Norfolk State coach Michael Vick said the Spartans are not shying away from last season’s struggles.
A 1-11 season was a disaster in a lot of obvious ways.
Going winless in the MEAC was rock bottom amid what was a double-digit losing streak to end the regular season.
“We definitely had a rough season last year,” Vick said on Tuesday at MEAC Football Media Day, but he added, “we don’t shy away from that” because the losses offered “a lot of lessons learned.”
Vick said the approach in Year 2 will be straightforward: “Going forward, man, just trying to take it one day at a time.” He said the goal does not change, because “it’s to win a championship,” and the Spartans will use the disappointment of last year as motivation rather than baggage.
Rebuilding starts with accountability
The second-year coach said he challenged his team to revisit the film and own its mistakes.
Norfolk State in 2025 committed the most penalties (132) of any team in the MEAC. The Spartans were the second-worst Red Zone defense and Red Zone offense in the league and scored the second fewest points, at 20.9 per game.
They were dead-last in the MEAC in third down offense and defense, too.
If the devil is in the details, the stats reflected that Norfolk State committed a lot of football sins that derailed their season.
“I made them go back and watch it,” Vick said. “Yo, y’all beat yourselves in a lot of situations,” he added, noting that many of the losses came down to self-inflicted errors.
How Michael Vick plans to fix the Spartans
Vick said the Spartans must understand that “it’s easy to lose a football game,” but “it’s hard to win it because everything has to go right.” That reality, he said, is why last season became such a useful teaching tool for the program.
He said those mistakes will shape how the Spartans prepare moving forward. “Looking back at the mistakes and things that we can do better obviously gave us a lot of things to teach on,” Vick said
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The message from Vick was less about dwelling on the record and more about building a better foundation. He wants the Spartans to turn the pain of last season into sharper habits, cleaner execution and a stronger understanding of what it takes to win consistently.
That makes the coming season as much about discipline as it is about talent. For Vick, the climb starts with accountability, daily improvement and keeping the championship goal in view.
