Two former Auburn offensive coordinators, ex-play-caller Rhett Lashlee and ex-QB coach Kenny Dillingham, were tabbed as the top two potential Mike Norvell replacements at FSU if the Noles fire their head coach at any point over the next few months.
Chop Chat's Josh Yourish believes there are varying degrees of probability when it comes to prying Lashlee away from Dallas and Dillingham away from the desert.
"This is a situation where Florida State may not be able to pry Lashlee away from SMU. He’s tapped into a deep-pocketed donor base and has that program rocking for the first time since it suffered the death penalty. Would the former Miami OC leave to coach Florida State, which has been lagging behind in the NIL era and has not been nearly as competitive in the ACC as SMU for the past two seasons? It’s at least worth making the call," Yourish wrote.
"Kenny Dillingham turned down Michigan to stay at Arizona State this offseason. It appears to have been a decision he made with his family in mind, wanting to stay put at his alma mater. However, he has experience at Florida State, coaching under Norvell in 2020-21, and has spent the offseason begging for money to keep the program in College Football Playoff contention."
Rhett Lashlee is almost certainly not leaving SMU for FSU
Yourish is 100% correct. A call is worth it for Lashlee, but it isn't going to get very far. The Mustangs are well-equipped to win in the ACC and have already won plenty in just two years. SMU is a contender again during the 2026 season, or at least expected to be.
There was enough money to take no media rights money from the conference for seven years. There's been enough money to bring in talent to University Park to compete in the third-most competitive conference in the country. They probably haven't scratched the surface in what the Mustangs could achieve in the NIL realm, either. Whenever the time is right, SMU could splurge on local talents in the DFW and still end up saving on recruiting travel costs.
Why would Lashlee leave that for Tallanasty, where there is a major revenue gap between the Noles and the Power 2 conferences because of heavy debt? Especially when Norvell's buyout total would be thrown onto that tab?
Lashlee takes FSU's call, entertains it for a few minutes, then politely declines.
Kenny Dillingham answers FSU's call, but still may not want out at ASU
Dillingham is in a good, though not great, place financially in Tempe. He's commented about the lack of funds to build his Sun Devils roster after the 2024/2025 CFP, but his tone changed this past November. Dillingham seems to be all in on Arizona State's infrastructure now, though he's still challenged boosters to step up for his team.
Would he leave that for a return to Florida State? Dillingham has already built something with his Sun Devils program and may have an easier path to the CFP in the Big 12 than he would in the ACC. Recruiting-wise, Dillingham has in-state competition from Arizona and deals with out-of-state competition from Big Ten schools and Texas. He'd have to trade that for fighting with Florida, Miami, and the vaunted SEC blueprint.
Things are somewhat even between the jobs, all things considered. FSU is a more prestigious landing spot, but the expectations would be suffocating after the Noles' post-2023 downfall. Dillingham is already revered where he's at, so a move to Tallahassee may not make sense for him. FSU absolutely still needs to make that call and make him tell them no, though.
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