Florida State has moved on Mike Norvell, firing the embattled coach after a loss to Clemson dropped the Seminoles to 3-5 this year and 39-41 over Norvell’s seven seasons.

Firing Norvell will require a $50.3 million buyout, one of the largest in FBS history. At a time when the athletics department is dealing with more than $400 million in debt, that financial outlay could impact the direction of the program’s next hire.

The candidates to replace Norvell include a blend of offensive and defensive coaches, sitting Power Four head coaches and coordinators, and maybe even a blast from the past in former coach Jimbo Fisher.

At a minimum, the next hire will be expected to consistently place the Seminoles near the top of a topsy-turvy ACC and be in contention every year for the College Football Playoff, especially given the future expansion to a 24-team bracket. Here are the top candidates for the next FSU head coach:

FSU football coaching candidates

Manny Diaz, Duke

About the only hangup on an otherwise strong résumé is Diaz’s three years at Miami from 2019-21, both because his teams underachieved and because, you know, Florida State hates the Hurricanes. But tossing Diaz aside for that reason would be beyond shortsighted; he graduated from Florida State and was an unpaid assistant under Mickey Andrews when the Seminoles beat Virginia Tech for the 1999 national championship. His most important work has come at Duke, which won nine games in 2024, another nine games and the ACC crown last season and is 6-2 heading into November after blowing out Boston College. Diaz should be seen as the early leader for the opening.

Jimbo Fisher

Fisher is hungry to get back into coaching and will push very hard to get his name in the mix for a second run with the Seminoles. His first was mostly terrific, highlighted by a national championship in 2013 behind what may be the best team in program history, but things fell apart near the end as Fisher eyeballed the exit. Likewise at Texas A&M, where things started well but rapidly deteriorated in his final season-plus. There are so many unanswered questions — such as what Fisher has learned off the sidelines, whether he has the energy to see a rebuild to fruition and even whether he has the chops to succeed in the current environment — that a reunion feels unlikely. Still, Fisher could be brought in at a discount and be given the checkbook to hire a crackerjack staff.

Glenn Schumann, Georgia

Schumann has been very patient in evaluating his best opportunity, knowing he can afford to wait his turn while putting together elite defense after elite defense with the Bulldogs. At this point, he has nothing left to prove. That would put the onus on the Seminoles to show they have the resources and commitment to give Schumann what he needs to bring Florida State back into ACC contention. He would also be a major departure from the norm for a program that hasn’t hired a coach with a purely defensive background since Larry Jones in 1971.

Zach Kittley, Florida Atlantic

This would be a huge leap for a coach who is only in his second year at FAU, was at Houston Baptist as recently as 2020 and had never been a head coach on any level before being tapped by the Owls. But Kittley has quickly turned things around, already exceeding last year’s win total and inching close to bowl eligibility heading into November. What he has going for him is a terrific offense: Kittley’s scheme has put up numbers on every level of competition and would immediately give the Seminoles an identity.

Blake Baker, LSU

The Tigers’ defensive coordinator is one of the trendiest names among Power Four assistants. He’s spent the past six years in the SEC but also served as Diaz’s defensive coordinator with the Hurricanes from 2019-20. LSU has made dramatic defensive gains in his three years, rising to fifth in the SEC in scoring last season and second this year only to Georgia. A part of Baker’s appeal is his experience under coaches such as Bryan Harsin, Skip Holtz, Diaz, Brian Kelly, Eli Drinkwitz and now Lane Kiffin.

Deion Sanders, Colorado

This would’ve been much more palatable as recently as a year ago, when the former Seminoles star still seemed to have Colorado on the right track. Things are much less sturdy now, increasing the possibility that this is Sanders’ last season with the Buffaloes. That would make the program legend a tough sell. But this would be the pitch from the Seminoles’ perspective: Sanders coached a Heisman Trophy winner and won nine games in a tough situation in Boulder, and thanks to increased recruiting reach and resources will have the tools to win more consistently in Tallahassee.