Mike Norvell is The Missing Piece for Florida State
Mike Norvell is The Missing Piece for Florida State
At 38 years old, Mike Norvell is for sure one of the younger coaches in major College Football. Since his start as an offensive coordinator at Arizona State, Norvell has shown promise as an offensive mastermind that could dime up any defense at any given moment. Through his well ran zone running scheme and wide-open passing game, his perfect mixture of run and pass makes him dangerous. His Arizona State offense averaged 464 yards of total offense and nearly 40 points per game as a head coach.
When Memphis first decided to go with Norvell as their head coach, many people were unfamiliar with him since this would be his first job. However, two things were true, Norvell was definitely the coach that Memphis needed, and he would help them because of an American conference powerhouse and a perennial conference champion.
Under Norvell, Memphis was the most dynamic offense on any level of college football in 2016. They consistently ranked in the top 10 in points and yards per play in the 4 years under Norvell. He not only had prolific offenses, but his program overall thrived as a head coach.
Garnering three conference championships and 4 consecutive 8 or more win seasons, he remains as one of the most productive coaches over the same time. His ability to develop a program has allowed him to be the winningest coach by percentage in Memphis history.
Memphis had several players that were drafted into the NFL under Norvell including Tony Pollard and Anthony Miller. These players were conference leaders at Memphis and it was a combination of their ability and Norvell’s big-play offense. This type of new-look team and offense seemed to fit perfectly at the right time for Florida State and this could be the long term fix that State has been looking for since Jimbo Fisher resigned in 2017 before heading to Texas A&M. Not only did Florida State struggle over the last 2 seasons, but they have also seemed to lose their glamour in the process.
After Saturday’s game Florida State announced that Willie Taggart and State would part ways and not soon after did they announce Norvell would be replacing Taggart. This also points to the idea that Taggart may or may not have been given a legitimate amount of time to turn the program around. Two recruiting classes in and Taggart could not seem to gain the most consistent edge on recruiting consistent talent. However, the Florida State athletic department obviously decided that they wanted to win now, and the first step for them was to start with a new coach in Tallahassee.
Despite Norvell’s lack of Power 5 experience, his offensive perspective and consistent defense have allowed him to get wins over several P5 opponents while at Memphis.
I believe that his consistent coaching style will allow him to hire the right fit coordinators and recruit the best talent in the state of Florida. His best asset in coaching Florida State is the historical significance of Florida state as a powerhouse. If Norvell can somehow tap into the culture of dominance that Florida State is used to having, then Norvell will surely have a long and successful career while at Florida State and help them regain the reputation that Jimbo Fisher left.
-By: LeMarkus Bailey
Writer/Interviewer