The saga that was Auburn's search for a defensive coordinator has come to a close.
After Auburn's 31-10 win over Memphis in the Birmingham Bowl, Auburn coach Gus Malzahn confirmed that former LSU defensive coordinator Kevin Steele will be taking the same position at Auburn.
“We’re extremely excited to have a guy with his experience, his character, his work ethic," Malzahn said. "He’ll fit in very good, and I think he’s got a chance — he’s going to take over a very talented group.”
The news was first reported Wednesday morning by ESPN's Chris Low.
Steele has coached previously at Tennessee, Clemson and Alabama, and was Baylor's head coach from 1999-2002. In his only season at LSU, his unit ranked fifth in the SEC in total defense.
He will be forced to pay a $500,000 buyout to LSU, which he will split with Auburn. Steele, 57, replaces Will Muschamp, who left Auburn after one season to become the head coach at South Carolina on Dec. 6.
While Auburn played in its bowl game, LSU negotiated to keep Steele, according to a report by Ross Dellenger of The Advocate - Baton Rouge. James Smith of NOLA.com reported that LSU offered to match the contract offered by Auburn, which was $4 million for three years, according to Smith's report.
Steele elected to leave LSU for Auburn, in part because of the pension that awaits him after retirement in Alabama, according to Dellenger.
Malzahn did not take questions regarding the defensive coordinator hire, but he said Steele would be made available to the media in the next day or two.
“This day is about winning this bowl game," Malzahn said. "We’ve got a lot of momentum heading into next year.”
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