Patrick Surtain Sr. discusses his decision to join Florida State, leave Miami Dolphins
Coming off a 10-win season and the chance to be with a historic program like Florida State is not just enticing for high school prospects or transfer portal players.
Apparently, that success is key in bringing in assistant coaches from the NFL rank as well.
Patrick Surtain Sr., who was hired as the defensive backs coach in early January, said the history of FSU and the direction the program is going under head coach Mike Norvell were among the key reasons he took the job.
Surtain met with local media on Wednesday for his first interview since his hire. He had been serving as the defensive assistant coach for the Miami Dolphins in 2022.
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“Probably not,” Surtain said on if he would have taken another college football job. “ It's still the state of Florida. Like if Minnesota called me, I would stay with the Dolphins. If Washington or Washington State would've called, I would've stayed with the Dolphins.
“But Tallahassee, what, five hours away from home? With an iconic program like Florida State that's getting back to the glory days, that was the perfect situation. So, lightning happened in the bottle twice with the Dolphins and then Florida State. I'm ready to leave my mark on the program.”
Surtain Sr. played for the Dolphins from 1998-2004 before finishing his career with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2005-08.
He recorded 538 tackles, 37 interceptions, 7.5 sacks, seven forced fumbles and seven forced fumbles throughout his career. He also added two defensive touchdowns.
Prior to his stop as a Dolphins coach, he led American Heritage, a football powerhouse in Broward County, to three state championships.
Surtain ran into Norvell while the FSU coach recruited the Miami area and has been fond of the passion Norvell brings.
“He always had that energy, man,” Surtain said. “He's well-liked. He's respected by his players. He's tough in a way, but at the same time, he's relentless in the pursuit of excellence.
“And now you can see man, those first two years ago, he was kind of trying to get his guys in and trying to try to get this thing rolling. Last year, it kind of just happened and I don't see it slowing down anytime soon. He has a blueprint in place that's going to take us to where we need to get."
Norvell isn’t the only connection Surtain has with FSU football. He actually played at Doak Campbell Stadium for Southern Miss in 1996, a 54-14 win for the Seminoles.
"I remember we got our butt kicked,” he said. “...They were loaded. I remember coming here, man, the atmosphere was second to none.”
FSU hosts the Golden Eagles in Week 2 on Sept. 9 this season.
He has strong connections to the other coaches on the staff as well.
“Randy Shannon actually coached me with the Dolphins. That's how old Randy is,” Surtain joked. “I know Coach Dave Johnson, I'm originally from New Orleans. So I know Dave from the ball that's all played in New Orleans. Obviously, I know Coach Odell (Haggins).
"The key one was coach (Gerard) Ross, so I was familiar with a lot of guys on the staff and that made the transition much easier.”
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Next step for defense: turnovers
Surtain said he was impressed with what the FSU defense did last season. He cited that the Seminoles finished 15th in total defense (321.8 yards allowed per game) and fourth in passing yards allowed with 165.4 yards per game.
But there is one area he said the team needs to improve on.
“I think the thing that we want to do more this year is take the ball away,” he said. “I’ve been around football a long time, I think if you're able to win the turnover battle, you have a pretty good chance of winning what almost 85 percent of your games. So even though we held teams to 165 passing yards a game, I think the next step will be taking the ball away and giving our explosive offense the ball repeatedly.”
Florida State finished tied for 68th with 16 turnovers created (eight fumbles, eight interceptions) and tied for 54th with a plus-2 turnover margin.
“My whole goal is to get the guys to run to the ball each and every play,” Surtain said. “When you run to the ball on defense good things happen.
“So now obviously the interception part of it just is having guys, they'll play the ball better getting their hands around when we need to.”
Missing high school connection
Surtain said when he took his job with the Miami Dolphins, it was an easy decision. His family was already living in Miami and he wanted to challenge himself at the highest level of football.
However, the professional level lacked a sense of feeling he enjoyed at the high school level.
“From there, when coach Norvell gave me the call, spending the year at the pro level, it wasn’t as intimate as the high school level,” Surtain said.
“I thought about it because it was a tough decision, but ultimately it gave me more of a high-school feel where I could be more hands-on with the guys. So far so good. They’ve welcomed me with open arms and I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
Xavier Lucas, a 2024 defensive back recruit, said on his Junior Day visit on Jan. 21, Surtain told him the same.
“He told me he wanted to be a father to players. He wanted to be a big brother,” Lucas said following his visit. “He said you get that better at the college level than in the NFL. … He said he wanted to coach for Norvell. He has known him for a long time.”
Lucas, who is a 3-star prospect out of Deerfield Beach, comes from an area where FSU wants to recruit well and Surtain has a strong connection to: the South Florida area.
"I know all the kids, that's a big part,” Surtain said. “I know other coaches. And think those kids down there respect what I've done in the past. And I think they see that Florida State is on the up and up. And when college football was at its best, Florida State was at its best.
“I think we're getting back to that point, with this last season, and guys see the movement that coach Novell has started and all the guys that he's hired, the players that he's brought in, I think they want to be part of that.
“So I have a big influence on the South Florida community within the football realm and high school kids, and I think that this is something that would be really exciting to be part of."
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Hitting the ground running
A plus side for Surtain being in Tallahassee is he is closer to his daughter, who is a student at FAMU.
However, since he was hired in January, Surtain has hit the ground running, hitting different recruiting stops and also hosting recruits for Junior Days.
That means he hasn’t had time to focus on other things in his life, especially off the field.
“I haven't even found a place to stay yet,” he said. “So I'm just chilling out at the AC Marriott right now. Hopefully these next couple of weeks we'll get more time so I can just get settled and just get on some solid footing.”
Reach Ehsan Kassim at ekassim@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Ehsan_Kassim. You can also follow our coverage on Facebook (NoleSports) and Instagram (tlhnolesports).
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Patrick Surtain Sr. discusses his decision to join FSU, leave Miami Dolphins