Auburn’s run to the SEC Championship came up short Saturday. Now, attention turns to Gus Malzahn, and whether he’ll long for the plains or back home in Arkansas.
Gus Malzahn’s job status has been one of the burning questions this SEC season. With Auburn’s AD departing, it’s a wonder if Malzahn will be on the sidelines win orange and blue next year. The lone vacancy that could open up this opportunity is in Fayetteville. The Arkansas Razorbacks, of course, let go of both AD Jeff Long and more importantly Bret Bielema at the end of the year. Malzahn’s Arkansas roots have led many to link him to the job opening.
Would Malzahn consider such a move? He hasn’t necessarily denied moving on, but he hasn’t, of course, said he would move there outright, either. The differences between the jobs in Auburn and Fayetteville are pretty stark and noticeable. Still, the athletic director opening at Auburn will likely dictate whether or not the Gus Bus will still barrel through its current residence. His relationship with the staff had been tense, which is why these rumors were percolating so much
You can conceivably craft cases for Gus to either stay at Auburn or flee the coop to go to Arkansas. We decided to do that, and here are the results.
The case to stay at Auburn
Pros: The case for staying at Auburn lies with continuity and talent. Malzahn has helped build a pretty stable program in the past few years, even with the weird years of 2015 and 2016 in mind. He has shown the capability that the Tigers have at their absolute best, and it resulted in a National Championship trip and two SEC West titles. The talent that he has at Auburn is also pretty stellar. He has a Top 10 recruiting class coming in for 2018.
He also has Jarrett Stidham, who more than proved his worth in his first year in Malzahn’s offense. He can only get better with more polish, and he’d have the opportunity to do so with Gus still around.
Cons: The lack of a strong relationship with the higher-ups could lead to more division. A new AD would likely want “his” own guy, so any kind of rockiness could result in Gus losing his job, anyway. He hasn’t worn out his welcome, obviously, but that’s typically the trend with athletic directors when they arrive in a new town.
Gus has also arguably done everything possible while at Auburn, besides win a National Championship. And with rival Alabama nearby, it’s always going to be difficult for the Tigers to usurp the Crimson Tide as the state’s best program. Gus could conceivably jump over to Arkansas if he sees his cupboard as full enough.