When Gus Malzahn left Auburn after the 2011 season, there were few red flags about the state of the program, but after a disastrous 3-9 campaign in 2012, Auburn fired head coach Gene Chizik and hired Malzahn as his replacement.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity to become the head football coach at Auburn University," Malzahn said in an official statement. "It's an outstanding institution with a storied football program."
Malzahn will be tasked with remedying an Auburn offense that ranked last in the SEC and 118th nationally at 305 yards per game in 2012.
"Coach Malzahn was our choice because he is a proven winner who has been successful at every level," said Auburn Athletic Director Jay Jacobs. "He is one of the brightest minds in college football, and he knows what it takes to build a championship program at Auburn."
Malzahn should be a welcomedhire by Auburn quarterbacks Kiehl Frazier, Jonathan Wallace and incoming freshman Jeremy Johnson. All three quarterbacks are threats running the ball and benefit from Malzahn's nohuddle, spread-type offense.
"First of all, I think Kiehl's very familiar with what we're doing," Malzahn said in an appearance on ESPN's College Football Live. "We recruited him specifically for this system, and of course last year, he went into a pro-style system. Quarterbacks have a comfort zone, and I really feel he'll be more comfortable in this system."
Malzahn spent 2006 as offensive coordinator at Arkansas and was the offensive coordinator at Tulsa from 2007-08. During his two seasons at Tulsa, the Golden Hurricaneled the nation in total offense. Malzahn found success as offensive coordinator at Auburn during his three seasons from 2009-11. Auburn's offense, led by Newton, exploded in 2010 with 499.2 yards per game. The offense led the SEC, was seventh best in the country, and was the main reason Auburn came away with the 2010 national championship.
After the 2010 season, Malzahn turned down the Vanderbilt head coaching job, which would have reportedly paid him $3 million annually. He received a pay bump from Auburn -- $1.3 million per year - and became one of the highest paid assistant coaches in the country. Auburn's offense dropped considerably in 2011, but that was to be expected after the Tigers lost many key offensive players from its championship team, including Newton and wide receiver Darvin Adams. The offense fell to 8th in the SEC and 100th overall. After the 2011 season, Malzahn once again turned down the Vanderbilt job and offers from Kansas and North Carolina. However, in a headscratching move, Malzahn accepted the head coaching job at Arkansas State. His contract with Arkansas State paid him $850,000 annually.
After a year at Arkansas State, Malzahn accepted the head coaching job at Auburn after the university fired Gene Chizik. Malzahn, who was given the option to choose his own coaching staff, decided to clean house and not retain any assistant coaches from the old regime.
This is Malzahn's second stint with Auburn, but it's different this time. He's the leading man, and he has his handpicked staff behind him. He will, however, maintain play-calling duties on offense.
Auburn believes it has the right man to get the football program back to the top, and back to a national championship.
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