Florida State adds veteran coach with P4 experience to off-field staff

The Seminoles and Mike Norvell have replaced a position on the off-field staff that opened up earlier this offseason.

Jonathan Rutledge/Twitter

Florida State has revamped its coaching staff since the conclusion of the 2024 season. The Seminoles hired a new offensive coordinator and a new defensive coordinator along with multiple other additions across all levels of the program.

The fresh faces in the Moore Center are continuing to grow as head coach Mike Norvell is replacing a coach he lost earlier this offseason. According to FootballScoop, FSU has hired Catholic University (D3) associate head coach/offensive coordinator Jonathan Rutledge in a special teams analyst role.

Rutledge spent four years at Catholic University, serving as an offensive coordinator for the first time last season. In his first three years with the program, he was the special teams coordinator and coached wide receivers. Rutledge also held recruiting coordinator duties.

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Catholic head coach Mike Gutelius had high remarks for Rutledge after he was promoted to offensive coordinator in April of 2024.

"Coach Rutledge has been an irreplaceable part of my staff so I am extremely glad to have him add the role of Offensive Coordinator to his duties," Gutelius said. "Since the moment he joined us three years ago, I knew we had found a real steal of a coach." 

Throughout his career, Rutledge has gained experience in the ACC, SEC, and Big Ten. He was the senior special teams analyst at Nebraska in 2020. Prior to that, he spent four seasons in the SEC as a special teams analyst at Auburn and at Missouri. In 2019, the Tigers led the nation with seven blocked kicks, including four blocked kicks.

Rutledge also had stints as a graduate assistant at North Carolina and Memphis. He worked with wide receivers and special teams with the Tar Heels. He began his time in coaching at his alma mater, Ole Miss. Rutledge was hired as an offensive quality control specialist upon graduation and worked with the quarterbacks in 2011.

The hires come after former special teams analyst Carter Barfield was hired as the special teams coordinator at Tulsa in January.

Florida State will be replacing its starting kicker and punter in 2024 as Ryan Fitzgerald and Alex Mastromanno are moving on to the next level.

Which New Coaches Did Florida State Hire For The 2025 Season?

Offense:

Gus Malzahn, Offensive Coordinator (UCF)

Herb Hand, Offensive Line Coach (UCF)

Tim Harris Jr., Wide Receivers Coach (UCF)

Cooper Williams, Assistant Offensive Line Coach (Missouri)

Brendan Bognar, Offensive Analyst (Samford)

Defense:

Tony White, Defensive Coordinator (Nebraska)

Terrance Knighton, Defensive Line Coach (Nebraska)

Evan Cooper, Safeties Coach (Nebraska)

Jack Potenza, Defensive Analyst (Nebraska)

Special Teams:

Jonathan Rutledge, Special Teams Analyst (Catholic University)

Recruiting:

Devin Rispress, Director of Recruiting (Colorado)

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READ MORE: four-star 6-foot-9 offensive tackle Chastan Brown commits to Florida State

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