Dabo Swinney slams 'Fire Mike Norvell' banner after Clemson's win over Florida State

The veteran Tigers coach goes to bat for his beleaguered ACC colleague

Nov 1, 2026 at 9:58 am ET • 3 min read

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney's had enough of college football's incessant need for a pound of flesh after every loss this season and went long on the situation involving Mike Norvell following Saturday night's 36-24 win over Florida State.

There was a prominent, albeit misspelled, "FSU: Fire Novell" banner flying high above Doak Campbell Stadium during pre-game warmups and the first half that ignited a fire inside Swinney for his coaching colleague.

"What I saw above the stadium was embarrassing," Swinney said postgame. "It was an embarrassment. Florida State's better than that. That's not good for these kids. Listen, hey, I get it, man. Everybody's got contracts and all this type of stuff, but man, that bothered me. They didn't even spell his name right. They didn't even have the freaking R in the name. I mean, it's just disrespectful.

"Mike Norvell's a good man. You ain't got to like him as a football coach, that's a good man right there and he's a helluva football coach. I know Florida State's better than that. There's so many good places at this place and this program."

Now 1-4 in the ACC after the program's 17th loss in their last 21 conference games, the Seminoles are facing a critical junction in Norvell's tenure.

Swinney said he noticed the banner during pre-game warmups and it bothered him.

"He ain't going to say, but I'll say it -- I was feaking disappointed to see that," Swinney said. "And hell they may be flying one around Clemson next time I'm home, but I doubt it. Whoever did that, man, you ought to be ashamed of yourself. That's what I would say. Ain't nobody trying to lose. This job is hard and that's not what is best for those kids out there."

The note to Norvell, as addressed on the banner, came from one Peter Collins. 

Norvell's buyout in Tallahassee sits at $46 million, a crippling number for an athletic department already under financial stress. That's been reportedly part of the hesitancy to make a move on the veteran coach, whose tenure has deteriorated since Florida State was left out of the College Football Playoff in 2023 despite going 13-0 and winning the ACC. 

"Norvell's a good man, a husband and a father. ... I don't know why we think because people make money, this and that, that you have the right to destroy people as humans," Swinney said. "I don't know where we became this as a society that it's okay to tear people down. It's a blood sport now."

Clemson entered the Week 9 game without a single touchdown pass in October, but enjoyed an offensive explosion of sorts against the Seminoles after freshman quarterback Tait Reynolds accounted for three scores. Reynolds' two touchdown passes were his first since the Tigers' league opener against North Carolina in mid-September.

Most of FSU's fans exited the stadium by the fourth quarter with the Seminoles trailing by three scores.

"You've got to go out there and you've got to win. That's what it comes down to," Norvell said about his job security after the loss. "I guess for the people that left, this team rallied and responded and still believed in what they could do and what they could accomplish. I am grateful for that. I understand the frustration. We have high expectations for what we want to be. You can show up every day and pour what you have into it.

"Like I said, I believe in these players and the choices that they've made to be a part of this program, in the work that we ask them to do. There is a lot of work that is being poured into to this group, and we have our challenges. Some difficult things that have come about, but I truly believe this is a team that's going to fight for the university, for the program, for what they represent."