Luke Loucks set the bar high for Florida State in his second year. He won an ACC Tournament title as a senior in 2012 and that's just the start of his goals for the Seminoles in 2026-27.
"Reflecting on last year, we started off really rough and ended on a really high note in terms of winning 10 out of the last 12 regular-season games," Loucks said. "Ultimately, coming up short on the two goals I'll always have for our teams as a head coach of Florida State: Winning an ACC title and making the NCAA Tournament. If you take care of the former, the latter just comes, right?
"Every year I'm the coach I want to win the ACC. I know what it feels like to win the ACC at Florida State. I also know what it feels like to lose in the ACC championship to (Duke’s) Jon Scheyer, and I do not want to do that again as a player or as a coach."
The Seminoles have not reached the NCAA Tournament since March 2021, when they advanced to the Sweet 16 under coach Leonard Hamilton. With a 2026-27 roster infused by transfers and impact freshmen, the ultra-confident Loucks feels the Seminoles have the talent to be among the top teams in the ACC.
FSU is viewed in a middle tier of the ACC in the preseason. CBS Sports has FSU at No. 7. ESPN sees FSU at No. 8, with a floor of 18 wins and a ceiling of 22 wins, but envisions a return to the NCAA Tournament.
Talking to the media on Wednesday at the ACC Tipoff event in Charlotte, N.C., Loucks reflected on his growth as a coach and the program's evolution, too. Loucks reiterated that he "made a lot of mistakes as a rookie head coach" and broadly speaking feels he's better for going through those times.
The 2025-26 roster was a rapid-fire build considering Loucks was hired on March 9, built a staff and then the transfer portal opened after the NCAA Tournament wrapped up. FSU leaned on a roster full of mid-major stars, embraced a tough non-conference schedule and went 18-15 overall with a 10-8 mark in ACC play. FSU finished 10-3 down the stretch, including an 80-79 loss to Duke in the ACC Tournament.
One of the reasons FSU administrators hired Loucks is not just that he was an alum and understood the complexities of the job but also that he had the energy and desire to raise funds in an effort to acquire high-end talent in a revenue sharing/NIL era. Loucks and administrators have been reluctant to put numbers on the 2025-26 budget as well as this season's, but Loucks broadly addressed it on Wednesday.
"Operationally and foundationally, we had an entire year to get our feet under us and understand what we wanted and what we needed to build as a program and then resources-wise I think we were dead last in the ACC and dead last in Power 5 basketball last season," Loucks said. "We were fortunate enough to fight and still tie for seventh in the ACC. But our resources went up, and that's why we were able to go get guys like Anthony Robinson and Sebastian Rancik, two guys that are proven at this level. They're not transferring up from lower mid-majors."
Loucks has been cautious to show respect to his year 1 players. Lajae Jones was a second-round pick by Golden State and Robert McCray V is in camp with Oklahoma City. The early proof has been shown in player development for the NBA.
But now Loucks has more money and has been able to upgrade the roster with Rancik (Colorado), Robinson II (Missouri), Shon Abaev (Cincinnati), Cooper Schwieger (Wake Forest) and Kam Taylor (UNC Asheville). Loucks and the staff were able to make a splash in high school recruiting with 7-foot center Marcis Ponder, guard Brandon Bass Jr. and others.
An emphasis was put on height as FSU often leaned on a power forward, Alex Steen, to play significant minutes last season at center. Steen is pushing for an appeal for a fifth season to play at FSU in 2026-27.
In a later interview on the ACC Network, Loucks said the financial resources had to improve to be able to recruit big men.
"We lost probably seven games last year probably because we couldn't compete when it came to the glass," Loucks said. He now feels like FSU has quality positional size.
Loucks has also drawn attention for praising Taylor's athleticism in recent videos. He doubled down on Wednesday, while also admitting Taylor needs to be more efficient and improve his ball skills.
"Kam Taylor, he has a Tier I, NBA-level athleticism," Loucks said.
Most coaches are asked at ACC Tipoff to discuss their program's player representatives. Loucks focused on leadership in his thoughts on Rancik and Robinson II.
"It starts with these two, and then it goes down the roster," Loucks said. "These two understand the importance not just of what they bring in terms of production on the court, which both of them are very talented basketball players, but what I need from them in terms of a leadership role, what I need from them day in and day out in terms of their competitive nature.
"Not just when the bright lights come on. I'm talking in the weight room. I'm talking in conditioning. I'm talking winning every sprint, winning every drill as two of the leaders of this team. Those winning habits ultimately help you go get the results you are looking for."
Loucks retold the story of Rancik's recruitment on Wednesday, too. He and assistant coach Jim Moran flew from Tallahassee to Atlanta to London to Vienna and drove a car to Bratislava, Slovakia to meet Rancik's mom. While Rancik was on a recruiting visit to another school, he called mom and saw Loucks and Moran in Slovakia. Loucks also recalled that his mom's cell buzzed with other Division I coaches calling. He offered to let her have time to take the calls, but she said that Loucks and Moran had made the trip and that the other coaches could wait.
The visit was among the big recruiting decisions as FSU went toe to toe with basketball blue bloods. Loucks and the staff at FSU are in Tallahassee because of their ability to develop talent — he won a pair of NBA titles in Golden State — and now they have players with higher ceilings.
"We came here to win, and we are all-in on getting Florida State back to being a top-tier, winning program,” Loucks said. “Not just in the conference, but nationally."
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