Reuniting with his former offensive analyst, Gus Malzahn’s offseason decision to hire Chip Lindsey as his offensive coordinator is being read by many in SEC coaching circles as a good move, provided Auburn’s head coach allows his latest OC to do his job. This according to anonymous comments from SEC coaches in Athlon Sports’ and Lindy’s Sports’ 2017 SEC College Football preseason magazines.

Both magazines can be found at major bookstore chains as well as the online stores of both Athlon Sports and Lindy’s Sports. In addition to the traditional national college football editions, both outlets now provide exclusive Southeastern Conference editions filled with even more content for SEC fans to enjoy.

Of particular interest to the unnamed coaches is how much leeway Malzahn will give Lindsey. After leaving Auburn, when he was a member of the coaching staff that helped lead the Tigers to the BCS National Title Game, the former Southern Miss offensive coordinator helped set school records in Hattiesburg. Under Lindsey, the Eagles set new single-season offensive records in 2015 for passing yards (4,263), total offensive yards (6,758), touchdowns (67) and points (528).

The comments weren’t all related to the offense, however, as some quotes suggest faith is high on the Auburn defense led by coordinator Kevin Steele.

Opposing coaches views on Auburn via Athlon Sports’ 2017 SEC preview magazine:

“It’ll be fascinating to see what happens with Chip Lindsey coming in. I think Gus (Malzahn) is going to let him do what he wants. That’s the rumor, anyway. I think if that’s the case, their passing game will be more dynamic than you’ve seen in the past from them… They’ve done a great job recruiting. You look at Carl Lawson, Montravius Adams, guys they’ve moved on to the NFL and think they have a dip, but they started a freshman last year with Marlon Davidson, and they’ve got another wave of younger guys they were grooming. I think defensively they’ve done as good a job as anyone recruiting other than Alabama… I think if Gus lets Chip do his thing, it’ll look a little more like Southern Miss a couple years ago, where they were throwing it around a lot.”

Opposing coaches views on Auburn via Lindy’s Sports’ 2017 SEC preview magazine:

“I think Auburn has the best defensive line in the country. They have nine NFL players on their D-line. The linebackers are talented; the secondary is good. They have four to five very talented corners and the two safeties are back. The defense is one of the better ones in the country… As long as Gus Malzahn stays out of the way and lets Chip Lindsey develop a plan and call the game, Auburn will be better.”