TALLAHSSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — As Florida State looks forward to the beginning of fall camp on Saturday, head coach Mike Norvell said a lot of work has gone into building towards this moment, from weightlifting, to nutrition and now the countdown to kick-off is officially on.
Florida State faces Notre Dame in less than one month and leading up to debut day, the Seminoles have a lot of competition in store. Norvell said the camp is designed to maximize repetition. This is a team that is still very young, but there is no doubt a lot of growth has taken place and coach is excited to see it all play out Saturday morning.
"Really pleased with the work from the guys," he said Friday. "I can tell you we're a much more confident football team coming in to fall camp. I think confidence is built on the work you're willing to invest, and this team has invested up to this point. It's going to be a daily challenge. It'll be a daily push to establish the identity we want to have as we move forward."
COVID has obviously changed the way everyone does anything, and at Florida State, that's no different. There's an 85-percent threshold vaccination rate teams in the ACC are trying to meet.
Norvell said the guys understand what's ahead and the protocols that are in place, and while he didn't give an exact number, he said the team is definitely getting closer to that threshold each and every day.
"Being a collegiate student-athlete there are sacrifices you always have to make and whether you're going through the things we're experiencing as a world in COVID or just in normal day to day," he said. "Our guys understand the expectation. We're going to continue to do all the things that we can do to protect this football team and the individuals who are a part of it but we're excited about what's ahead."
To be successful this fall, Norvell said consistency in both fundamentals and techniques from this spring has to carry over to camp and they have to play together with a purpose if this team wants to be successful this fall.
"I want to be a relentless football team and the only way you're going to be a relentless football team is you have to practice relentless, you have to meet relentless, everything you have to do has to have that purpose," he said. "That'll form that identity. I think our guys have done a good job of that this summer, but fall camp is going to be critical."
ABC 27 will be at the first day of fall camp and will have coverage throughout the weekend of the Seminoles.
