![Florida State head football coach Mike Norvell speaks at a news conference Sunday. [PHIL SEARS | AP]](https://www.tampabay.com/resizer/9XoNZI3W5XDp0O2Ar_nPsbhFAzo=/2280x1282/smart/arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-tbt.s3.amazonaws.com/public/T5ZZRFIB7VH3VDJ5654P4QGSSY.jpg)
New Florida State coach Mike Norvell won’t be coaching his former team after all.
In a letter to Memphis on Tuesday, Norvell wrote that he will not return to the Tigers to lead them against Penn State in the Cotton Bowl. That bowl game will be the biggest in program history.
“It is with tremendous sadness announcing that I have coached my last game leading that great team,” Norvell wrote in the Daily Memphian. “With the transition to a new opportunity and a restricted calendar, which is unique to this year, I will not be able to coach the Cotton Bowl.
“As I have told the team throughout my time, you give everything you have each and every day to the best of your ability focused on your CLIMB, and I could not stand in front of them without being able to prepare to the level they deserve. The team is in great hands with the administration, the coaching staff and the leaders on the team will continue to do what they have been trained to do and RESPOND.”
Norvell led the Tigers for four seasons. The past three years were the best in program history, culminating with Saturday’s win over Cincinnati to claim the AAC championship. His 38-15 overall record there includes a 12-1 mark this season.
The 38-year-old was announced as the Seminoles’ new coach Sunday.
![Matt Baker - Colleges Reporter](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 50 50"/%3E "Matt Baker - Colleges Reporter")
![We'll know a lot about the 2020 Florida State team after their first five games of the season. [MONICA HERNDON | Tampa Bay Times]](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 16 9"/%3E "We'll know a lot about the 2020 Florida State team after their first five games of the season. [MONICA HERNDON | Tampa Bay Times]")