Will Friend has officially been hired by an SEC team for the second time this offseason. Bryan Harsin announced that the former Tennessee assistant who had been hired to Shane Beamer’s South Carolina staff is officially the new Auburn offensive line coach.

“I’m happy to welcome Coach Friend to our staff here at Auburn,” Harsin said via a school release. “We both strongly believe that winning the line of scrimmage is one of the most important parts of a successful football team. His offensive lines have a history of being physically and mentally tough. We’re excited to have Will join the Auburn family.”

Under Friend, Tennessee’s Trey Smith was a two-time All-SEC first-team lineman. In 2019, UT offensive linemen Wanya Morris and Darnell Wright were both selected to the Freshman All-SEC squad, while Morris was tabbed a Freshman All-American.

“I want to thank Coach Harsin for the opportunity to join his staff at Auburn,” Friend said via the AU announcement. “I’ve coached against Coach Harsin and have always had so much respect for him and the culture he created within his program. Auburn is a special place and I have great regard for the Auburn football program, the university, and the incredible passion of the Auburn family. I’m excited to join something special at Auburn with Coach Harsin and the staff.”

Friend was at Colorado State from 2015-17 as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. In 2017, he led an offense that ranked 11th in the nation in total offense at 492.5 yards per game. Colorado State’s 33.4 points per game in 2017 led the conference and ranked 31st in the nation.

Prior to Colorado State, Friend served as the offensive line coach at Georgia in 2011 before adding the title of running game coordinator in 2013. During his final season in Athens in 2014, Friend helped guide a Bulldogs’ offense that averaged 41.3 points per game, which ranked eighth nationally, and racked up 457.8 yards of total offense per game.