Mike Norvell’s Florida State Seminoles lost to the Florida Gators 40-21 on Saturday in front of nearly a capacity crowd of 90,007 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida. After starting 3-0, the Seminoles wrapped up the season at 5-7.
Interestingly, the Gators earned the win despite not having a head coach after Billy Napier’s firing. With the loss against Florida on Saturday, Florida State failed to make a bowl game for the second straight year and fourth time in Norvell’s six seasons as head coach. Norvell is coming back next season as the Seminoles already announced to retain him amid this season’s crazy coaching carousel.
Mike Norvell Discusses Possible Staff Adjustments After Loss to Florida
However, the Seminoles’ offensive struggles against Florida have raised questions about the future of offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn. Florida State failed to establish a run game against a defense that had given up multiple 200-yard rushing performances this season.
After the game, Norvell was asked whether coordinator changes might be coming.
“You saw flashes of improvement across the board,” Norvell said. “We saw some really bad moments of how we played. Obviously, it wasn’t good enough. We know that. But like I said, there will be time and place for all parts of that evaluation.”
“I do believe we’ve shown growth for what we need and how we need to be able to play as a football team. It takes us all. We’ve got to do a better job of that, especially in these moments.”
If fired, Malzahn would be owed $4.5 million over the next two years. He is on a three-year contract running until Feb. 28, 2028, and his total compensation over the three years will be $6 million. He voluntarily resigned from his head coaching position at UCF to take the offensive coordinator job at FSU in November 2024, having previously worked with Norvell at Tulsa.
Malzahn is best known for his eight-year run at Auburn, where he led the Tigers to a national title game appearance. He was also mentioned as a candidate for Arkansas’s head-coaching vacancy after Sam Pittman was fired.
While FSU’s offense has faced criticism, it hasn’t been the sole issue. Even in Saturday’s loss, the Seminoles averaged 6.3 yards per play, but the defense struggled to get stops. This season, FSU ranks No. 12 in the PFSN CFB Offense Meter, while the defense sits at No. 35 with a B- grade, and so there is a need for improvement across the board.
Florida State finished the season without a single road win for the second consecutive year, with the last road win coming on Nov. 25, 2023: a 24-15 victory over Florida.