SEC Network breaks down impact of Gus Malzahn's move to Florida State

Gus Malzahn certainly stunned some people when he left UCF for Florida State, going from head coach to offensive coordinator. It was his own decision as the former Auburn and UCF leader wanted a more specific job for 2025.

SEC Network’s Chris Doering and Roman Harper discussed it Wednesday when breaking down the SEC schedule. Florida State takes on non-conference rival Florida at the end of the year where the Seminoles hope Malzahn’s play calling prowess will be on display.

Is Malzahn’s move from the end of last season a sign of the times or still a rarer move for a head coach to move down to an assistant position. He had multiple Power Four head coaching jobs and was 28-24 in four seasons at UCF, so it was still surprising.

“How about this decision to leave UCF as a head coach, to go be a play caller there for Mike Norvell in Tallahassee,” Doering said on SEC Network Wednesday. “That’s either a sign of what’s happening here with the haves and have nots in college football, or it’s a ‘we think that Florida State’s got a chance to be pretty good. Either way, it’s going to be a test there on the Swamp for the ‘Noles.” 

Malzahn won nine games in each of his first seasons with the Knights. However, he went 6-7 and 4-8 in the two following years. He went 68-35 at Auburn before being fired after the 2020 season.

“Or it’s ‘I’m just tired of pulling out my own hair running the whole program,” Harper said. “I can sit up here and call plays and not have to recruit, so it’s maybe just easier … I can still get paid in the wallet.”

Harper’s point could be a valid one. Malzahn might just want to focus solely on coaching football and dabble in recruiting, rather than being a CEO of an entire program.

Look no further than what Chip Kelly did after the 2023 season. Like Malzahn after him, Kelly left his head coaching job at UCLA to take the OC position at Ohio State. He’s now the offensive coordinator with the Las Vegas Raiders under Pete Carroll.

One anonymous ACC coach told Athlon Sports that he believes Malzahn’s hire is about more than just Xs and Os. That’s enough to raise some eyebrows.

“Gus [Malzahn] is going to take it back to basics and do a lot of run-game at first,” the coach reportedly said. “His hire was way more about culture and having the veteran in the room than it was about a particular kind of scheme.”

That Malzahn could be a big boon to the culture at Florida State comes as no surprise. He’s had positive impacts just about everywhere he’s been.

He’ll be paid handsomely to help Florida State turn things around. The Seminoles have plenty of talent on the roster still, so seeing what Malzahn can squeeze out of the group will be fascinating going forward.