5 reasons Gus Malzahn doesn’t make it past 2016 season
By John Buhler
4. On-going quarterback controversy.
What ultimately led to Auburn’s disappointing 2015 NCAA season was the Tigers’ inability to find an appropriate replacement for quarterback Nick Marshall. Marshall wasn’t flashy, but was a skilled runner, a great tactician in Malzahn’s offense that he picked up insanely quickly in 2013, and could throw an incredibly accurate deep ball.
At the start of 2015, Malzahn tabbed Jeremy Johnson as the heir apparent to Marshall in his high-octane offense. However in the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Game against Louisville, Johnson was an interception machine and frankly lacked any sort of touch on all of his passes all season.
Johnson’s early struggles against Louisville and later Jacksonville State led to Malzahn having to go with redshirt freshman Sean White. White came on the recruiting scene late, but emerged as one of the better passers in his graduating class, proving that he was a top-tier quarterback at the Elite 11 Camp.
However, White never looked fully healthy in 2015 and had to scramble far too much for a guy that was donning an obvious knee brace. White can still be a great quarterback for the Tigers, but he hasn’t won the starting job over Johnson just yet. Malzahn has even thrown newcomer John Franklin, III into the Auburn quarterback mix during spring practice.
For the importance that offense plays on Malzahn’s teams, not having a sure-fired starter after 2016 spring practice doesn’t bode well for Auburn’s upcoming season. Malzahn will have to hope that he goes with the right guy on September 3rd or it could ultimately cost him his job should Auburn dig itself into an early season hole.
Next: 3. Third defensive coordinator in as many seasons.