FSU coach Mike Norvell’s paranoia about media access doesn’t serve the sport

The college football season hasn’t even started, and control-freak coaches are already paranoid.

The latest example is Florida State’s Mike Norvell, who is reportedly eliminating the media’s access to practices.

The Seminoles open the season against Alabama on Aug. 30, a rather sizeable matchup that will draw a lot of attention. So much attention that Florida State is limiting what the media sees.

This isn’t out of character. Earlier this year, Norvell closed spring practices, saying in a statement: “I appreciate and respect the media’s role in telling the stories of the people in our program and keeping our fans informed. In a day and age where so many people have access to our players, I want to create an atmosphere free of outside perspectives during our time of preparation and development.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=261bGCMp_Mc

America’s trust in the media isn’t great these days. The press always wants more access, more interviews, and more disclosure. This runs counter to the culture of football, a sport built on secrecy and exclusion. Coaches don’t want anyone outside the inner circle to know how the sausage is made. And given the high stakes and pressures of the job, the less the media knows, the more the coach can control the message.

This is also the kind of thinking of a totalitarian regime.

Football coaches preach toughness all the time, but live in constant fear of what might be exposed. It’s easier for Norvell to clamp down on access and file it under “gaining a competitive edge” rather than look in the mirror. It wasn’t the media’s fault that the Seminoles went 2-10 last year.

Less access means less information for the fans who care about Florida State the most. The media, ideally, provides an unfiltered look with dogged journalism principles. That’s not something fans will get through the school’s public relations machine with its carefully-crafted statements and videos.

College football owes a lot of its popularity to the very media it tries to keep at arm’s length. That growth appears in television ratings and is reflected in coaching salaries.

Now, of course, that doesn’t mean the media gets to have everything it wants. Some things should remain private and/or not for public consumption. Florida State has every right to practice in private. However, the media asking for some access is not unreasonable.

Mike Norvell opens the fall camp presser by saying there’s one key focus.

“Work to establish each side of the ball. A lot of competition.

There’s one shot. One opportunity.” pic.twitter.com/L2TCxISoD2

— Logan B. Robinson (@LogansTwitty) July 29, 2025

Watching practice helps reporters gain a better understanding of the team, which leads to improved reporting. Better reporting leads to better stories that Florida State’s fan base consumes. What coach wouldn’t want more knowledgeable fans?

But many coaches don’t embrace this logic. For some, the media is a nuisance and perhaps an adversary. That’s shortsighted and unfortunate.

It would not be surprising if more schools followed Florida State’s lead and limited access. Colleges, especially those in small towns, can exert considerable influence over the media. Football coaches love to be in control. However, they can’t shut out the media completely. Stuff gets leaked, people talk. There are so many individuals inside the inner circle, and many of them are college kids.

Maybe Florida State will have a better season than last year. Perhaps Norvell will attribute the rebound to gaining more control over his program’s environment, including media access. That kind of thinking is giving the media too much credit and power. But when you’re paranoid, you think everyone is out to get you.

For his sake, Norvell better hope he turns the Seminoles around this season. If FSU’s results are the same, no amount of blaming the media will help him.