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Who is FSU football's offensive coordinator? What to know of Gus Malzahn
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- Who is FSU football's offensive coordinator? What to know of Gus Malzahn
Florida State football coach Mike Norvell reached back into his past following a two-win 2024 season.
Norvell hired former Auburn and UCF coach Gus Malzahn as an offensive coordinator for the Seminoles following a season in which the offense struggled to move the ball with DJ Uiagalelei leading the offense.
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The hire was a major splash, as Malzahn was still the head coach of the Knights. But he opted to leave the job on Nov. 30, 2024, to join Norvell's staff. Based on the first half of the 2025 college football season opener, the hire was nothing short of a home run for Norvell and FSU.
REQUIRED READING: Alabama football vs Florida State live updates: Week 1 game score, highlights
Here's what you need to know about Malzahn:
Who is Gus Malzahn?
Norvell and Malzahn were familiar with each other from when they were both assistant coaches at Tulsa in 2007-08. Norvell was a graduate assistant, while Malzahn served as the co-offensive coordinator for the Golden Hurricane.
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Malzahn has plenty of familiarity with Florida State 's Week 1 opponent in Alabama , as he served as the Auburn head coach from 2013-20. Malzahn had a 3-5 record against the Nick Saban-led Crimson Tide.
He also led the Tigers to the 2014 BCS national championship game, which ended in a 34-31 loss to Jameis Winston and the Seminoles. Malzahn served as Auburn's associate head coach, quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator when it won the national championship in 2010, another season in which the Tigers downed Alabama .
Malzahn was brought on by Norvell following the in-season firing of offensive coordinator Alex Atkins by the Seminoles. One of the first moves Malzahn made was to bring in Boston College transfer quarterback Tommy Castellanos, who played for Malzahn at UCF before transferring to Boston College.
Gus Malzahn coaching career
Malzahn began his coaching career as a high school coach in Arkansas at Hughes High School, Shiloh Christian High and Springdale High from 1991-2005. He was hired to join Houston Nutt's staff at the University of Arkansas in 2006.
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Here's a full look at Malzahn's coaching career:
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Arkansas (2006):Offensive coordinator/WR coach
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Tulsa (2007-08):Assistant head coach/co-offensive coordinator/QB coach
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Auburn (2009-11):Offensive coordinator/QB coach
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Arkansas State (2012):Head coach
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Auburn (2013-20):Head coach
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UCF (2021-24):Head coach
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Florida State (2025):Offensive coordinator
Gus Malzahn head coaching record
Here's a look at Malzahn's coaching record with time spent at Arkansas State, Auburn and UCF:
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2012 (Arkansas State):9-3
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2013 (Auburn):12-2
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2014 (Auburn):8-5
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2015 (Auburn):7-6
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2016 (Auburn):8-5
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2017 (Auburn):10-4
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2018 (Auburn):8-5
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2019 (Auburn):9-4
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2020 (Auburn):6-5
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2021 (UCF):9-4
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2022 (UCF):9-5
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2023 (UCF):6-7
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2024 (UCF):4-8
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Career:105-62
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is Florida State offensive coordinator? Gus Malzahn leading 'Noles
