Tony White status at FSU should be clear after coaching assistant leaves for SEC

FSU defensive analyst Zach Arnett will return to Mississippi State as the program's defensive coordinator. Arnett, who was defensive coordinator at Mississippi State from 2020-2022 and head coach of the Bulldogs in 2023, came to Florida State over the summer after resigning from UNLV, where he had been hired as the defensive coordinator in January.

This should be a strong sign that Tony White is likely to stay in Tallahassee for a second season as defensive coordinator. One would think if White were planning to leave, Arnett would've been considered a potential replacement. 

Arnett was brought in to help John Papuchis coach the linebackers because of his experience in Tony White's scheme. The two are connected back to their days in New Mexico when Arnett played for the Lobos and White was his position coach.

White's status has been up in the air

From the time the UCLA head coaching job opened up until rumors about discontent on the staff in the final weeks of the season, White's future at FSU has been in question. Mike Norvell tried to quiet some of the noise during his press conference yesterday when he said he didn't expect to make any changes with the coordinators.

Norvell's comments mean absolutely nothing, because there are plenty of rumors going around that ofeensive coordinator Gus Malzahn is expected to leave. So, take everything you hear with a grain of salt until real announcements are made.

With Arnett gone, the question becomes whether linebackers coach and special teams coordinator John Papuchis will stay.  No fan of FSU football seems to be in favor of that, since Papuchis is not regarded highly as a coach, recruiter or developer of talent. But he is loyal and arrived in Tallahassee with Norvell. Usually, the FSU coach takes care of his guys or makes sure they can get other jobs, which might be the case with running backs coach David Johnson.