The 2 most likely head coach options for Auburn Tigers if Bryan Harsin is fired
Auburn Tigers head coach Bryan Harsin might be out of a job soon. Reports started flying around on Thursday evening that Harsin's job is in serious jeopardy. This doesn't come as a huge surprise — we've been speculating for weeks that Harsin was about to crash and burn at Auburn. Early February isn't an ideal […]
Auburn Tigers head coach Bryan Harsin might be out of a job soon.
Reports started flying around on Thursday evening that Harsin's job is in serious jeopardy.
This doesn't come as a huge surprise — we've been speculating for weeks that Harsin was about to crash and burn at Auburn.
Early February isn't an ideal time to fire a head coach. But then again, Auburn isn't in an ideal situation right now. Harsin has been a bad fit from the start. And he's been losing assistants recently at an alarming rate (both of his coordinators left in the last two weeks).
Might as well rip the band-aid off and start over if you're Auburn.
So what would Auburn do in 2022 if they fire Harsin?
Well, I think there are two obvious options.
Option 1: Go hire Matt Rhule away from the Carolina Panthers. Rhule wants out of Carolina. He's not cutting in the NFL. It's obvious after two years that Rhule is a college coach (he did a really nice job at Baylor and Temple). And Rhule knows this — he was reportedly interested in the Michigan job if Jim Harbaugh left for the NFL (looks like Harbaugh is staying at Michigan). Rhule could be a good fit at Auburn. He's a former Penn State linebacker, but he has plenty of experience in the south from his time at Baylor and Carolina. If Auburn wants a long-term option, this is probably their best bet. I don't see many coaches leaving their programs this late in the offseason.
Option 2: Bring Kevin Steele in to serve as the interim head coach for 2022. This would not only be hilarious, but it could also be smart.
(Steele has had four different jobs since serving as Auburn's interim head coach in 2020 and he's yet to be on the sidelines for any of those four jobs.)
Steele is currently the defensive coordinator at Miami. I'm sure he'd jump at the chance to lead Auburn in 2022 while trying to prove — once again — that he's the right person to lead the Tigers' football program.
This would be similar to what Ole Miss did in 2017 when Hugh Freeze was fired. Matt Luke served as the interim head coach in 2017 and was eventually hired as the full-time head coach (and eventually fired).
It's an ugly situation at Auburn right now. But the Tigers at least have some options to right the ship.
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