Mike Norvell reveals how Gus Malzahn’s family emergency will impact Clemson prep

Florida State used Monday to begin preparation for the Clemson game. One that both head coaches would like to win, Mike Norvell will be without offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn to start the week. Malzahn stepped away from the Seminoles to take care of a family emergency.

While everyone in Tallahassee is thinking of Malzahn, Norvell revealed there is no concern about how the team will conduct business throughout the week. Malzahn does appear to be on track to return in the coming days, if not Tuesday morning. Norvell appears to be okay with how the process will play out, from a pure football standpoint.

“Our thoughts are with him and his situation within his family,” Norvell said. “It should not affect overall. He will be ready to go for practice in the morning and, obviously, working through that situation. All things preparation-wise, I feel confident in what that will be.”

Florida State is fresh off its best offensive performance of the season against a power conference opponent. At the very least, the top one since the opener against Alabama. For the first time in a few weeks, things clicked for the Seminoles.

Over 400 total yards, 150 of them came on the ground. Samuel Singleton averaged 6.5 yards per carry and led the team with 91 total rushing yards. And then in the pass game, a lot of explosives came from quarterback Tommy Castellanos. Just 16 attempts and 12 completions were needed to reach 271 yards. Consistent chunk plays showed up for Florida State.

Those types of numbers are what we expected out of the Malzahn-led offense, especially after Week 1. Finding a way to replicate the success against Clemson is going to be critical. Not having Malzahn there might be difficult but Norvell appears confident the ship will continue to sail in the right direction.

Looking at the game itself, there might not be as much hype surrounding it as many thought there would be just a few weeks ago. Florida State holds a 4-4 record, now fighting to get back over .500. Clemson is trending in the opposite direction, dropping to 3-5 to continue a tough stretch for Dabo Swinney.

Kickoff from Clemson Memorial Stadium is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. Malzahn appears to be expected to still coach from the sidelines for Florida State. But as any head coach out there would tell you — family comes first.