Gus Malzahn is in his sixth season as Auburn’s head coach. His record coming into the Tennessee game: 49-24. To the casual college football fan, that would be an excellent record and wouldn’t warrant a call to the fictional hot seat.
However, with an embarrassing loss to a Tennessee team Saturday that had not won a SEC game since 2016, it’s time for Gus Malzahn’s hot seat to be scorching like a thousand suns.
Here’s some notable 2018 statistics for Auburn:
· 376.1 total yards of offense per game (9th in SEC)
· 158.4 rushing yards per game (11th in SEC)
· 28.0 points per game (11th in SEC)
With those discouraging numbers, Auburn fans shouldn’t settle for this type of mediocrity and Malzahn rightfully deserves to be placed on the hot seat. To make matters worse, this stretch of putrid play comes the first year after he signed a seven-year extension valued at $49 million.
Auburn felt like they had to enter a bidding war with Malzahn, who was receiving interest from Arkansas, his home state. That contract has reared his ugly head in 2018, as the Tigers are 4-3 overall and a dismal 1-3 in SEC play.
Fans came into this year optimistic after the 10-4 season that culminated in a SEC West title, something that seems rare to achieve in this day and age with the Alabama dominance of this era. The offense was supposed to take another step forward, and quarterback Jarrett Stidham was among one of the sleeper candidates for Heisman.
Fast forward to present day, and Stidham seems to appear a shell of himself in terms of numbers. Last season, he was completing 66.5 percent of his passes for 18 touchdowns and six interceptions. This season, Stidham is barely completing 60 percent of passes with a measly 7 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.
For a coach who’s supposed to be an offensive guru, Malzahn is stubborn enough to not occasionally utilize Malik Willis, who can bring a new dimension to the offense with his quickness and read-option ability.
This stubbornness and poor offensive execution has lead Auburn from being a preseason top-10 team to now an unranked team, the first time the Tigers have been outside the AP Top-25 since October 2016. This is a new low for someone who was 13 seconds away from winning a National Championship in his first season as Auburn coach.
Fans are now worried that Malzahn’s team won’t become bowl eligible, and even if they do, their bowl selection will be slim pickings in the eyes of the committee.
The Gus Bus seats have endured its share of smooth rides and speed bumps, but it appears that in 2018, those seats are becoming too warm for anyone to handle.
