Tag: Gus Malzahn ucf

Auburn or Gus Malzahn? The Athletic answers who makes playoff first

Auburn or Gus Malzahn: Who will make the College Football Playoff first?

Since its inception in 2014, Auburn has yet to make the College Football Playoff. The Tigers’ closest call came in 2017 when a victory in the SEC Championship Game would have put them in the final four.

After eight seasons under Gus Malzahn, the Tigers are now led by Bryan Harsin while Malzahn landed a job at UCF, a perennial Group of Five power.

So, with that in mind, someone named Brian S. (and no, it wasn’t me) wrote into The Athletic’s ($) mailbag to ask who makes the playoff first between the Tigers and their old coach. Steward Mandel answered the question.

Fascinating question. Tough one to answer, though, given we don’t know when it’s going to start. Will Malzahn still be at UCF in 2026? Will Bryan Harsin still be at Auburn? Who the heck knows?

The safe bet, though, is Auburn, just because the Tigers are going to have more margin for error. For UCF to make the Playoff, it’s probably going to have to both win the AAC and, most years, be ranked higher than any of the other Group of 5 champions. Whereas Auburn could go 9-3, finish third in the SEC West and, depending on what that 9-3 looks like, make the CFP as an at-large team.

Over the past 40 years, Auburn has not gone more than four years without at least one nine-win season. The Tigers have been highly erratic and yet highly predictable. Whereas I can’t begin to predict what UCF’s trajectory will be under Malzahn.

Who knows, maybe a matchup between Auburn and a Malzahn-led UCF is in the future for the playoffs. That would be some storyline.

Malzahn ‘out from under the strictures’ of Auburn? Dennis Dodd takes cheap shot

CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd’s cheap shot at Auburn and the “strictures” Gus Malzahn was under is another example of dramatic falsehood.

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If you pay attention to what Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports has to say about Gus Malzahn’s tenure at Auburn, you’d think the new UCF coach was coaching with both hands locked in handcuffs behind his back.

In a preview of things to look for during spring practice, Dodd has this to say about Malzahn:

“After getting out from under the strictures at Auburn (available on request), he has the chance to go back to his roots as a play-callin’ ball coach savant with the Knights.”

Sorry if I take a second to laugh at that sentence. What, exactly, was Dodd watching these past four or five seasons at Auburn? One of the biggest complains of the Malzahn era was that his play-calling, when he was the one actually calling the plays, got stale. Opposing defensive coordinator had figured it out. It was no secret anymore and the magic that was the 2013 Tigers offense wasn’t coming back.

So what were these strictures that Malzahn was so-called under? As far as we know, Malzahn wasn’t forced to bring in Chad Morris or Chip Lindsey and have them call the plays nor was he forced to go back to play-calling duty all by himself, where he said he felt more natural, in 2019. Sure, there are some powerful people that like to pretend that they run the football program but not so much that they would have control like Dodd is projecting.

As for getting back to his roots, maybe Malzahn will do that but did those roots ever really leave him during his time at Auburn? Possibly so. At times it was like he couldn’t decide what type of coach he wanted to be. Hands-on? A CEO type? The “play-calling’ ball coach savant?” That last one we all wanted him to be.

Personally, I’m rooting for Malzahn to do great things at UCF. I hope he takes the American Athletic Conference by storm and leads the Knights to amazing wins. Saying that, I still think Dodd is off base when saying he was under strictures during his time on the Plains. A lot of good happened during Malzahn’s watch at Auburn and, eventually, the relationship ran its course.

It happens, yet the cheap shot at Auburn wasn’t necessary. Malzahn has said nothing but good things about his time on the Plains. Maybe it is time for others to see it as what it was: eight years of majors ups and downs that came to an end.

Save the drama for somewhere else.

Former Auburn wide receiver Nate Craig-Myers commits to UCF

Former Auburn wide receiver Nate Craig-Myers will spend his final season of eligibility playing for his former coach Gus Malzahn at UCF.

Another former Auburn player is reuniting with Gus Malzahn at UCF.

On Saturday, Nate Craig-Myers, who played for the Tigers from 2016-18 before transferring to Colorado State, announced that he will be joining the Knights for the 2021 season.

Craig-Myers best season in an Auburn uniform came in 2017 when he caught 16 passes for 285 yards and three touchdowns. In two seasons with the Rams, the Dade City, Fla. native recorded 29 receptions for 397 yards and a touchdown.

He was a 4-star recruit out of Tampa Catholic HS in the 2016 signing class.

Gus Malzahn: ‘We’ll be rooting hard’ for Auburn

Former Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn says he and his family will always love Auburn and will be rooting for the Tigers in the future.

Sometimes when a coach is fired by a school, there can be some ill will held by both parties.

That definitely won’t be the case with Gus Malzahn who was fired after eight seasons in charge of the Auburn football program back in December. On The Paul Finebaum Show on Wednesday, the new UCF head coach spoke on how he still feels about his time on the Plains.

“I was at Auburn 11 years and I’ve got nothing but great memories,” Malzahn said. “It was a great experience. My family loves Auburn and we’re part of the Auburn family. We always will. We’ll be rooting hard from here for them. But it was just — both of my daughters graduated, my son-in-laws, both of them graduated from Auburn. We’ll always be a part of the Auburn family.”

Malzahn record a 68-35 overall record during his time as head coach of the Tigers including a SEC championship, two SEC West titles and a spot in the BCS National Championship Game. As the offensive coordinator from 2009-11, he helped mentor Cam Newton on his way to winning a Heisman Trophy and lead the Tigers to the 2010 national title.

Owed a $21 million buyout from Auburn due to his firing, Malzahn seemed to be on his way to sitting out a year before the UCF job became open a couple of weeks ago.

“I’ve coached for 30 years straight. Never had a break,” Malzahn said. “First time in my life in 30 years to sit back and say, ‘Hey, got time to reflect. What’s the next step?’ Me and Kristi, we took about a week or two, we prayed about it, thought about it, ‘What’s that next step look like?’ It took about two weeks and I started getting that coaching itch again. I love to coach. Really, I was planning on possibly doing some TV, some radio during the offseason, gearing up for next year. But when this job came open — from the outside I’ve always said, ‘If the right guy ever got to UCF and would stay there and build it, everybody else would be in trouble.’ I was real attracted and got excited about it.”

USA TODAY ranks Bryan Harsin, Gus Malzahn hirings as top this offseason

USA TODAY Sports ranks Auburn’s hiring of Bryan Harsin this offseason as one of the best in college football.

It took some time for Auburn to find its new head coach but they found a good one in Bryan Harsin who the Tigers hired away from Boise State.

USA TODAY Sports’ Paul Myerberg definitely thinks highly of the hire as he has it as the second-best hiring of this offseason.

Harsin had options over the years but waited patiently for the right opportunity, following the trajectory of a career that has always taken a calculated approach to the next move. His program at Boise State (2014-20), where he won 78% of his games but never fully escaped Chris Petersen’s shadow, developed the most important positions on the field: quarterbacks, offensive tackles and edge rushers. As long as the standard for success isn’t unseating Nick Saban and Alabama from atop the SEC, Harsin is a very good fit.

Now, about that unseating Nick Saban and Alabama thing. Isn’t that the goal of any SEC coach, especially the one at Auburn?

Yet it wasn’t just Harsin who was named on the list. In fact, the guy he replaced — Gus Malzahn — was ranked the best hire of the offseason by Myerberg.

Report: Travis Williams to join Gus Malzahn’s UCF staff as defensive coordinator

Former Auburn linebackers coach Travis Williams is reportedly expected to join Gus Malzahn’s staff at UCF as defensive coordinator.

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An Auburn connection might be coming to UCF extremely soon.

Per ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, former Auburn linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator Travis Williams is expected to join Gus Malzahn’s staff at the American Athletic Conference school.

Williams recently accepted a position as linebackers coach at Miami but with the hiring of Malzahn, who he worked for on the Plains from 2014-20, at UCF, he would be a crucial hire for the former Auburn head coach.

A first-team All-SEC selection in 2004, Williams played linebacker for the Tigers from 2001-05.

UCF AD spurns Dan Mullen after hiring Gus Malzahn

UCF hired former Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn. The Knights’ AD immediately took a jab at Florida coach Dan Mullen and in-state competitors

UCF hired former Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn to the same role with the Knights. It didn’t take UCF athletic director Terry Mohajir long to take a jab at Dan Mullen and all of the college football coaches in Florida.

According to Yahoo’s Pete Thamel, Mohajir called Gus Malzahn:

The best college football coach in the state of Florida.

UCF’s athletic director is right to have confidence in Gus Malzahn. Malzahn played the underdog role better than perhaps any other coach in recent memory. At Auburn, Malzahn helped the Tigers upset more talented opponents like Alabama with surprising frequency.

Terry Mohajir definitely ruffled some feathers among in-state competition like Florida, Florida State, and Miami. Mohajir’s smack talk probably angers Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen the most as he’s widely considered the best coach in Florida.

Mullen has helped the Gators regain some national respect in recent seasons. Evidently he’s not been as impressive as UCF coach Gus Malzahn. Unfortunately, UCF and Florida (or any out-of-conference team in the state of Florida) don’t have any future scheduled contests.

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Oct 3, 2020; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart (right) and Auburn Tigers head coach Gus Malzahn bump fists at mid field after the game at Sanford Stadium.  Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

UCF hires former Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn

The UCF Knights are hiring Gus Malzahn to be their football coach. Malzahn previously coached at Auburn

The UCF Knights are hiring Gus Malzahn to be their football coach. Malzahn previously coached at Auburn. The Auburn Tigers fired Gus Malzahn following their regular season finale against Mississippi State.

The Auburn Tigers went on the replace Gus Malzahn with former Boise State head coach Bryan Harsin.

Overall, Auburn went 6-5 last season, but didn’t get any big-time wins. Malzahn coached at Auburn for eight seasons and amassed a 68-35 record for the Tigers. He helped the Tigers make the 2013 national championship, where they fell to the Florida State Seminoles in a last-minute defeat.

Now, Malzahn will look to keep UCF’s momentum going in football. The Knights are replacing former head coach Josh Heupel and athletic director Danny White. Both Heupel and White left to fill the head coaching and athletic director vacancy at the University of Tennessee.

Gus Malzahn’s offense is an excellent fit for the UCF Knights. UCF has run a face paced offense in the past and that’s not going to change under Malzahn. The former Auburn coach is no stranger to the underdog role and will be a good hire for the Knights.

Gus Malzahn will rejoin new UCF athletics director Terry Mohajir, who worked alongside Malzahn at Arkansas State.

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Report: UCF to hire former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn

Former Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn is set to be named the new coach for UCF per a Yahoo Sports report.

Gus Malzahn wasn’t unemployed for very long.

Per Yahoo Sports, the former Auburn head coach is set to be hired to the same position at UCF.

Malzahn would be replacing Josh Heupel who took the Tennessee job after the Volunteers fired Jeremy Pruitt.

The 55-year-old Malzahn was fired after eight seasons at Auburn in which he won a SEC Championship, took the Tigers to another SEC title game and, in his first season, led the team to the BCS National Championship Game. He is owed a buyout of more than $20 million.

His overall record was 68-35 and 39-27 in conference play.