FSU head football coach Mike Norvell recaps practice before game against Boston College

With the team’s morale in question, Norvell said he saw an urgency in his players to get better, but noted that it should be day in and day out, regardless of the outcome of last week’s game.

“There’s definitely a sense of urgency to get better and we need that urgency every day, whether it’s after a loss or after a win. That’s the goal: to get better. And there were things that came up in the game that were disappointing and that weren’t typical of us.”

Boston College has a new head coach, Bill O’Brien, and brought with him veteran coach Tim Lewis as defensive coordinator, who has 34 years of experience, including seven in the NFL. With one of the best man-coverage defenses in the country last year, Norvell believes Lewis has the pieces in place around him to continue that trend.

“You’ve got so many years in the National Football League, you know, USFL, XFL. (He’s) a very respected and talented coach, defensive coordinator and they do a lot. I mean, all variations of coverages – one high, two high, man. This was one of the best defenses in the country a year ago and obviously those guys are built for that.”

For the second straight week, Florida State will be one of the top matchups on television. Doak Campbell Stadium will be sold out in Tallahassee, Florida, and there will be plenty of outside buzz surrounding the program. Norvell’s approach to keeping his players away from the drama and focused on football is simple: stay the course and keep getting better.

“The mind will lie to you if you let it. When you’re doing really well, it wants you to take a deep breath and feel comfortable with what you’ve been able to accomplish. Whenever you’re faced with adversity, if you allow doubt and uncertainty to creep in, it will too. But you just have to stay the course and be who you are, keep working, keep improving. I mean, those are things we can control.”

Florida State and Boston College will kick off on Monday, September 2 at 7:30 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

Norvell’s full interview can be seen below.

READ MORE: Florida State’s loss to Georgia Tech draws massive national audience

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