Auburn football: Mike Bobo hired as Tigers offensive coordinator

Mike Bobo is leaving South Carolina for the same position at Auburn.

After officially leaving Boise State following his acceptance of the Auburn head coaching gig, Bryan Harsin has been trying to surround himself with a coaching staff that knows how to recruit, even bringing in former Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason to serve as his defensive coordinator. His offensive coordinator hire also comes from the SEC ranks, and longtime assistant Mike Bobo will be wearing Auburn blue and orange next season.

Sources confirmed to ESPN that Bobo will join Harsin’s staff as the offensive coordinator, while Will Friend also left Columbia for Auburn as the offensive line coach.

Mike Bobo has earned mixed reviews as a coach over the last few years

Bobo, a former Georgia quarterback, worked his way up the coaching ladder to become quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator for his alma mater under Mark Richt. Bobo left Athens to become the head coach at Colorado State in 2015, going 7-6 in each of his first three seasons.

Unfortunately, the last few years haven’t been very kind to him. Bobo won just seven games in his final two years in Ft. Collins, and his return to a coordinator role didn’t go very well, as the Gamecocks ranked just 98th in the country in points scored, all the while producing one of the least efficient passing attacks in the conference.

While Bobo’s statistical numbers look ordinary, his ability to recruit down south should be a valuable asset for Harsin to have on his staff. The Gamecocks didn’t exactly have Alabama’s offensive personnel, so there is reason to believe Bobo will improve in 2021.

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