Florida State head coach Mike Norvell chose not to renew the contract of FSU defensive backs coach Pat Surtain, and there are other coaches on the staff who probably should have been well in front of him, according to FSU fans. That coach is FSU linebackers coach John Papuchis.
Papuchis coached defensive ends his first few years at FSU before moving to linebackers this past season. The linebacker unit was underwhelming, and Papuchis isn’t the best recruiter. If Mike Norvell decided to move on from Papuchis, he already had a potential replacement on staff in analyst Zach Arnett.
Arnett came to FSU earlier this year due to ties to FSU defensive coordinator Tony White. Arnett and White are disciples of Rocky Long’s 3-3-5 defensive coaching tree. Arnett had been a linebacker coach before getting promoted to defensive coordinator and ultimately head coach at Mississippi State.
It looks like the Bulldogs have interest in bringing him back as their defensive coordinator:
Sources: Mississippi State defensive coordinator Coleman Hutzler has been informed he’s not returning for the Bulldogs next season. Mississippi State is expected to target former head coach and DC Zach Arnett to be the defensive coordinator. pic.twitter.com/YiMOxXn0hT
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 6, 2025
This would suck since Arnett is already on the FSU staff and has a relationship with Tony White and the players. He has a reputation for being an aggressive style of play, he’s young, and probably relates to the players better than Papuchis. This is speculation on my part because Papuchis hasn’t been let go yet, but it would seem like a no-brainer move if that were the case.
I can't imagine many top coaches will be flocking to FSU to coach for Mike Norvell knowing he's on the hottest of hot seats.
Maybe Norvell won't let Papuchis go? That would be a poor choice, but we'll have to see how it plays out.