Social media reacts to FSU hiring Jeff Purinton

The Seminoles have their savior.

Florida State made the decision to fire athletic director Michael Alford on Sept. 14 after mounting pressure surrounding the football program’s performance, facility debt, lack of NIL, and revenue-sharing dilemmas.

On Monday, the university announced that two-time Florida State graduate Jeff Purinton will become their 18th athletic director in school history.

Purinton, originally in the FSU Sport Management program as an undergraduate, got his graduate degree in athletic administration and served as the Assistant Sports Information Director at FSU from 1999-2006. He was also the Director of Communications at the Orange Bowl.

Perhaps his most relevant experience, Purinton spent nearly 15 years at the University of Alabama, where he worked his way up from an Associate A.D. in Communications to the Executive Deputy Director of Athletics. In 2022, he went to Arkansas State and served as their Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics. Finally, his most recent role at Learfield was a role as the EVP of Sports Properties.

Now in 2026, Purinton returns to his alma mater to become the head of an athletic program that has seemingly seen generations of despair and frustration condensed into just a few short years.

But how did social media react to this news? Here’s how FSU fans reacted.

Jeff Purinton is FSU’s athletic director

We’re excited to announce the hiring of Jeff Purinton as Vice President and Director of Athletics!

A two-time FSU graduate, Purinton returns home after more than 30 years of leadership experience across collegiate athletics. Read more here: https://t.co/zEoxRAxMlS

Welcome back… pic.twitter.com/1WfbhCnlw4

— FSU Seminoles (@Seminoles) November 9, 2026

We’re all listening, too

FSU Alum worked at FSu during the Bowden years. Has a sports background worked with Saban and athletics department at Arkansas State. I’m listening. pic.twitter.com/Kg7nohg5Ny

— AD 🇺🇸 (@B1FromRip) November 9, 2026

A bit surreal

I’m so happy for Jeff. I can remember debating hit/error calls in the press box when he was keeping score as FSU baseball SID and I was doing PA. So many years ago and a bit surreal to think about. https://t.co/Eha52L9TY0

— Jeff Cameron Show (@JCameronShow) November 9, 2026

In good company

Nick Saban, Bobby Bowden, and new Florida State Athletic Director Jeff Purinton pic.twitter.com/2r0BuHggXR

— Clay Fink (@clay_fink) November 9, 2026

We back up

Looking at Jeff Purinton the possible AD hire.. Yeah, these ppl are for real! pic.twitter.com/1CkhM3VCTG

— C.J. Wilson (@CjWilson850) November 9, 2026

Slam dunk

THIS IS A SLAM DUNK. Well done, @FloridaState, @PresMcCullough, @carolions, and many others. Jeff Purinton, FSU Athletic Director. Has a nice ring to it, WELCOME HOME, JEFF. pic.twitter.com/Gcckm9GXmy

— MarkFSU (@fsuzeigler) November 9, 2026

Roommates

Fun fact about future Florida State AD Jeff Purinton (announcement expected at some point today). He was roommates with Chris Weinke at Florida State https://t.co/uKBgiKOg2p

— Andrea Adelson (@aadelsonESPN) November 9, 2026

Hope

Hope he cares about football. Tired of being a soccer school.

— Frieza’s Burner (@King_Cold_Son) November 9, 2026

Great hire

FSU Alum. Nole Blooded.

Bama during the glory years. Not just football sucess… but saw the entire athletics department take steps forward.

Learfield past 2 years with BUSINESS connections across the industry. Insight on how to monetize and increase revenue.

Great hire.

— Mickey (@MickeyFSU) November 9, 2026

Overly qualified

He’s Overly Qualified 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/LgHGhUwrkz

— Lambo Noler (@ReggieJack994) November 9, 2026

Bad day to be a rival fan

I’m a Gator but will admit this is a great hire.

1. Alumnus
2. Saban experience
3. NIL knowledge
4. Learfield marketing work

I’m jealous.

— Hal Lewis (@halleygator) November 9, 2026

A+ hire

Finally! This is an A+ for Florida St. Jeff was outstanding in the sports information department years ago at FSU and worked his way up to this level. He’s been with Bowden and Saban. Great day for Seminole fans. https://t.co/9m2r6CymnK

— Rick Ballou (@Ballou1010xl) November 9, 2026

We’re back

Oh yeah. We back https://t.co/lbsEBSpRFp

— KJ 🍢 (@SeminoleKJ) November 9, 2026

Quick

That was quick. https://t.co/5so2ac4869

— Dillon Riera (@13d_riera) November 9, 2026

Has to be good

I don’t know anything about what makes a good AD but him working at Learfield overseeing NIL for a lot of SEC teams has to be good, right? https://t.co/wNaMzDnxBx

— Aaron (@aaroncabrera_) November 9, 2026

He’s always wanted it

The job Jeff has always wanted. He was Nick Saban’s media guy at Alabama for years and a FSU alum. https://t.co/Stt5pYijJR

— Michael Casagrande (@ByCasagrande) November 9, 2026

Arkansas State?!

They hired from ARKANSAS STATE??? 😂😂😂 https://t.co/Ajg4nemSVg

— ani (@AniruddhC1108) November 9, 2026

Brett McMurphy weighs in

Great hire for Florida State https://t.co/pk6p5W7svD

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) November 9, 2026

Terrific guy

Outstanding hire for the Noles. I mentioned on-air last week I thought it was time for FSU to bring him back.

Have known Jeff a long time. Terrific guy, terrific AD. https://t.co/rnkbOAButa

— Frank Frangie (@Frank_Frangie) November 9, 2026

Totally confident

Florida State made a great hire with Jeff Purinton as the new AD. Deep ties to the program as an alum and knows what the standard is. Totally confident that he’ll make the right decision for our new head coach. #FSU

— Matthew J. Lenix (@StarConscience) November 9, 2026

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This article originally appeared on FSU Wire: Social media reacts to FSU hiring Jeff Purinton

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