TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida State and Mike Norvell have agreed to a restructured contract that includes the football coach contributing $4.5 million of his 2025 salary to help launch a fundraising campaign amid the sport’s changing financial landscape.
Norvell signed a new deal last spring that nearly doubled his annual salary to $9.9 million. The Seminoles, though, went 2-10 this season. It was the program’s worst record in 50 years.
Now, Norvell is doing something to help fund the team’s rebuild. He is redoing his contract for one year to spearhead the school’s new Vision of Excellence program, which will raise money as colleges begin to share revenue directly with athletes under the new House settlement agreement. The agreement permits Division I schools to share at least $20.5 million annually with athletes beginning July 1.
“I wanted to be proactive in my financial assistance through this time of transition as we all push forward to get back to the standard of Florida State football,” Norvell said in a statement. “I believe this step will help accelerate the process to where I know we are going.”
LSU coach Brian Kelly announced that he would match donations up to $1 million to the school’s collective. Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy signed a reduced contract that funnels the saved money to revenue-sharing efforts.
Norvell, meanwhile, is 33-27 at Florida State and currently under contract through 2031.
“We are grateful for Coach Norvell’s commitment to our student-athletes,” FSU athletic director Michael Alford said in a statement. “He is a high-character person who took an honest assessment of what the program needed from its leader to move forward. ... I’m not going to be shy about encouraging others to follow Coach Norvell’s actions and contribute however they can.”
