ASU HC Kenny Dillingham gives honest answer on hiring fired Mike Norvell

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ASU HC Kenny Dillingham gives honest answer on hiring fired Mike Norvell

Olamilekan Ajayi · Gridiron Heroics

Tue, November 3, 2026 at 5:15 PM UTC ·

3 min read

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Kenny Dillingham went through his weekly Monday press conference in Tempe after the Florida State Seminoles fired Mike Norvell on Sunday, and the Arizona State Sun Devils coach got pulled into both directions of that story.

He worked under Norvell for seven seasons at three schools, which makes him an obvious name for the opening and Norvell an obvious name for his staff.

Dillingham has been connected to the Seminoles' job the moment it opened. Given him the chance on Monday to squash that talk, he turned to this week's opponent, the Colorado Buffaloes.

USATSI 27432328 scaled — Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham holds a news conference on Oct. 27, 2025, in Tempe.

"We've done this before. I'm trying to find a way to beat Colorado. This is a team that people don't talk about enough, in my opinion. They've been in every single football game. They've had leads in almost every single football game. They stopped the run at a high rate, they're explosive on offense. Like, this is a good football team, so I am 100% of the mindset of let's go play our best game versus Colorado," Dillingham said .

Colorado's run defense got more of his time than the opening in Tallahassee did, and the job never got a no. The Michigan Wolverines pursued him this past offseason before he stayed on an amended contract with more staffing and resources, per Damon Allred of Arizona Sports, so "we've done this before" has a recent reference point. He also has a 4-4 team with freshman Jake Fette starting at quarterback on Saturday, which gives him a ready reason to keep the answer on Colorado.

Why a Mike Norvell return to Tempe looks off the table

Norvell was Arizona State's offensive coordinator from 2012 to 2015 under Todd Graham, and he gave Dillingham his first college coaching job there in 2014. Dillingham later followed him to the Memphis Tigers, then served as his offensive coordinator at Florida State in 2020 and 2021.

Asked about bringing his former boss onto the ASU staff, in a clip posted by Blake Niemann of FOX 10 Phoenix, Dillingham gave the direct answer he had held back on Florida State.

"That's probably not gonna happen. He's not gonna come back here. He's gonna have a lot of opportunities to go be a head coach somewhere, and I'm rooting for him," Dillingham said.

Oct 17, 2026; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Florida State Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell during the first quarter against the Miami Hurricanes at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

That forecast comes from the coach Norvell gave a first college job, and it sits against a 41-39 record at Florida State and a 10-22 mark since the start of 2024.

His buyout of roughly $47 million includes offset language if he takes another job, giving Florida fans their own reason to hope Dillingham is right.

The Seminoles have also hired a search firm to find a head coach and an athletic director at the same time. With signing day next month, time is of the essence.

Why a Mike Norvell return to Tempe looks off the table

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