Florida State fired athletic director Michael Alford on Monday, school president Richard McCullough told ESPN, as the Seminoles grapple with looming decisions about their football program.
Alford came to Florida State in 2020 to lead its fundraising arm, Seminole Boosters, and was hired as athletic director less than two years later at a time when Florida State faced looming financial shortfalls and an underachieving football program.
Under Alford, total athletics revenue grew 31.5% since 2022, the largest increase in department history, while conference distributions rose 19% thanks to a new revenue distribution model he spearheaded within the ACC. Florida State also spent over $500 million on a new standalone football facility, improvements to Doak Campbell Stadium and other projects.
Football has remained problematic. After going 13-0 and winning the ACC in 2023, Florida State missed the four-team College Football Playoff and lost 63-3 to Georgia in the Orange Bowl. Since then, the Seminoles have gone 8-18, and calls to fire coach Mike Norvell have steadily increased.
After a 5-7 season last year, the administration chose to keep Norvell for a seventh season, with McCullough saying in a joint statement with Alford and Board chair Peter Collins that the decision reflected "a unified commitment to competing in the rapidly evolving landscape of college football, while maintaining continuity within the program." Norvell hired a general manager, remade his personnel department, and received a football budget in the…
Florida State then lost at home to SMU 27-24 on Labor Day night, with fans chanting "Fire Norvell" while leaving the stadium. The Seminoles travel to play Alabama on Saturday and face a looming ACC stretch including three ranked teams: Virginia, Louisville and rival Miami.
