Afternoon Edition

September 18, 2026

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Ole Miss vs. LSU isn’t the only college football game with a significant coaching storyline this weekend. As Florida State heads to Tuscaloosa to face a familiar foe in No. 10 Alabama, all eyes are on Seminoles coach Mike Norvell and his $48 million buyout, especially in the wake of FSU firing AD Michael Alford earlier this week.

—Kennington Smith III

First Up

The return of professional women’s baseball in the U.S. has been mired in litigation, boardroom drama, and questions about its majority owner’s investment.
The NFL’s internal conflict around its international ambitions has surfaced again as Rams coach Sean McVay said he hopes the team never plays again in Australia.
Swiss sneaker brand On announced it’s entering the global soccer space with French star Kylian Mbappé, who’s been with Nike since 2006.
Arnold Schwarzenegger told FOS Tonight he’s concerned about Los Angeles’s infrastructure holding up for the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Mike Norvell’s $48M Buyout Comes Into Focus As Florida State Faces Alabama

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Florida State coach Mike Norvell said he doesn’t spend much time on the internet. That explains why he was caught off guard Wednesday when he was asked about pictures of box trucks outside of his home earlier this week. The online images, which showed a large truck and several boxes in the driveway, were speculated to be moving trucks.

“Is that online?” Norvell asked during his press conference. “Oh that’s awesome. I don’t look a whole lot online,” he said. “All of our focus is on this team; that’s where I live. There can be plenty of speculation. There can be plenty of things that are out there. I get the opportunity to show up every day, bring the right attitude, bring the right mentality, bring the right work, pouring into this team, pouring into these players. I believe in that.”

Subsequent reports indicated the truck was, in fact, delivering a desk to Norvell’s daughter, but it adds another layer of speculation regarding his job security at Florida State. Earlier in the week, Florida State fired AD Michael Alford, a move that many were quick to link to the state of the Seminoles football.

Following Alford’s firing Monday, school president Richard McCullough was asked whether there’s a straight line between Alford’s firing and Norvell’s standing as head coach. McCullough praised Norvell’s character, but stopped short of addressing his job security.

“I love Mike Norvell,” McCullough said. “I love what he does with our student-athletes. Our grades have never been better under his leadership. I love how he takes our student-athletes and helps them to be the best version of themselves. … And I have to tell you, nobody wants to win more than Mike Norvell. Except for maybe the players, me, chairman [Peter] Collins.

“I mean, we want to win. Of course we want to win. And, you know, college coaches are in the winning business, so that’s what we’re working on. I mean, we’re not really here to talk about Coach Norvell. This is really about AD Alford.”

Norvell’s reported buyout at Florida State is $48 million if he’s fired after this week, which would be the third-highest in college football history, behind only Jimbo Fisher’s $76.8 million from Texas A&M and Brian Kelly’s $54 million from LSU. If he’s fired at the conclusion of the season, that number would reportedly drop to $45.6 million. He signed an eight-year extension through the 2031 season worth more than $84 million in February 2024. According to Norvell’s contract, he is owed 85% of his remaining salary as a buyout.

His standing at Florida State is squarely in focus as the Seminoles travel to No. 10 Alabama on Saturday. A 18.5-point underdog, this is the second-largest point spread against a Florida State team in his tenure. The first was a 26-point spread against Notre Dame in 2024, which preceded a 52–3 loss.

Florida State lost its ACC opener two weeks ago for the third consecutive year against SMU, as boos rained down on Doak Campbell Stadium throughout the game. Since winning the ACC in 2023, Norvell holds an 8–18 record overall and a 3–15 mark in ACC play. Now, he and his team face a tall task against a familiar opponent.

“Whatever speculation is out there,” Norvell said, “I’m not searching for it, not looking for it. But you know, it’s always gonna be there.”

Recent Rivals

Alabama and Florida have been intertwined over the last few years, and in some ways, the recent rivalry has defined Norvell’s tenure. Norvell was named the National Coach of the Year in 2023 after leading Florida State to a 13–0 season; however, his Seminoles were left out of the four-team College Football Playoff in favor of Alabama in a controversial decision after starting quarterback Jordan Travis broke his leg late in the season.

Several weeks later, Norvell was a serious candidate for the Alabama vacancy after Nick Saban’s retirement. But Norvell announced he was staying at Florida State and received a large extension; Alabama went on to hire Kalen DeBoer from Washington.

Nearly 18 months later, DeBoer and Norvell met in Tallahassee, when Alabama traveled there for the 2025 season opener. As a double-digit underdog, Florida State pulled off a 31–17 win, then beat East Texas A&M and Kent State, surpassing its 2024 win total (2) in the first three weeks of the 2025 season. The Seminoles reached No. 7 in the AP poll, and it appeared the program had bounced back from a shocking 2–10 showing the previous year.

However, the program has recorded a 3–8 record since that point, and Norvell’s job security appears to have reached an all-time low. Another win over Alabama this weekend would certainly cool it down. A loss, meanwhile, would only increase such scrutiny—and could potentially spur action.

But as unlikely as it may seem, Norvell is maintaining confidence in a program turnaround.

“There have been disappointing results,” he said. “I have never sat here and tried to make an excuse—not once since I’ve been here. I don’t do that. This is a result-oriented business. Our results have not been as good as what we want them to be. But I believe in the process, I believe in the work, I believe in the players I get to coach, and we get to go be better.”

Lacrosse After Dark Lights Up NYC

The Premier Lacrosse League brought lacrosse into a new light this week, transforming New York City’s Pier 17 into a glow-in-the-dark field for Lacrosse After Dark, built with Whirlpool^® . Inspired by the appliance brand’s latest laundry innovation, UV Clean Technology, the one-night experience featured pro competition, skills challenges, fan activations, and more.

Front Office Sports multimedia correspondent Derryl Barnes went behind the scenes to capture the experience on the latest Stadium Status episode, taking viewers inside the making of the glowing lacrosse field and the event itself.

Watch the episode.

EDITOR’S CORNER

Heard Onstage at Asset Class

Front Office Sports

At our second annual Asset Class event in New York City, Front Office Sports spoke to the owners of Portland’s NWSL and WNBA team, the co-owner of Gotham and the Giants, the CEO of DraftKings, a slew of executives from prediction-market companies, the chief strategy officer of Apollo Sports Capital, the CEO of Diamond Baseball Holdings, and former athletes turned media personalities Jay Williams and Ndamukong Suh. Here were three of the newsiest moments.

“Done.”

—Carolyn Tisch Blodgett, co-owner of the Giants, told us the transfer of shares in the NFL team from her uncle Steve Tisch and his siblings to their children (including Carolyn) is complete. Read the story and watch the full conversation.

“That was a total hit piece … we’re doing great.”

—DraftKings CEO Jason Robins responded to a recent headline declaring his company was “struggling” and commented on the stock drop and the perception that prediction markets are hurting his company, even though his company is in the prediction-market business. Read the story and watch the full conversation.

“Just in black duffel bags … we all participated.”

—Former Duke basketball star Jay Williams said this in response to a prompt about the NIL era and college athletes getting paid; his co-panelist Ndamukong Suh, who played football at Nebraska, was quick to retort, “I don’t know what y’all do at Duke, but don’t bring that over here to Nebraska, sir.” Read the story and watch the full conversation.

STATUS REPORT

Two Up, One Down, One Push

REUTERS/Brian Snyder

Netflix ⬆ The streamer announced play-by-play broadcaster Andrés Cantor, known for his iconic “GOOOOOOOOOOOAL!” calls, will be in the booth for the Women’s World Cup next summer in Brazil. Netflix has the rights to the 2027 and 2031 women’s tournaments. Cantor, who has been with Telemundo for 26 years, has called games during 14 World Cups, including four Women’s World Cups. His contract with the Spanish-language division of NBC is reportedly nearing its end, clearing the way for Cantor to join Netflix’s coverage of the tournament next year.

Chelsea FC ⬆ The women’s club announced a “new suite of policies to provide wraparound, tailored support for our players that will better help them navigate starting a family.” The policy is built to provide “comprehensive support” for players through pregnancy and parenthood, including financial support for a partner or nanny to travel to away games during the year after giving birth and enhanced leave options that extend to players who adopt children. Spain’s football federation last month announced it would fund egg freezing for its players, as more women’s leagues are addressing the difficulties of balancing careers as professional athletes and starting families.

St. Louis Blues ⬇ At the team’s training camp on Friday, a group of spectators held up signs in support of E.M., the plaintiff in the high-profile Hockey Canada case, which ended in a not-guilty verdict for five members of the 2018 Canadian world junior team accused of sexual assault in an Ontario hotel room. Defendant Dillon Dube, who is the target of the protests, is currently on a one-year, $850,000 contract with the Blues. On X/Twitter, where photos of the signs were shared, comments reveal how divided the hockey world remains over the 2025 judgment. Two additional defendants, Carter Hart and Alex Formenton, are on active NHL contracts and have also been the target of fan protest.

Kalshi ⬆⬇ The Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana is getting into prediction markets through an app that will be “powered by Kalshi.” It’s a curious move, as tribes have generally been opposed to prediction markets. Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour said in a statement Friday that “prediction markets and Tribal economic development don’t have to be at odds.” Victor Rocha, a prominent prediction-market critic who is conference chair of the Indian Gaming Association advocacy organization, disagrees. “Kalshi is panicking,” he wrote on social media. “We flushed them out from behind the Clarity Act. Midterm elections are looking bad. Hiding behind Tunica-Biloxi changes nothing other than telling us we’re right on track.”

ONE FUN THING

MVP on ‘SVU’

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The 28th season of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit premieres Oct. 8, and fans can expect to see a new but familiar face in a guest role: Knicks superstar and NBA Finals MVP Jalen Brunson. The appearance isn’t all that surprising given that SVU star Mariska Hargitay is a die-hard Knicks fan who had front-row seats to the team’s historic run last season, which saw New York win its first title in 53 years—and has developed a friendship with Brunson off the court.

After the Knicks defeated the Spurs in June for the championship, Brunson said he would “try to get on SVU” when asked what he would do next. Last month Hargitay told Variety that Brunson was “definitely” getting a role on the show. “He’s kind of magnificent that way. He is just open and ready. I don’t think there is much Jalen can’t do,” she said. Details about Brunson’s character aren’t yet known.

Brunson is getting his acting practice in: He appeared in a pretaped sketch before the Emmy Awards on Sunday night with Hargitay, who hosted the show. The Knicks guard is also set to host the season premiere of Saturday Night Live on Sept. 26. Brunson’s SVU episode will air Nov. 5.