Mike Norvell is gearing up for the 2025 season. He has his recruitment class in place. He is hiring new faces in his staff. And most of all, it seems that he is avoiding the mistakes that he made in the 2024 season. All this surely will point towards that FSU will improve greatly in the upcoming season. However, there’s still some skepticism in his recent OC hiring which has the potential to break all of his dreams.
Yes, it’s the hiring of their new offensive coordinator, Gus Malzahn, the former UCF head coach. The hiring will see him earn a whopping $1.5 million in his first year, $2 million in his second, and $2.5 million in his last year of contract. At first glance, his signing looks quite good as an improvement on offensive schemes. And while it’s certainly true that the man has a long list of achievements and coaching Heisman contenders. Still, the move also has potential implications that may not suit the offensive philosophy that FSU may want to run. And here’s why.
Bud Elliot of 247 Sports provided the implications Malzahn’s hiring may bring to the FSU table. “I don’t think this move is the reason that Mike Norvell sinks or swims long-term. Although it really could be if hiring Malzahn scares away top quarterback prospects. If I were Kromenhoek, I wouldn’t go play quarterback for Gus; that’s a real running offense.” The statement at first sort of looks misplaced on several fronts. But it actually isn’t, and Malzahn’s hiring will force FSU to adapt to a system for which they don’t have the legs.
Gus Malzahn is one of the pioneers of Smashmouth spread offense and likes to incorporate variations of it in his offense. He tends to utilize running backs to create power gaps going through inside the D line. It demands great physical prowess from the running backs and also from the QBs (if they want to be involved in the offensive scheme). He also repeatedly uses the no-huddle offense to break the tempo of the defense using the sheer intensity of his attacking plays. He even laid out some of his approach when he was in the introductory press brief of the FSU…
“I’m a big believer you have to run the football downhill… It makes everything better as far as pass protection, better on the quarterback, everything. I think the big thing is just the emphasis on the downhill run game and being committed to it.”. That surely means that he is going to use his rushing philosophy at FSU in his offense. But how will that be potentially detrimental for FSU’s QBs? Well, we’re getting there.
Gus Malzahn’s tenure mean problems for the QBs?
The first and foremost problem he is going to face in the FSU roster is that he doesn’t have the requisite QB to run his offense. Sure, they have recently signed Thomas Castellanos from Boston College in place of DJ Uiagalelei. He also had a 1,113 rushing yards season in 2023 with Boston. But the problem is that at 5 feet 10 inches and weighing around 194 lbs, he doesn’t have the physical frame that would be needed in Malzahn’s offense. Didn’t sound convincing enough?
In 2010, when Cam Newton won the Heisman playing under Malzahn, he weighed around 240 lbs and stood at 6 feet 5 inches tall. That would enable him to assert his physical dominance and become a dual threat on the offense. Because, in his offensive setup, the QB always needs to run between the defensive tackles and exploit the gap schemes orchestrated by the coach. So, what does that mean for FSU and Mike Norvell?
Well, it doesn’t mean anything as of now; it’s just an analysis as to what could happen to the offense under him. However, even Castellanos could still be pivotal in his offense, making the plays primarily through the running backs. And sacrificing personal glory for offensive success. As Nick Marshall did in 2013 when he ran for 1,068 yards. But he, too, was 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighed around 200 lbs.
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