With the calendar flipping to 2020 and Florida State's players returning to campus for the spring semester, it's time to turn our full attention to the beginning of the Mike Norvell era of Seminole Football. And what better way to do that than with a new edition of the Warchant 3-2-1, where we share three observations, two questions and a prediction?
In this installment, we take a closer look at the varied backgrounds of Norvell's first FSU coaching staff, the potential for improvement on the offensive line, possible comings and goings on the roster, and more.
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Three things we've learned
1 -- Varied backgrounds should be a positive for Norvell's first staff
One thing Mike Norvell will never be accused of is having a homogeneous coaching staff. With the addition this past weekend of running backs coach David Johnson, Norvell's first coaching staff at Florida State is complete, and it's hard to imagine how he could have put together a group with more diverse backgrounds.
From a racial perspective, the staff is split just about evenly down the middle. From an age perspective, there is a very nice mixture of youth and experience. And from a geographic standpoint, the Seminoles have coaches with ties to just about every region of the country, which should be extremely beneficial for recruiting.
As you would expect, Norvell's staff has very strong connections throughout the Southeast. But while Florida and Georgia are always going to be the primary sources of talent for FSU Football, this staff also should be able to reach into many other areas of the country.
SOUTHEAST -- Defensive line coach Odell Haggins and receivers coach Ron Dugans are both Florida natives and have spent a great many years recruiting in the region. Several assistants have recruited Florida and Georgia throughout their careers, and the Seminoles also have several who have lived and coached extensively in Tennessee and Louisiana. They also have coaches with ties to the states of North Carolina, Mississippi and Alabama.
MID-ATLANTIC -- Defensive ends coach John Papuchis is from Maryland and coached there, while defensive coordinator Adam Fuller coached several years in West Virginia at Marshall. Haggins also has had a great deal of success recruiting the "DMV" area of Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia.
MIDWEST -- Offensive line coach Alex Atkins is originally from Chicago, and Papuchis coached at Nebraska and Kansas.
SOUTHWEST -- Deputy head coach/tight ends coach Chris Thomsen has spent most of his career in Texas, and he is one of several assistants with experience in Arizona. That group includes Norvell, offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham and defensive backs coach T.J. Rushing.
WEST COAST -- Rushing played his college ball in California at Stanford. The Seminoles' new chief of staff, Bruce Warwick, has been in a front-office role with the Los Angeles Rams for the past four years.
NORTHEAST -- Adam Fuller is from Massachusetts.
Those are just some of the connections that are easily identifiable; there may be others.
One other interesting aspect about this staff is that all 10 of the assistants have either had "head coach" or "coordinator" titles at some point during their college coaching careers. So they've all had to do more than just worry about the handful of players at their individual position -- they've had to see the bigger picture and get players in various position groups to work together. Those are very important skills to develop, and they should pay dividends for Norvell and FSU.
2 -- This really could be the year for OL improvement ... seriously
While Florida State's offense did show some signs of overall improvement in 2019, the offensive line still was one of the poorest-performing units in the country.
The Seminoles gave up 48 sacks, which ranked 126th out of 130 schools on the FBS level. They also surrendered 111 tackles for loss, which ranked 127th. So, yeah, they weren't exactly world-beaters during their one season under offensive coordinator Kendal Briles and OL coach Randy Clements.
