FSU fires AD Michael Alford amid looming football questions - ESPN

Florida State fired athletic director Michael Alford on Monday, school president Richard McCullough announced.

The move comes as the Seminoles grapple with looming decisions about their football program.

Senior Associate Athletics Director Bruce Warwick has been appointed interim AD while Florida State conducts a national search for a permanent successor.

«Michael Alford has served the University and our student-athletes with dedication, and we thank him for his contributions to our athletics programs,» McCullough said in a statement. «As we begin this transition, our focus remains on the success of our teams and continuing to provide every competitive advantage we can to our student-athletes, coaches, and staff.»

In a phone interview with ESPN on Monday, McCullough said the goal in making the change was to «modernize our athletics department.»

«We're trying to do everything we can in this era of tremendous change to do everything we can to modernize our athletics department and do things to bring in revenue and make other organizational changes, so that we can win at every level,» McCullough said.

The next question, of course, is what happens with coach Mike Norvell, who is 8-18 since 2024.

After going 5-7 last year, the Florida State administration opted to keep Norvell for a seventh season, pledging to make structural changes within the program to enhance performance. Norvell hired a general manager, remade his personnel department and got a football budget that is estimated to rank in the Top 20 nationally — well above what Florida State had spent the previous year.

At the time, McCullough said in a joint statement with Alford and Board chair Peter Collins, «This decision reflects a unified commitment to competing in