Mike Norvell stood at the podium, looking off into the distance with a blank expression on his face. Norvell took a moment to shake his head as he struggled to grapple with another Florida State defeat.
With everyone looking to him for an answer about what had just occurred, Norvell was clearly seething. The frustration and disappointment were just starting to set in.
"For the ending to be like that, just sick... They're hurting, we're hurting, everybody," Norvell said.
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The Seminoles battled for four quarters, and then some. Florida State even found itself leading the No. 3 Miami Hurricanes 21-14 in the final frame.
However, instead of the effort and fight that Florida State displayed, the majority of discussions surrounding the defeat centered on the last two plays.
With the Seminoles facing a 4th and 21, Ashton Daniels launched a rocket towards the end zone. Micahi Danzy went skying for the grab between multiple defenders, suddenly giving FSU life. However, there was a flag on the play, and a holding penalty took the points off the board.
The penalty on Xavier Chaplin looked much less egregious than the majority of blocking that Miami was doing all night.
Either way, now it was 4th and 31. Once again Florida State delivered, and once again, the refs said, 'no dice'.
This time, Daniels stayed alive and fired a deep ball as he was clobbered. The pass hit Duce Robinson's hands at the apex of his vertical, while defenders were fighting to rip it away. Robinson appeared to still have at least one paw on the ball as he went to the ground.
As the refs stepped in once players were fighting for what should've been a dead ball, they ruled it an interception. The call on the field stood in the replay booth, much to the dismay of the Seminoles.
The ending left Norvell and Florida State hurt and confused.
Referees Didn't Explain Game-Ending Call To Mike Norvell
Is it coincidence or bad luck? The same officiating crew worked Florida State's loss to Stanford in 2025. That defeat was also marred by controversy, as the Seminoles seemingly scored with no time left, but the refs saw otherwise.
A year later, in a similar situation, the officials didn't even bother to explain to Norvell why they called an interception instead of a touchdown.
"I didn't get an explanation," Norvell said. "They went to review, and it's pretty unique when you have the same crew back-to-back years in game-ending situations that go down to the last play. It's just, you don't get a whole lot of explanation. The holding call, the play before, and it looks like, I mean, I watched the replay."
According to the NCAA rules, if two players catch a pass and both fall to the ground inbounds, the play is deemed a simultaneous catch and rewarded to the offense.
Between that and the holding call, it's hard not to feel like the refs left an imprint on the result. It's a sequence that will be remembered as one of the strangest in the long history of the rivalry.
"Since the start of football, if it's a tie, it goes to the receiver. But I guess they had a different angle that you could see something different, so I'm sure that they will evaluate that and see," Norvell said. "The holding call the play before, they said it was on 77. Go watch the film."
"It's unfortunate to see guys go out there and perform the way they did, and like I said, there's plenty of plays, but to have that outcome come down to a play like that, I'm just grateful for our guys and the way they battled," Norvell added.
While Norvell didn't go full Jimbo Fisher, he's clearly upset with the way this one ended. Florida State has lost a lot of games since 2024, but this felt different.
"We came in here with absolutely no other focus other than to go win," Norvell said. "I believe we could do that, and when you have a team that's very capable, it hurt for them, but I also told them how proud of them that I am, because I am proud of them."
"We're not looking for close type of games, we want the results, but how that ended, that's what pisses me off, because they went and made some plays in those moments, and, you know, it is what it is."
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