Florida State Hires Ex-Texas Coach as Potential Mike Norvell Replacement
The Florida State Seminoles are hiring a longtime head coach to their staff, providing a possible replacement if they decide to part ways with current head coach Mike Norvell.
Tom Herman, former head coach for the Houston Cougars, Texas Longhorns and Florida Atlantic Owls, is joining the Seminoles staff, as reported by Pete Nakos and Matt LaSerre of On3.
It’s unclear in what capacity Herman will serve, though much of his career experience is on the offensive side of the ball, including as offensive coordinator of the national championship-winning 2014 Ohio State Buckeyes.
The next season began a string of mostly head coaching jobs for Herman, first with the Houston Cougars in 2015 and 16 and then four seasons with the Texas Longhorns.
His best year were leading Houston to a 13-1 record - including a 38-24 Peach Bowl win over the Seminoles - in the 2015 season and a 10-4 record with the Longhorns in 2018 that ended in a 28-21 win over the Georgia Bulldogs in the Sugar Bowl.
The Longhorns, however, couldn’t build off of that success, and quarterback Sam Ehlinger’s assertion that “we’re baaaaack” proved more of a punchline than a promise.
Herman was fired in January 2021, spent the next season as an offensive analyst for the Chicago Bears, took a season off and then was named head coach of the Florida Atlantic Owls, where he was fired during his second season and amassed a 6-16 overall record.
A potential replacement ready to go
Herman is joining a staff with some unsteadiness at the top.
Norvell, entering his seventh season in Tallahassee, has an undefeated regular season and ACC Championship to his name from the 2023 year.
He followed that, though, with a 2-10 year, then a 5-7 season last year that started with a dominant beatdown of the Alabama Crimson Tide, then disaster.
Norvell is widely considered to be on the hot seat, and if FSU wants to make a change midseason, having an experienced head coach on staff to keep the ship steady would better allow the program to take action.
And for Herman, if he’s given the top job and is able to salvage some success, it could be the jump start his career needs.
2026 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
This story was originally published July 14, 2026 at 1:58 PM.