FSU football head coach Mike Norvell is in the market to hire a new offensive coordinator after firing Alex Atkins on Sunday. He'll have a three-week head start with that process and seems open to anything that he thinks makes the program better.
That could mean hiring an offensive coordinator who calls their plays or someone from outside of his coaching tree. Mike Norvell's coaching tree is extensive for a guy who's still one of the youngest head coaches at the FBS level.
A popular name among FSU football fans is UNLV's offensive coordinator Brennan Marion. He's the originator of the "Go-Go" offense and has ties to Mike Norvell. Marion is thought to be one of the most innovative offensive minds in college football and is in his second season as offensive coordinator at UNLV. Below you'll find Marion speaking on two passing concepts at the AFCA's:
I included those two passing concepts because Marion's offense is similar to Mike Norvell's. He wants to be a power-run team to set up explosive pass plays. The biggest difference is he wants to be uptempo. However, similar to Norvell, he will use multiple formations to keep defenses guessing.
You can read more on his offense and philosophies here. However, I want to provide information on his offenses and if he'd be a "home run" hire for Mike Norvell at FSU. By that, I mean someone who can help FSU win championships.
Recruiting
Marion was born in Hampton, Virginia, and played high school ball in Pennsylvania before getting his college career started at a JUCO in California. He transferred to Tulsa and became a Conference USA All-Conference player. Marion has a reputation as a strong recruiter, reeling in several blue-chip players while at Texas.
He has been an offensive coordinator at multiple stops and coached wide receivers at the P5 level at Pittsburgh and Texas. He was the receiver's coach at Pittsburgh when Jordan Addison won the Fred Biletnikoff Award in 2021.
Marion is only 37 years old and has the ability to relate to young high school players and the energy required to recruit at a high level. Alex Atkins was one of FSU's best recruiters while on staff but lacked the player development required on the offensive line.
Most of Marion's recruiting wins were from the Texas and California areas. Does the lack of recruiting ties hinder him in the southeast? I think it would be easy to put on video of his offenses to attract top talent from Florida and Georgia.
High-Scoring and Explosive Offenses
Marion's offenses have been among the highest-scoring nationally last year and this year. They run the ball well and have been among the most explosive offenses. They also convert third downs at a high level and score a lot of touchdowns.
2023 | 34.4 PPG | 4.51 YPC | 6.13 YPP | 49% 3rd Down Conversions | 65 Percent Touchdowns in RZ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | 39.8 PPG | 5.69 YPC | 6.59 YPP | 38% 3rd Downs Conversions | 48 Percent Touchdowns in RZ |
UNLV averaged 67 offensive plays per game in 2023 (14 games) and averaged around 65 plays per game in 2024 (nine games). That's in the same ballpark as FSU in 2022 and 2023.
They ran the ball 57 percent of the time in 2023 and have run it 67.5 percent of the time thus far in 2024.
However, the passing attack has been potent, with 8.8 yards per attempt and a 64 percent completion percentage from the starting QB(13 touchdowns and three interceptions). They haven't passed it much, because they have averaged over five yards per carry running the ball. However, when they pass the ball, they've made it count.
The Downside To This Offense
The UNLV offense looks great on paper, stats-wise. However, when you dig a little more past the surface, there are some red flags. For instance, it's very boom or bust. 10 percent of UNLV's drives ended in zero or fewer yards in 2023. That number is 11.6 percent in 2024.
Advanced metrics (FEI) that are opponent-adjusted and remove garbage time only ranked UNLV's offense No. 71 nationally in 2023. It ranks No. 59 nationally through nine games in 2024.
The stats when UNLV plays a team from a Power Four/Five conference back up this narrative.
Games | Rush Yds | Pass Yds | Plays | Total Yds | YPP | Yds Per Game | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vs. P5(2023) | 3 | 283 | 735 | 193 | 1,018 | 5.27 | 339.3 |
Vs. Non-P5 (2023) | 10 | 1,878 | 2,488 | 685 | 4,366 | 6.37 | 436.6 |
Vs. P5 (2024) | 4 | 691 | 622 | 244 | 1,313 | 5.38 | 328.3 |
Vs. Non-P5 (2024) | 4 | 1,043 | 785 | 257 | 1,828 | 7.11 | 457.0 |
There is no way to spin it because these are massive dropoffs in production. However, one thing you can say is that UNLV is likely operating at a talent disadvantage against most of those Power 5 teams they go up against. FSU attracts a much higher-caliber player than compared to UNLV.
Parting Thoughts
Would Marion be a "homerun" hire after looking at this information? I don't think we can say that, but he does have great potential. It would be somewhat risky considering the situation Norvell is in, but Norvell does know him. If he's willing to take that risk, I think you have to trust he believes Marion would recruit at a high level to maximize his offense.
I'd like to see less bust and more boom from an offense, but maybe that happens with higher-caliber athletes.
Marion only makes about $400,000 at UNLV, which is a fraction of the 1.2 million Alex Atkins was making this season. I'm not sure what FSU's financial situation is, considering they have to pay the buyouts of the coaches they fired and replace those guys.
However, I think Marion would come to FSU for less than a million. All things considered, you have a lot of potential for an affordable price, but is it worth Mike Norvell risking his future at FSU for it?