Tag: auburn coaching search

Report: Kevin Steele, Steve Sarkisian no longer candidates for Auburn job

Kevin Steele and Steve Sarkisian are reportedly no longer candidates for the Auburn head coaching position.

The list is being narrowed even more for Auburn.

Per Dennis Dodd, Kevin Steele is no longer being considered for the head coaching position and, per Auburn Undercover, neither is Steve Sarkisian who did not interview this weekend as expected.

Steele, who was one of the favorites to become the new head coach after spending five seasons as defensive coordinator for the Tigers, will serve as interim head coach for Auburn’s game against Northwestern in the Citrus Bowl.

Louisiana’s Billy Napier has reportedly taken the lead to become the next head coach.

Auburn Coaching Search 4.0: New names possible added to candidate list

Report: Bill Clark, Neal Brown expected to interview for Auburn job

West Virginia coach Neal Brown and UAB coach Bill Clark have been invited to interview for the vacant Auburn position.

Auburn’s search for its next head coach is picking up steam as candidates are coming in for interviews starting today and over the next few days.

Two new candidates that have reportedly been offered invitations to interview for the job are UAB’s Bill Clark and West Virginia’s Neal Brown, per Phillip Marshall of Auburn Undercover.

Brown, who is his second season in Morgantown, got his big break as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for Kentucky back in 2013-14. In charge of Troy from 2015-18, he led the Trojans to a 35-16 overall record, one Sun Belt title and wins at both LSU and Nebraska.

Clark was the man responsible for building the UAB program after it was brought back in 2014. He has had instant success, putting together five straight winning seasons including 11 wins in 2018 and two conference titles after defeating Marshall on Friday night for the 2020 championship.

Others set to interview for the job are Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele, Louisiana head coach Billy Napier and Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables.

Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott has declined an interview.

Auburn Coaching Search 4.0: New names possible added to candidate list

Taking a look at the possible candidates for the head coaching job at Auburn while the search continues.

It has now been a week since Gus Malzahn was fired as the head football coach at Auburn and the search, which many thought would be a mere formality, will continue for at least another couple of days it seems.

New names continue to pop up as candidates for the job while some, including Kevin Steele and Steve Sarkisian, have already been invited for an interview.

Here is the latest look at the candidates along with their chances of landing the job.

New name from Big 12 potentially added to Auburn coaching search

Auburn’s search for its new head coach possibly has a new candidate in West Virginia head coach Neal Brown.

The Auburn coaching search has reached its sixth day and there is seemingly no end in sight as a number of candidates are expected to interview for the job in the coming days.

A new name has been added to that mix in West Virginia head coach Neal Brown, per Steven Godfrey.

The 40-year-old Brown is in his second year in Morgantown after leading Troy to success from 2015-18, winning 10 games for three straight seasons. The Mountaineers are 10-11 in his two seasons in charge.

He also has ties within the SEC, serving as the offensive coordinator and quarterback coach at Kentucky from 2013-14.

On Friday night, it was reported that five coaches — Kevin Steele, Steve Sarkisian, Billy Napier, Tony Elliott and Brent Venables — have received invitations for an interview. On Saturday, Elliott, Clemson’s offensive coordinator, issued a statement saying he has not talked to Auburn nor will be interviewing.

Auburn Coaching Search 3.0: Breaking down the 5 candidates for next head coach

Clemson OC Tony Elliott says he is not interviewing with Auburn

Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott released a statement saying he is not interviewing for the Auburn head coach position.

On Friday night, news broke that Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott was set to interview for the Auburn head coach position sometime in the next few days.

Elliott made it clear on Saturday morning that wasn’t the case.

ESPN’s Marty Smith tweeted a statement he received from the Tigers offensive coordinator stating his intentions.

Auburn is set to interview at least four candidates for the vacant position including Elliott’s counterpart Brent Venables, the Clemson defensive coordinator.

Report: Auburn to interview five candidates for head coach position

Auburn has invited five different men to interview for the vacant head football coaching position.

Auburn has narrowed down its list for the replacement of Gus Malzahn.

Per Auburn Undercover, the search firm and advisory board that are helping the university hire the next head football coach has settled on five men: Auburn defensive coordinator/interim head coach Kevin Steele, Louisiana head coach Billy Napier, Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables and Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott.

From Phillip Marshall:

The committee appointed by president Jay Gogue hopes to complete its business by next Wednesday, though it could go into the week after Christmas.

This story will be updated.

Report: Louisiana’s Billy Napier, Clemson OC Tony Elliott to meet with Auburn

Louisiana head coach Billy Napier and Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott are set to meet with Auburn.

On Friday, it was reported that Auburn will meet with Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian on Sunday regarding the head coaching job. He won’t be the only ones meeting with the Auburn brass this weekend to discuss the position.

Per FootballScoop.com, the Tigers will also be interviewing Louisiana head coach Billy Napier and Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott sometime during the next few days.

Elliott is a new name among the mix of candidates for the Auburn job, vacant since the school’s decision to eat Malzahn’s $21.45 million buyout and begin anew last Sunday.

A former Clemson player and 2017 Broyles Award winner, Elliott’s long been considered a top coaching candidate who could have jumped to another opportunity in previous seasons. However, Elliott has been in the role of Clemson’s offensive coordinator – sharing the title from 2015-19 and outright since the onset of this season – for six consecutive years.

The Cajuns’ Napier has been among the hottest names in college football in each of the past two cycles. The former Furman University quarterback and Tennessee native interviewed earlier this month for the vacancy at South Carolina, before pulling out of consideration for that position. A year ago multiple Power-5 teams expressed interest in Napier, who this season guided Louisiana to a 9-1 regular season that included a win at Big 12 North Division champion Iowa State and a berth in what was scheduled to be Saturday’s SunBelt Conference championship.

Clemson meets Notre Dame on Saturday in the ACC Championship while Louisiana’s Sun Belt title game against Coastal Carolina has been cancelled due to COVID-19 issues.

Report: Steve Sarkisian to interview for Auburn job on Sunday

Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian is reportedly set to interview for the Auburn head coaching position on Sunday.

Auburn might be settling in on its top candidates for the head football coaching position and a big interview is coming.

Per AL.com, Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian is expected to interview for the top job on the Plains this Sunday.

“The Broyles Award semifinalist has made it clear that he doesn’t want to have any communication about the job until after the SEC title game.”

In stops at Washington and USC as head coach, Sarkisian put up a 46-35 overall record, eventually being fired from the Trojans job for some issues off the field. He has since rehabbed his reputation as an offensive analyst and coordinator under Nick Saban, helping guide the Crimson Tide to one of the most prolific offenses this season, putting up 537.8 yards and 49.5 points per game.

Auburn Coaching Search 2.0: Leading candidates for head coach

Auburn is still looking for its new head football coach and these names have popped up.

Auburn struck out on hiring Mario Cristobal away from Oregon and Hugh Freeze doesn’t seem to be on the minds of the Auburn powers that be, so who will be the man to replace Gus Malzahn as head coach of the Tigers?

We break down each candidate along with the likelihood of their hiring.

Auburn Coaching Search 3.0: Breaking down the 5 candidates for next head coach

Auburn has settled on five final candidates for the next head football coach.

On Friday night, it was reported that Auburn will interview five coaches — Kevin Steele, Steve Sarkisian, Billy Napier, Tony Elliott and Brent Venables — for the vacant head coach position.

We break down each candidate below along with the pros and cons each man brings to the position: