5 p.m. updates -- Just a couple more items. A lot of people are asking about Terrell Buckley for the secondary job, and at this point, it doesn't sound like that's going to happen. From what we were told, he had a nice long conversation with someone in the administration about the position a week or two ago, but that it's been silence since then. So seems like Norvell already has a DBs coach in mind, with all signs pointing to TJ Rushing from Memphis.
Also, as you've likely seen, Kendal Briles will be the new O.C. at Arkansas, which was what we were hearing. So that's great for him ... except that he'll now be competing with two of his best friends -- Jeff Lebby and Randy Clements -- when the Hogs play Ole Miss.
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Hey folks, good morning! Hope y'all are finishing up your holiday shopping and getting to spend some time with family and friends.
Just wanted to pass along a few things we've heard recently around the athletics department and football program. If there's anything I don't touch on that you're curious about, feel free to ask and I'll see what we can find out.
*** The players and staff are getting a few days off after practicing for the last week-plus, and they'll have to report back Christmas night for a team meeting. They're flying to El Paso the morning after Christmas.
*** From what we've heard, all of the staff members (except for maybe a couple) know what their future holds as far as Florida State is concerned. Obviously, there are only a couple of assistant coaching spots still available -- defensive backs and running backs -- so the only assistant with even a chance of coming back next season is Telly Lockette. From what we've heard, the new staff values Lockette's recruiting ability in South Florida, so there might be a way for him to stay on board -- but I'm not sure they would keep him in an on-field role. If Norvell has another RBs coach in mind, he could see if Lockette would be willing to take an off-field recruiting or analyst role. We don't know this is what's happening, but we've heard from a few people close to the situation that it could be a possibility. I'm sure Telly would prefer to be the RBs coach, but if he doesn't have an offer for another on-field job, it might be a good fit. His Miami connections would definitely be valuable.
*** As far as the support staff goes, we've heard that just about everyone else has been told that they won't be back. I believe that includes Mario Edwards Sr., who has been a defensive analyst in recent years but was promoted to an on-field role late in the season after David Kelly was dismissed. Mario is a very energetic and positive guy and has done a lot for the program -- and he'll still be coaching in the bowl game -- but I'm guessing these new assistant coaches are bringing in a bunch of their own analyst/GA types. There might be one or two guys that stay on board, but otherwise it's expected to be a complete overhaul. Same with the strength and conditioning staff. I'm not so sure on the recruiting staff ... I do think some of the remaining staff members in that department have impressed the new coaches.
*** As for the assistant coaches from Taggart's staff, the timing of this should work pretty well for FSU from a buyout perspective. Lockette, Pimpleton, Woodie, Snyder and Kelly all had two-year deals that will expire in January. So FSU won't owe any of them anything after next month.
Clements already has a new job and we're hearing Briles already has something lined up as well. So even though those two still had years left on their contracts, FSU shouldn't owe them anything going forward. Dugans and Haggins are obviously staying, so nothing to worry about there. That leaves Harlon Barnett as the only one of 10 assistants that FSU will owe any money to. He'll be owed the final year of his $980K deal. And if he gets a job this offseason, some of that will be reduced by his future salary.
All in all, you really couldn't ask for a better resolution when you fire a coaching staff. The Willie buyout is obviously still really big (more on that later), but they did very well in terms of assistant coaches.
*** Couple of things we're hearing on Taggart's hiring at FAU -- It doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to figure out how the Owls settled in on Willie. Their A.D. is Brian White, one of the sons of Duke A.D. Kevin White. Kevin is Stan Wilcox's mentor and former boss. So it's a fair assumption -- one that I've heard from several people -- that Stan recommended Willie for the job. That's kinda surprising to me, based on everything that happened here the last couple of years, but I guess it wouldn't be a complete shocker. If Willie succeeds there, then maybe Stan would feel it would validate his hiring here a little bit.
A lot of people are wondering whether Willie will be taking any of his other FSU assistants with him. We've heard that David Kelly is there, but haven't heard anything on Pimpleton or Woodie. One well-connected person told me that FAU isn't interested in Willie bringing several of the same staff members with him, but another person told me they think those hires haven't been announced yet because they want to keep getting paid by FSU until their contracts are up (since they make more here than they will there.) We'll have to see on that.
*** I'll have more from my interview with President Thrasher coming on the site later today, but since we're talking about buyouts, he said they're still negotiating Willie's buyout terms. Not finalized yet. ... I did get the sense that FSU isn't exactly thrilled that FAU is paying Willie only $750K a year (which comes off of what FSU owes him). Lane Kiffin was making $950K a year there. But it's not all that surprising ... that happens routinely when a coach is getting hired after another school fired them. That being said, Taggart's FAU deal will save FSU about $4 million from the $18 million total. And if they negotiate it down further, maybe they can get in the $10 million range overall. Not ideal, but when you consider that they're paying Norvell less per year, this whole thing might not be nearly as big of a bath as we originally thought.
*** Continue to hear great things about Norvell's new hires ... with the constant themes being energy, intelligence and discipline. I get the impression that Chris Thomsen is very much a no-nonsense guy, and I talked to someone at Charlotte about new OL coach Alex Atkins, and they absolutely raved about him. Said he is a tremendous hire and they're crushed to lose him. They didn't think they could keep him long, but hoped at least maybe another year.
OK, that's about it for now. If anything else pops up, we'll let you know, but things should be pretty quiet for the next couple days around Christmas.
Aslan and I will be flying to El Paso and will bring complete coverage out there all week.
Also, as you've likely seen, Kendal Briles will be the new O.C. at Arkansas, which was what we were hearing. So that's great for him ... except that he'll now be competing with two of his best friends -- Jeff Lebby and Randy Clements -- when the Hogs play Ole Miss.
-------------
Hey folks, good morning! Hope y'all are finishing up your holiday shopping and getting to spend some time with family and friends.
Just wanted to pass along a few things we've heard recently around the athletics department and football program. If there's anything I don't touch on that you're curious about, feel free to ask and I'll see what we can find out.
*** The players and staff are getting a few days off after practicing for the last week-plus, and they'll have to report back Christmas night for a team meeting. They're flying to El Paso the morning after Christmas.
*** From what we've heard, all of the staff members (except for maybe a couple) know what their future holds as far as Florida State is concerned. Obviously, there are only a couple of assistant coaching spots still available -- defensive backs and running backs -- so the only assistant with even a chance of coming back next season is Telly Lockette. From what we've heard, the new staff values Lockette's recruiting ability in South Florida, so there might be a way for him to stay on board -- but I'm not sure they would keep him in an on-field role. If Norvell has another RBs coach in mind, he could see if Lockette would be willing to take an off-field recruiting or analyst role. We don't know this is what's happening, but we've heard from a few people close to the situation that it could be a possibility. I'm sure Telly would prefer to be the RBs coach, but if he doesn't have an offer for another on-field job, it might be a good fit. His Miami connections would definitely be valuable.
*** As far as the support staff goes, we've heard that just about everyone else has been told that they won't be back. I believe that includes Mario Edwards Sr., who has been a defensive analyst in recent years but was promoted to an on-field role late in the season after David Kelly was dismissed. Mario is a very energetic and positive guy and has done a lot for the program -- and he'll still be coaching in the bowl game -- but I'm guessing these new assistant coaches are bringing in a bunch of their own analyst/GA types. There might be one or two guys that stay on board, but otherwise it's expected to be a complete overhaul. Same with the strength and conditioning staff. I'm not so sure on the recruiting staff ... I do think some of the remaining staff members in that department have impressed the new coaches.
*** As for the assistant coaches from Taggart's staff, the timing of this should work pretty well for FSU from a buyout perspective. Lockette, Pimpleton, Woodie, Snyder and Kelly all had two-year deals that will expire in January. So FSU won't owe any of them anything after next month.
Clements already has a new job and we're hearing Briles already has something lined up as well. So even though those two still had years left on their contracts, FSU shouldn't owe them anything going forward. Dugans and Haggins are obviously staying, so nothing to worry about there. That leaves Harlon Barnett as the only one of 10 assistants that FSU will owe any money to. He'll be owed the final year of his $980K deal. And if he gets a job this offseason, some of that will be reduced by his future salary.
All in all, you really couldn't ask for a better resolution when you fire a coaching staff. The Willie buyout is obviously still really big (more on that later), but they did very well in terms of assistant coaches.
*** Couple of things we're hearing on Taggart's hiring at FAU -- It doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to figure out how the Owls settled in on Willie. Their A.D. is Brian White, one of the sons of Duke A.D. Kevin White. Kevin is Stan Wilcox's mentor and former boss. So it's a fair assumption -- one that I've heard from several people -- that Stan recommended Willie for the job. That's kinda surprising to me, based on everything that happened here the last couple of years, but I guess it wouldn't be a complete shocker. If Willie succeeds there, then maybe Stan would feel it would validate his hiring here a little bit.
A lot of people are wondering whether Willie will be taking any of his other FSU assistants with him. We've heard that David Kelly is there, but haven't heard anything on Pimpleton or Woodie. One well-connected person told me that FAU isn't interested in Willie bringing several of the same staff members with him, but another person told me they think those hires haven't been announced yet because they want to keep getting paid by FSU until their contracts are up (since they make more here than they will there.) We'll have to see on that.
*** I'll have more from my interview with President Thrasher coming on the site later today, but since we're talking about buyouts, he said they're still negotiating Willie's buyout terms. Not finalized yet. ... I did get the sense that FSU isn't exactly thrilled that FAU is paying Willie only $750K a year (which comes off of what FSU owes him). Lane Kiffin was making $950K a year there. But it's not all that surprising ... that happens routinely when a coach is getting hired after another school fired them. That being said, Taggart's FAU deal will save FSU about $4 million from the $18 million total. And if they negotiate it down further, maybe they can get in the $10 million range overall. Not ideal, but when you consider that they're paying Norvell less per year, this whole thing might not be nearly as big of a bath as we originally thought.
*** Continue to hear great things about Norvell's new hires ... with the constant themes being energy, intelligence and discipline. I get the impression that Chris Thomsen is very much a no-nonsense guy, and I talked to someone at Charlotte about new OL coach Alex Atkins, and they absolutely raved about him. Said he is a tremendous hire and they're crushed to lose him. They didn't think they could keep him long, but hoped at least maybe another year.
OK, that's about it for now. If anything else pops up, we'll let you know, but things should be pretty quiet for the next couple days around Christmas.
Aslan and I will be flying to El Paso and will bring complete coverage out there all week.
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