Coming off a disappointing 7-6 season which ended with a trip to the Birmingham Bowl against American Athletic Conference opponent Memphis, Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs rewarded head coach Gus Malzahn with a one-year extension.
How could Jacobs defend such a move, considering the Tigers entered the season as a preseason Top 10 team and the media’s pick to win the conference in 2015?
For the head of Auburn’s athletic department, it’s all about much-needed stability.
“This entire league is about winning, but right now what we need is stability,” Jacobs said Tuesday according to Brandon Marcello of SEC Country. “We need somebody here who stands for the right things like Gus does, the best offensive mind in the nation, taken us to two national championships — which very few in this league can say that’s happened to them; only two, I believe. So that’s what it’s about. It’s not about perception. It’s not about what the past is; it’s about what we need right now moving forward. We need him to be our coach for a long time, and we’re going to provide him with the resources to get that done. We’ve got to produce on the field.”
While stability within the program is certainly something that has been lacking at Auburn in recent years, why Jacobs felt the need to extend Malzahn to the year 2020 when his original deal ran already ran to 2019 is a fair question. Also of note, the majority of Malzahn’s staff are all under two-year deals, which doesn’t exactly scream stability.
Of course if Auburn makes a big turnaround this season and moves back into the top half of the SEC West standings, Malzahn’s status on the Plains will certainly be secured moving forward. Something Jacobs envisions happening.
“He’s our guy,” Jacobs said. “We need stability at Auburn, and so we’re counting on him to get it done. We’re going to give him the resources that are necessary to get it done, and now he has the confidence that he’s going to be here, so that’s helpful in any business, particularly coaching, and he’s got a great staff with nine assistant coaches that he’s very comfortable with.”
A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com
