Mike Norvell Looking To Spark Florida State’s Offense, Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei

Will the offense get a boost after their first win of the season?

Florida State (1-3, 1-2 ACC) is coming off its first victory this past weekend over Cal and now looks ahead to face SMU (3-1, 0-0 ACC) on the road in Dallas, TX. It has been a rough start for the 'Noles, dropping games to Georgia Tech, Boston College, and Memphis before winning their first game of the season, and a lot of the scrutiny, rightfully so, has been on the offense.

Much of the blame has been placed on quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, who is 72 of 126 for 843 yards, two touchdowns, to three interceptions this year. He threw for 177 yards and an interception against the Golden Bears last Saturday but had the game-winning touchdown on a 36-yard bomb to wide receiver Ja'Khi Douglas.

"I'm definitely not changing his position," head coach Mike Norvell said jokingly of Uiagalelei during Monday's press conference.

Jokes aside, Uiagalelei is listed as the starter on the depth chart ahead of SMU. While the offense has struggled across the board, fans have consistently called for a change under center in favor of underclassmen Brock Glenn or Luke Kromenhoek to provide a spark or glimpse of what was one of the best offenses in the country a year ago.

READ MORE: Florida State Releases Depth Chart For ACC Road Game Against SMU

"Obviously, we all get to have the opportunity to go out and get better, and that's going to be the push throughout the course of this week. There were some good things that DJ did in some very critical moments, and there are things where he has to be better," Norvell said. "It's the same for guys across the board, and we're going to continue to push, continue to evaluate what we have to do in every area, and not just at quarterback."

Florida State's defense prevented Cal from getting into the end zone, only giving up three field goals throughout the entire game, but a critical interception thrown by Uiagalelei allowed one of the drives to cut into the lead in an eventual 14-9 win. While penalties forced them to an obvious passing situation, the turnover put unneeded pressure on what was already a close game.

"It was just a bad play. I mean, it was one that we can't throw, we can't have the interception down there. Obviously, we had a couple of negatives that forced us into a long-yard situation."

Whether sticking with the current personnel will solve the current offensive woes will be the right move moving forward, the Seminoles have a chance to correct what needs to be corrected this week as they head into SMU. The game is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. EST and will broadcast on ACCN.

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