Sometimes, life just comes full circle.

So it was for Samford head coach, and former Auburn Heisman Trophy winner, Pat Sullivan who announced Tuesday he is stepping down from leading the FCS Bulldogs.

Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn praised Sullivan during the week leading up to Auburn’s Nov. 22 game against Samford. Sullivan served on the committee that hired Malzahn in December 2012, and has been a mentor for the second-year Tigers coach.

Malzahn took a moment Tuesday to tweet out his congratulations to the newly-retired Sullivan:

Malzahn asked Sullivan to be the honorary coach last season for the SEC Championship Game, which Auburn won 59-42 over Missouri.

Fittingly, Sullivan coached his final game at Samford head coach at Jordan-Hare Stadium, where he made a name for himself in the early 1970s.

Sullivan began his coaching career on the Auburn staff, serving as quarterbacks coach under Pat Dye.