HC Mike Norvell gives his take on Florida State's two new coordinators for 2025

After the Florida State Seminoles ended their 2024 campaign with a 2-10 record, coach Mike Norvell changed his staff, hiring six new assistant coaches, whom he called the “right guys.” Among these hires were two new coordinators, Gus Malzahn on offense and Tony White on defense.

Norvell discussed the two coordinators on Thursday's edition of “The Hard Count with J.D. PicKell.”

"It starts with the people," Norvell said. "These guys have great hearts. They’ve done an extraordinary job throughout their career, building relationships and being able to help the guys that they’ve coached on their journeys. … These guys are both incredible innovators. I mean offensively, defensively, the style of play, the mindset, the approach.

“These guys are inspirational in what they’ve done and the way they’ve done it. … They were absolutely home run hires for us.” (1:02:30)

FSU’s offense was down in the trenches last season, ranking near the bottom in yards and rushing, which is why Norvell hired Malzahn. The two are teaming up again after nearly 20 years. In 2007, Malzahn, who was the offensive coordinator at Tulsa, hired Norvell as a graduate assistant.

By 2008, Norvell became the wide receivers coach, and together, they saw their team lead in yards per game every season.

In 2010, Malzahn won a national title at Auburn as the offensive coordinator and went to another national title game in 2013 as head coach. He had a 105-62 record over 12 seasons at Auburn and UCF.

As for Tony White, the defensive coordinator was with Nebraska for two seasons (2023 and 2024), wherein his defense ranked in the top 20 in both yards and points allowed. Mike Norvell also had experience facing White's 3-3-5 defense when he was at Syracuse in 2021 and 2022.

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Mike Norvell on Florida State’s ‘identity’

As Mike Norvell reshapes his program, he’s hopeful about the direction the team is taking for the upcoming season.

"We've got 15 days to really continue to forge and develop the identity of what this team is going to be. I like the athleticism. I like the size," Norvell said at a press conference on Monday.

"We've had a good last couple of months in the weight room where you're seeing the strength numbers are trending where we want them to go, and I'm excited about what this team can do and what they're going to be able to put in through this spring ball that will put us in position for what's ahead this fall."

How the addition of the two coordinators will change the Seminoles on the field remains to be seen.