaning SMU moneyline; slightly leaning over. Why SMU is dangerous 14 ACC wins the last two seasons (most in the league), only two conference losses. Beat Miami last year (one of three teams to do so). CFP appearance and ACC Championship Game in first ACC season. Rhett Lashlee: 38-16 heading into Year 5, contract through 2032. Both coordinators left (one to Cowboys); in-house promotions. QB Kevin Jennings (third-year starter): dual-threat, sidearm/off-platform, deep ball, accuracy, touch. 19 career wins (tied 3rd among Power 4 QBs), 73% winning percentage (tied 1st among returning P4 QBs). 7,709 career passing yards (2nd in SMU history), 55 TDs (4th). Ankle injury limited mobility last year — expect more dynamism now. Host’s take: best QB in the ACC and several levels above NMSU’s quarterback. Offense last year: 12th nationally, 2nd in ACC yards/game, 12th in passing. New RB Kendrick Raphael (Cal transfer, 1,100+ yards last season) gives them a better run game than recent years. Defense last year allowed 303.5 passing yards per game — FSU’s best path is to throw and get SMU on its heels, then run. SMU schedule: no Clemson, no Miami. Notre Dame, Louisville, and maybe Virginia are the toughest remaining games. Host views SMU as a legitimate ACC title contender. What FSU must do Get pressure on Jennings. SMU OL is experienced with preseason All-ACC pieces. Tighten coverage and communication. If the secondary looks anything like it did vs. NMSU (272 passing yards allowed), it will be a long night. Jennings threw for 360 vs. a Miami defense that had two first-rounders up front. Third-down defense must improve. Offense needs to show more than the vanilla package from Week 0. Host hopes they were holding cards; if this is the offense, concerns grow. Game likely trends toward a shootout. Question is whether FSU’s offense can keep up. Big-picture take This is not a must-win, but a competitive showing (even a one-possession loss) would create optimism heading into Alabama. A sloppy repeat of the NMSU performance gets FSU blown out. Talent won’t be enough — SMU is as talented or more talented. FSU has to raise its intensity to SMU’s level instead of dropping to the opponent’s level like it did Saturday. Host’s bottom line: more questions than answers after Week 0. Monday will show whether the staff and players can clean it up. Upcoming Florida State Seminoles Live: Wednesday Next Primetime Live: Thursday, 8 p.m. ET SMU postgame: Monday night Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.