What accepting the UCF job says about Gus Malzahn
Two weeks ago, I caught up with former Auburn coach Gene Chizik to talk about Gus Malzahn. Chizik hired Malzahn to become Auburn’s offensive coordinator in 2009. Malzahn ultimately succeeded Chizik to become Auburn’s head coach in 2013. The two remained friends over the years even as Chizik, who never moved his family away from Auburn, transitioned into the media world with SEC Network.
So when Chizik saw reports that Malzahn was on the way out at Auburn, he was shocked because of the $21.45 million buyout. Once the initial shock wore off, Chizik told Malzahn that he’d get a great job next year, and that he’d have 3 or 4 to pick from after taking the year off and recalibrating.
Well, it took roughly 2 months for that great job to show up. And now, fittingly, the man behind the hurry-up, no-huddle offense is on to the next gig.
Malzahn decided that UCF was that great job. As in, the job great enough to not just sit back and collect his buyout money. The man set to receive the richest buyout for a head coach in FBS history didn’t coast on the $11 million that hit his bank account within 30 days of being fired at Auburn, nor did he relax knowing he had another $10.45 million on the way in the next 4 years without lifting a finger.
Nope. Malzahn did all the recalibrating he needed.
For context, Chizik’s comments about Malzahn’s next step came after the UCF job became open but before the Knights hired Terry Mohajir to replace Danny White as its athletic director. That’s significant. Mohajir and Malzahn worked together during the coach’s lone year at Arkansas State. Mohajir arrived at Arkansas State and watched Malzahn lead a 9-3 season, only to go back to Auburn after Chizik was fired.
According to ESPN, Malzahn emerged as UCF’s top target on Sunday. That was roughly 3 days after Mohajir was introduced as UCF athletic director. Malzahn, after seemingly spending the last 4 seasons on the hot seat at Auburn, had to feel wanted by UCF.
From Mohajir’s perspective, why wouldn’t he want Malzahn?
This was a major step for Mohajir, who left his alma mater for UCF. It shouldn’t have been much of a surprise that he wanted to go out and make a splashy hire. Malzahn qualifies as that. There’s no question he’ll be able to recruit in the state of Florida, where he recruited guys like Carlton Davis, Anthony Schwartz, Jamien Sherwood and other blue-chippers like Byron Cowart, Joey Gatewood and Nate Craig-Myers all left the Sunshine State for Malzahn’s program.
Go figure that Malzahn is far more proven than his UCF predecessor, Josh Heupel, who left UCF for Tennessee. For all of Malzahn’s shortcomings at Auburn — mainly failing to live up to the ridiculously high bar he set with a national runner-up season in Year 1 — he still has plenty working in his favor. He’s 77-38 as an FBS head coach with 5 Top-25 finishes and a pair of division titles in the toughest division in the sport.
Malzahn enters a situation at UCF with suddenly high expectations after a 4-year stretch in which the Knights posted a 41-8 mark. It was an attractive opening that surely didn’t lack candidates wanting to take on those expectations.
But those expectations still won’t be in the same ballpark as the ones Malzahn faced at Auburn, where he had Nick Saban to his left and Kirby Smart to his right. With all due respect to the AAC, which elevated its profile considerably in the last 5 years, Malzahn’s biggest annual hurdles are Cincinnati (as long as Luke Fickell is there) and Memphis. Oh, and I should probably mention that Tulsa, where Malzahn spent 2 years before taking the offensive coordinator position at Auburn, is coming off consecutive years with victories against UCF.
Still, though. Malzahn is no longer facing annual matchups with national championship coaches and rosters chock full of blue-chip recruits. In a way, he’ll get back to his roots. Sure, UCF is different than coaching Arkansas high school football. Last I checked, Arkansas high school football coaches weren’t making 7 figures.
But Malzahn was a better fit for UCF than a place like Tennessee, where he would’ve probably felt a familiar sense of angst among the fanbase and administration. At UCF, Malzahn can theoretically lose a game, search his name on social media and not have the word “buyout” show up. What a concept!
Clearly, Malzahn isn’t motivated by money at this stage of his life. He has more than enough of it thanks to how things played out at Auburn. His next opportunity was never going to be about that. It was always finding the right opportunity to succeed. All signs pointed to him fighting his boredom and continuing to play golf and do exactly what his buddy, Chizik, said he would do. You know, recalibrate.
After all, it’s mid-February. Usually, the coaching carousel isn’t spinning at this time of year. At the very least, it’s not spitting out quality jobs like UCF.
Malzahn instead scrapped his golf plans and recognized the opportunity. He’ll lead arguably the top rising Group of 5 program in America, which is located in a recruiting hotbed that he knows well. And now, he has a boss with whom he already has a rapport. There’s a decent chance Malzahn couldn’t have checked all those boxes anywhere else for the next 4 years.
That’s how long those scheduled buyout payments from Auburn are set to run. There wasn’t any offset language in the contract if Malzahn were to accept a new job, which means barring some sort of altered settlement, his historic buyout won’t be impacted by his new gig (Willie Taggart got roughly $4 million of his $18 million buyout at Florida State covered by FAU after accepting that job). There wasn’t going to be some Bret Bielema-like lawsuit over whether Malzahn made enough of an effort to find another job, either.
In other words, there were no financial motives for Malzahn to jump back into the ring. That $21.45 million was on its way no matter what. Because of that buyout, he was in a position different than any fired coach we’ve ever seen in the sport. Nobody would’ve faulted Malzahn for laying low and enjoying his time away from the fishbowl. All he’s done is coach football for the last 30 years.
He could’ve gone the media route like Chizik. He could’ve been an analyst at some high-profile program like Butch Jones. He could’ve even pursued acting like Les Miles.
Even with a buyout more than twice the size of those 3 former SEC head coaches, Malzahn took on a new challenge. It’s one he couldn’t have seen coming even just a few weeks ago. Timing is everything. Malzahn and Mohajir know that all too well.
Mohajir said in the team’s release announcing the move that “there has never been a better time for Coach Malzahn to lead this program than right now.”
Recalibration season is over. All aboard the Gus Bus to Orlando.
Part of me wonders why he just doesn’t retire and live the life.
I guess the dude needs to be on a sideline somewhere.
If you’re using the buy-out metric as a measuring stick, then Gus is the smartest man in football.
STAY HOME AND STARTING WORK AT HOME EASILY…Make 6,000 dollar to 8,000 dollar A Month Online With No Prior Experience Or Skills Required. Be Your Own Boss And Choose Your Own Work Hours.
Thanks A lot Here…..-…… cutt.ly/Xk2U8H5
Most coach’s wives don’t want their husbands around more. Coaches tend to be just as intense when they aren’t at work.
Gus is a competitor. Good for him. I wish him all the best.
Clearly have to wonder what the F Auburn was thinking letting him go. Is Harsin really that much of an upgrade? My opinion clearly is NO. Mahlzan averaged 4.7 losses with Auburn and Harsin averaged a little over 3 with Boise. How’s that an upgrade? Look the SEC needs Auburn to be better and I wish them good luck.
lol…right. He was so good that Tennessee jumped all over the opportunity to hire him. BTW, Harsin averaged only 2.7 losses per year at Boise. Auburn got tired of being average under Gus. Harsin might be better, he might not. But only losers sit around happy with being average. Good luck…hope UT gets back to being average.
All things considering I believe Tennessee has put together a good staff that will put points on the board. Our defense is going to be a work in progress because the talent there was probably under developed under Pruitt and Ansley. They aren’t going to be the flashiest when it comes to in person recruiting but the brand of football getting points on the board is going to really appealing to upcoming offensive talent. Both Auburn and Tennessee probably ended up settling on coaching picks. However TN has an excuse so what’s Auburns’s
Tennessee made no offer to Mahlzan. NONE
At this point, AU is a better job than UT. Why would UT hire a coach that could do no better than 4-5 losses a year to pull their team up from bad, when he could not do it at a better program? Gus had 7 years to show what his ceiling was. It is not like AU had a quick trigger and gt=ot rid if him after 3-4 years,
Not only Auburn kept him so long The AD even gave him a raise and extension. Then decided it was a huge mistake and had to fire Gus.
With the NCAA Investigation looming Gus would have said “No” real fast.
What are you smoking. Comparing records of Boise playing, well, what they play and Auburn in the SEC West is galaxies apart. There aren’t consistently two other teams up there with Boise that can produce two loses for Harsin or anyone else. Better hope your new coach doesnt get B slapped into reality like Morris did.
This guy is clearly pressed that people know his favorite program is down. Unfortunately, projecting his woes onto the Auburn football program doesn’t change the reality of Tennessee’s situation at all.
Tennessee as major problems…today & in the future. The NCAA, if the allegations are correct, will hit the Vols hard, real hard…loss of a dozen schollys, 3 year bowl ban, etc./etc.
The Vols future has not looked this dim in decades.
When has the ncaa ever given a three year bowl ban? Penn State was given four years, but even that was reduced to two.
Malzahn to UCF is a much better hire than Hardin to Auburn or Heupel to Tennessee. UCF wins the coaching carasol this round.
Harsin and Heupel have already been successful at the G-5 level, and are getting their shot at the P-5, so you have no data to back up your claim. Malzahn has had 8 years at the P-5 level and he showed that he was a middle of the pack coach, that had control issues and was in very real danger of falling further behind.
Like to point out that Malzahn had success in the G5 and no denying he had success in the P5 so he has a proven product. We havent seen Harsin or Heupel as a HC yet in the P5.
LSU…the NCAA goes from top to bottom concerning penalties/bowl bans/etc. Now no one knows what direction they will take on anything.
I tend to agree. Malzahn’s biggest mistake after weathering storm after storm from fans was the Morris hire. When he shook hands with his friend he signed his walking papers.
Love the username! Assuming this is a Phish Hoist reference?
Gus was falling further behind in the talent department, and with his refusal to evolve his offense, his record was not going to get any better. I do not expect him to do much better at UCF. His competition is lesser, but so are the players he is going to be able to recruit. Gus was getting a large percentage of his rostors from the ranks of 3* players, that is not going to change and I doubt he is going to get many 4* players. AU had to decide if they were going to be contenders or settle for mediocre. They chose to at least try even with massive intrusion of their boosters.
Coaches start out on the hot seat at Auburn. No one is ever good enough, and the nearly personality-free Harsin will be the same. He’s a good coach, but they’ll tire of him quickly as usual.
Auburn made a bad mistake and UCF made a great hire. Happy for the Knights. Clearly, being at Auburn (maybe the toughest job in terms of schedule vs expectation) for 8 seasons, Gus is a guy who enjoys a challenge. UCF seems like a perfect fit for him.
A mistake? We’ve lost at least four games every year Malzahn coached (some seasons five and six losses) except for his first season in 2013.
I understand why Auburn let him go, although the buyout was bonkers. You’re right that Auburn had probably seen all that Gus Malzahn was going to do on the Plains. That was going to be seasons with an average of 3 or 4 losses. Great most places, but won’t work at a place that thinks it’s able to annually keep up with Alabama and Georgia.
No one can keep up with Alabama, but there’s no reason why Auburn shouldn’t be able to keep up with UGA. The programs have been equal (roughly speaking) my entire life and longer. Now Auburn’s seeing itself slip behind its two biggest rivals, which is a reason to fire any coach.
There’s a very good reason Auburn can’t keep up with UGA. The Tigers historically dig deep into Georgia for elite players. Kirby now says “only if I let it happen”. Bama, Georgia and LSU are regularly getting the best players in the region. Only when Auburn can put a dent in that will things improve.
There are outliers here and there each year, but one of the hardest truths in modern CFB is that you cannot run with the big dogs consistently without a similarly elite roster. Harsin knows this, and is in for the biggest challenge of his life trying to match recruiting wits with Saban, Kirby, Coach O and Jimbo.
^ This is the biggest change in recent history for UGA. They’ve always pulled in-state talent (being the only real recruiting threat in GA), but Kirby has put a wall around the state and kept the best players from crossing the border. Now they can focus harder on out of state recruiting, and their class rankings show it
cbmckay, I would also add that Kirby has elevated the national brand in recruiting. The 2020 class was so stocked with kids from California, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, New Jersey, DC, etc. that there were some grumblings about Kirby not recruiting enough Georgia kids. When you can go pluck the best players out of most any state, you’ve earned your recruiting red belt.
So as a UF fan you would be happy to settle for 4-5 losses year after year?
I think it’s a matter of cost vs. performance. I don’t fault AU for making the change, but a look around the coaching landscape does make one wonder if the hire they made was worth the price they paid (in both buyout and new coach contract).
I am not impressed with Harsin as a major player in the SEC. That being said, I doubt anyone was shaking in their boots when LSU hired Saban. But with Gus falling behind 4 teams he plays every year in recruiting, lack of development of players, his refusal to actually let and OC be an OC, and losing about 5 a season, there was nowhere to go but down. Add in the appearance that OM and ARK in the west, and Mizzu in the east may be rising, AU had no choice but to go in another direction before they were a complete after thought,
Auburn was his peak. A peak he should have never gotten to. His best fit would be back in highschool with that horrid offense of his.
lol? so youre saying his 53-27 record over 9 years is a fluke? I know last season was rough but jesus man for being bamas biggest rival they sure have stuck around and achieved some good things I think you should probably be a little more respectful for what he did for your program. I’m not sure it will be back to that level for quite a while
Correction, he was actually 68-35 over 8 years.
Which means he lost 34% of his games, 24 of those wins, on average, coming against cupcakes. Then look at the conference record, he was 39-27, or in other words he lost 41% of those games. He was just 6 losses from being .500. he was 2-5 in bowls, and after his first year he shared one division championship, his recruiting was not keeping up, and he had proven time and again that either he could not evaluate talent for his offense or he could not develop a QB nor could he identify O-linemen. AU was behind Bama, UGA, and LSU in recruiting and then the last 2 years you had to add TAMU, with Kiffin at Ole Miss it was looking like AU woud fall behind them, and did this year. Like fishing, sometimes you just have to change bait, and it was time to change Gus before AU was so far behind that it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for them to catch up.
He had an average record and had one really good year. Auburn fans will always be appreciative for 2013. But, Gus also took Auburn to the cleaners and then went on cruise control. Had he had the same fire in 2019 and 2020 that he had in 2013…he would still be there. I think you’ll see UCF canning him in about 4 years. He took a job he thinks will be easier, because he’s done trying to outwork other coaches.
Weagle99 Knows everything about why Gus did what he did. He knows his innermost thoughts! WOW
He actually has a pretty good read on the situation. When you are the 7th highest paid coach in the country, you are not being paid to be average. That kind of money makes you accountable for your failings.
Tidefan8x5, I was shocked that the AD gave Gus a raised and an extension. Why didn’t they just hold back and tell him he had to do better or will be fired at the end of the year before giving him that new contract.
That was the prior AD Jacobs, and the prior President, They were incouraged by boosters, this fact is borne out by the fact that the contract was approved by the BoT. Without that approval the contract would not have been legal. They thought he was going to go to Ark. Per tradition they put too much importance on the fact that AU got hot and beat Bama and UGA at the end of the season, and not the fact that AU lost the SECCG and their bowl to a G-5 team, yet Bama and UGA played for the national championship. They listened to Gus who is aways going to be ready to compete next year.
The defense has pretty much carried him most of the 8 years. Gus could not coach up a QB if his life depended on it. Watch Auburn’s offense and watch Bama’s and it is night and day. That is the problem with some Auburn fans, all they care about is beating Bama, but what does that get you when you go 7-5 or 8-4? A crappy worthless bowl game.
I agree. Another thing to look at is to look at Bama’s offense the last 8 years, then look at AU’s. Saban, a coach known for defense was constantly eveolving his offense. Gus, known for his offense was so stagnant that when I used to watch games with the AL.com crowd, some of them were calling the playes before the snap. Gus refused to change up his offense, and he failed miserably at revruiting to his offense.
Willy, you’re analytical skills are as derelict as your moral compass. His 68-35 record was absolutely filled with disappointing and inexplicable losses, the kind which get SEC coaches fired. After 2013, 2017 was the only strong season and even then he suffered bad losses. What good things did Gus achieve (after 2013)? Also, what exactly gives you the footing to wag your finger at an Auburn fan about being “disrespectful” to Gus?
We’ve averaged like five losses a season since 2014. Maybe that’s good for South Carolina, but for the rest of us – not going to cut it.
Actally AU averaged about 5 losses a season including 2013. There is no reason that AU can not be as good as Bama, LSU, TAMU, UGA, or any team in the country. AU is not South Carolina and they would be happy to settle for 5 losses a year, but I bet they would not pay their coach as much.
AuburnAlum01, next stop for Gus? South Carolina? LOL!
Could you list the “good things” he did for Auburn?
Malzahn had exactly 2 good seasons (2013 and 2017). Here are his records:
2014: 8-5
2015: 7-6
2016: 8-5
2017: 10-4
2018: 8-5
2019: 9-4
2020: 6-5
Notice a pattern?
Keep in mind that most of those losses were against good teams and at least half of those wins were against cupcakes or subpar P5 teams.
Malzahn could scrounge up a flash in the pan every once in a while, but he was consistently average. And he was paid the 7th high salary in the country. He was robbing Auburn based on the return he was giving.
I’m not going to argue with your main point because I do think it was time to move on from Malzahn. With that being said, however, he did take Auburn to two SEC Championship games and a national championship appearance. It’s easy to overlook that because Auburn’s had a taste of success, but before Chizik/Malzahn, coaches weren’t really doing that for Auburn. You can argue that Tuberville got robbed, and I’d likely agree, but Gus did do a lot to help elevate the Auburn brand in the 21st century. Again, doesn’t mean that he hadn’t reached his limit at Auburn. Just some perspective.
Gus’ problem with is offense (and I still shake my head at this) is that he needs a dual-threat QB to run it properly, and yet he didn’t have one since his first season as HC on the Plains. I think Bo Nix was shoved on him by the boosters because of his legacy status, even though a pocket-passer like Nix is not a good fit for Malzahn’s offense. And Malzahn likely pushed back at some point, leading to him getting canned. The boosters at Auburn have been a huge problem for a long time now…as Harsin is about to find out.
Pocket passer? Are we talking about the same QB? Bo Nix is clearly a duel-threat, and a better runner than passer quite frankly.
Bo Nix has been so hot/cold as a quarterback. Example:
The 2020 game at South Carolina. A “legacy QB”.
Duel threat? When is he going to show it? Cam Newton he ain’t.
Wolfman, Bo is not a dual-threat. He panics and runs when his first read is covered. Watch the film. Bo will never be better than he was as a senior in high school.
Bo Nix had daddy privilege.
The one he had in 13 was a converted DB…
Malzahn has never understood his own offense as well as other defenses have.
You think he should go back to high school after a winning record…in the SEC…in the West division. As Biden would say, Come on man.
That’s a good gig. He’ll make plenty of money, win a lot of games…maybe a shot at a national title. Best part he will be able to sit back and watch auburn struggle for years.
I don’t envision Gus as the type that would take pleasure in watching Auburn struggle. Certainly Spurrier didn’t take pleasure in CootU struggling after he got drunk and fell off the Spurs Up bus…
humpy…You have not ever recovered from Steve Spurrier’s Gators kicking your Dawg butt for year & years. You take shots at Spurrier every time his name is in print. Get over it.
He’ll never be in a national title conversation again. He has now taken UCF as his retirement job. They’re the ones that are about to find out that his fire is gone as a HC.
Or they may just find out that Gus grew stale of the Auburn boosters or weary of the rigors of SEC recruiting against Saban…time will tell
UCF is one of maybe four G5 teams that are knocking on a CFP shot like it or not. If the CFP expands look to see them mentioned often. I think Malzahn will elevate the program there. It sure looked like it was slipping with Heupel.
UCF is not going to win a national title, unless it is a people’s title. Most people have never heard of, nor pay attention to, the Collie Matrix.
I dont know about a national title, but a spot in an expanded CFP isnt a long shot.
UCF going to the playoffs and even making it to the National Championship are about as realistic as George Washington winning the White House in 2024.
If ever there was a chance for a G5 school to crack the playoffs, it was this past year. they put Notre Dame in … Notre Dame, who had just gotten blown out by Clemson instead of a G5 program.
It ain’t gonna happen.
Gus made it hard for me to truly hate on Auburn, a very classy and passionate coach for sure. It’s easy to see he loves coaching and UCF did very well pulling him in, I imagine not for very long, but I do wish the GusBus well…and YES, y’all did beat the dogcrap outta us…thanks for the motivation. Huge reason why we can spell C F P…
Gus was and still is one hell of a coach. He was in Bama’s back yard and did well with less talent. Auburn will never have the consistent talent needed to be competitive year in and year out. They are about to learn the hard way of where AU football is set up to be by the powers in the SEC. You could count on Gus producing a really good team every couple years. Now they are headed to the basement with Arkansas and Vandy.
sure…keep wishing
I’d like more information on “where AU fotball is set up to be by the powers in the SEC” when you have a moment. Thanks!
You’re so cool. Bet you feel big and bad with your snide comment about us. *eye roll*
Headed to the basement, eh? Okay, we’ll see.
Who are the powers that be that decide which teams are good?
And with that statement, you have zero credibility. Remember, character counts and trying to be witty often backfires.
Malzahn and UCF could be a dynamic and scary mix for opponents. Realistically, name any school not named Alabama in the SEC where fans and alumni are satisfied. Since Saban has been at Alabama, EVERY SEC school has changed head coaches at least once…some of us a few more than that!
Now that buyout…well, that’s another story. But the Auburn administration can blame themselves for that. But they probably won’t.
Right on.
Everyone knows the two people that were to blame for that contract. As soon as it was announced, fans and people everywhere were like WTF…
As the AD’s know…It’s easy to spend someone else’s money $$$$$.
Tell me, what about Gus’ offense, makes you think it is going to be anymore dynamic than Frost’s or Heupel’s? Thank I’ll look forward to your analysis.
Well, I think it will be more dynamic than Frost or Heupel….if he doesnt make the mistake of hiring Morris as his OC or even a position coach.
Saban’s been at Alabama for almost 15 years. Most teams in the country have changed coaches in that time. Guys like Frank Beamer are the exception, not the rule.
The buyout was done by a previous AD and a previous president.
Nobody outside of Malzahn, Jimmy Sexton, and the sports writers here at SDS thought that was a good idea. Even fans who were elated at the 2017 season thought it was absurd.
The Board of Trustees must have thought it was a good idea. They approved the contract. Now who makes up a good part of that board? Well boosters.
It’s entirely possible that he’ll be able to thrive in a much less competitive league. But it’s also possible he’ll be a mediocre coach and become bowl eligible every now and again. This is an interesting hire.
The league is not really less competitive, they just play with lesser players, on the whole. Is the UCF fanbase going to be satisfied with 2-3 losses a year, now that they have an overinflated opinion of themselves?
I really love the recruiting comments. It is important to remember that Gus averaged top 10 classes and still averaged 4 losses a season. He also forgot to recruit O-linemen. You have to develop as well as recruit.
This past year, his class was projected to be in the 40s because recruits saw the writing on the wall with Malzahn. It didn’t matter that there was a revolving door at the OC position–the result was always the same. What quarterback wants to come to a place where his talent will be wasted?
And yeah, he totally neglected the offensive line in favor of “flashy” skill positions. And he paid for it dearly.
He recruited well in high flash players, terrible at QB and O-line, His DCs handled the recruiting for that side. The big problem is that no matter that he had classes in the top ten, he had 3 yearly opponents that ranked higher the whole time he was there, and TAMU has been higher the last 3 years to make 4 yealy opponents that he was falling behind. Kiffen is going to make it hard on AU too.
He said a while back that he was going to take back play calling. Instead, he shots himself in the foot by hiring Chad “left lane hammer down” Morris.
Good for Gus. I think he will do well. UCF really only has one major competitor. ( Cincinnati) . He has to get the Florida recruits that the ACC and SEC don’t want and turn them into winners.
Since Tulsa has beaten UCF 2 straight years, I am sure they will be happy to know that they are not a competitor with UCF,
Gus has a bag of trick plays and voodoo incantations. Not much else. Evaluations? Jeremy was a Heisman lock in preseason based on the word from closed spring practices. Scam had a ton of raw talent and potential. He didn’t start until the 3rd game of the season. Development? Stidham was worse after go there. UCF has trended downward. The trend will continue or increase with the dipsy do trickero coming to town.
Hopefully UCF will have more realistic expectations than Auburn. Unrealistic expectations are why there are so many unnecessary coaching changes and problems e.g., UT in college football.
Finishing a season without losing 4 games when you have the resources of Auburn and getting paid as a top 10 coach is not being unrealistic. It’s not like Auburn fans expected to be in ATL every year. He only had 10 wins twice in his eight years. That’s pitiful.
I could very well be wrong, but a ten win season in the SEC is going to be tougher and tougher to accomplish…especially in the West division. Other than Saban/Alabama, parity is becoming more and more a reality in the SEC. Eight conference games leaves very little room for error, and you almost have to run the tables in non-conference.
Just look what happened in the Covid-19 ten game 2020 season.
With 13 games in a season, counting bowls, you can lose 3 games a year and still win 10 a year. Winning your division or conference only promises more. So with the normal scheduling of 3 cupcakes for all the conference teams, you only need 7 more wins.
He didn’t get fired due to anything he accomplished in his first year, He got fied for consistantly not competing for division, conference, and national championships, except for one shared divisional championship in 7 years, for being out recruited consistanly by 4 teams he played yearly, and fakking further behind in talent (note the numbers drafted in the first 3 rounds), all of this while being paid the 7th highest paying contract in college football. All schools, expect results as related to the dollar spent. If he was making $3 million he would peobably still be at AU,
Exactly. If your performance doesn’t match your pay grade you will get fired from just about any job.
You got it. Forgive all the typos. I am having computer problems and doing this from my wife’s tablet and it is driving me bat sh!t crazy.
UCF is the next Titanic to set sail in 2021… Auburn already knows to start playing the fiddles for you guys even before you hit the ice.
Gus will likely average 11 to 12 wins a season in his new conference.
@CharacterCounts
No he won’t. He’ll have a great first season and then once other teams get a handle on his predictable playcalling, he’ll average 4 losses.
It’s pretty simple, he just wanted to coach and this is a pretty good gig
Guys need meaningful work. Go Gus!
Hahaha,
“blue-chippers like Byron Cowart, Joey Gatewood and Nate Craig-Myers all left the Sunshine State for Malzahn’s program.”
Yes, you remember those guys, right? They set the SEC on fire with their … oh … wait … none of them did anything at Auburn because Malzahn either mismanaged them (Craig-Myers, Gatewood) or they were busts (Cowart).
“mainly failing to live up to the ridiculously high bar he set with a national runner-up season in Year 1”
That wasn’t why he was fired. He was fired because he had at least 4 losses every season since 2013, because he had yet to develop in-house talent on the offense, because he won exactly 2 bowl games (Memphis and Purdue) because he had losing records against UGA, LSU, Bama, and since 2017 had a LOSING record against the SEC as a whole. Add to that the fact that recruiting under him was faltering–even as late as December, Auburn’s 2021 recruiting class was ranked in the 40s. No, the boosters saw the writing on the wall and rather than watch Auburn collapse under Malzahn, they made the move to replace him.
“Didn’t get it done, didn’t execute” was his most common phrase when describing a loss. Get used to that UCF!
Maybe Guz can win a national championship at UCF like Scott Frost did by beating Guz in the Peach Bowl…?
If UCF is gonna get the best version of Gus, what exactly was Auburn getting? Why in the world would any administration, in their right mind, give such a buyout? Usually if you take another job, your new salary will affect the current buyout! Not only did Gus hose Auburn with the buyout, he apparently quit recruiting also! Either O’l Gus or his agent is a genius, or, Gus has the goods(and pictures to prove it) on “the family”.
I believe Gus just wants to coach football. He is not ready for the retire-in-Florida and play golf life just yet. Coaches want to coach.
Turn back the clock for Arkansas and Auburn. If Auburn had not ponied up the mega bucks, Auburn would have saved millions, had a new coach before a Covid year and Arkansas would have avoided the Morris embarrassment. The irony is that Auburn got him to stay AND THEN ends up with Morris as the OC. Salt in an open wound for Auburn fans.
UCF just hit home run. Spence( from king of queens) is gone. UCF winner. Tenn loser
Hey the author failed to mention that for seven consecutive years Coach Jarhead averaged five losses a year. Add to this the three cupcakes minimum played each year, his record against LSU, Ga and even Alabama and you can only wonder why he was not fired before the 2017 season. The guy is a one trick pony and the pony died.