Gus Malzahn cites relationship with Mike Norvell as a 'major thing' in move to Florida State

Gus Malzahn made waves when he chose to leave the UCF Knights, where he was the head coach, to become the offensive coordinator for the Florida State Seminoles. However, for Malzahn himself, it was a decision that made all the sense in the world.

Malzahn explained that the move will allow him to focus on coaching football. On top of that, his prior relationship with Mike Norvell, the current head coach at Florida State, made the move exciting for him.

“I’m just an old-school football coach,” Gus Malzahn said. “I love coaching football. As head coaches, it’s hard to do that a lot, so that had something to do with it, plus the opportunity and being familiar with Mike [Norvell] and having so much respect for this university … I know what this place is capable of doing … it was kind of really all above, as far as making this decision. Then my relationship with Mike was probably the major thing with that. “

Gus Malzahn and Mike Norvell have a relationship going back to Tulsa in 2007 and 2008 where they were both offensive assistants at the time.

“I’m extremely excited to have Gus Malzahn join our staff at Florida State,” Norvell said in his statement on the hiring. “He has one of the most innovative minds in college football and a proven track record of developing elite offenses everywhere he’s been. His offenses have consistently showcased a tremendous running game combined with explosive plays through the air. I’m thrilled to work side-by-side with Gus again as we elevate the Florida State offense back to one of the elite groups in college football.”

This also isn’t the first time a head coach has left one job to be a coordinator at another. The most notable was Chip Kelly leaving UCLA to be the Ohio State offensive coordinator going into the 2024 season. Again, in that case, Kelly and head coach Ryan Day had worked together in the past. Kelly also cited wanting to focus on coaching instead of every other aspect of being a head coach.

Gus Malzahn had been at UCF since 2021 and led the Knights to a record of 28-24 record in four seasons. That included transitioning into the Big 12 and going just 10-15 in the past two seasons.

The contract that Florida State ended up giving Gus Malzahn to be a coordinator was a big one. He will reportedly earn $1.5 million in his first year, $2.0 million in his second year, and $2.5 million in the third and final year of his deal.

For UCF’s part, the Knights brought in Scott Frost, who previously led the team to its unbeaten 2017 season that culminated in a Peach Bowl win over Auburn and Gus Malzahn, to be the team’s next head coach.