Temple's Scot Loeffler Introduced As Auburn Offensive Coordinator

Scot Loeffler Introduced As Auburn OC, Pledges To Score 'Football Points'

The Auburn Tigers and head coach Gene Chizik brought out new offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler [<--- seemingly unembeddable video there] on Monday. Coming from the Temple Owls, Loeffler takes over for new Arkansas St. Red Wolves head coach Gus Malzahn, a Broyles Award winner as the nation's top assistant.

When asked about what appears to be the most pressing issue -- whether Auburn will retain elements of Malzahn's wide-open attack or shift to a pro-style scheme -- Loeffer said he likes it all and is just here to score "football points." I like that, and hope we all start referring to points in this fashion. He also said his offense's duty is to "protect that defense," further suggesting that Malzahn's aggressive offense became just a little bit too fast-paced for Chizik's preferences as time went by.

He said he was congratulated by former fellow Michigan Wolverines depth chart dweller Tom Brady, while Chizik noted both Loeffler and new defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder each has SEC and NFL experience. Loeffler coached Detroit Lions quarterbacks for the 2008 season.

SEC blog Team Speed Kills tries to make sense of what this all means, while Auburn blog Track 'Em Tigers is pretty much already sold.

For more on the parties involved, visit SEC blog Team Speed Kills and Auburn blog Track 'Em Tigers.

Scot Loeffler Hired As Auburn Offensive Coordinator: There's More To Him Than The Tim Tebow Thing

The Auburn Tigers hired away Temple Owls offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler to replace new Arkansas St. Red Wolves coach Gus Malzahn. While Loeffler's been sold to SEC country as Tim Tebow's position coach with the Florida Gators, his experience goes beyond just Tebow. Which is good news for Auburn fans hoping for, you know, traditional quarterbacking.

He's remembered well by former Michigan Wolverines coach Lloyd Carr, whose quarterback depth chart included both Loeffler and Tom Brady at one point. Loeffler may have first gotten the coaching bug while tutoring Brady as they both sat below Brian Griese on the Wolverines depth chart:

Brady in many ways was Loeffler's first protege, his first pupil, even though he was only three years older.

"I was able to begin my coaching career with him," said Loeffler. "It was a great experience; as much as I was able to give him, he gave to me.

"We talk every three weeks or so and it's the same old Brady and the same old Scot."

Loeffler later returned as a graduate assistant before being hired as Central Michigan's quarterbacks coach for two years. He then headed back to Ann Arbor again, coaching UM quarterbacks until Carr left, then working for a year with the Detroit Lions before landing at Florida.

None of this is to say Loeffler has a perfect reputation among all who've come into contact with him, but who does?

@pat_dooley I didn't deal much with Loefler when he was here but the UF beat guys thot he was a jerk. Certainly didn't help Tebow.

For more on the parties involved, visit SEC blog Team Speed Kills and Auburn blog Track 'Em Tigers.

Scot Loeffler Hired As Auburn Offensive Coordinator

Former Florida quarterbacks coach and current Temple offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler has been hired to run the offense under Gene Chizik at Auburn, according to a report by AL.com on Sunday. Auburn had reportedly been zeroing in on a candidate for the offensive coordinator spot, left vacant with Gus Malzahn's departure to Arkansas State, this past week, and an announcement was expected early this coming week.

Loeffler joins Brian VanGorder, the Tigers' new defensive coordinator, on Chizik's staff.

The hiring of Loeffler completes a reshuffling of Gene Chizik's two most high-profile positions. Auburn hired former Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder as its defensive coordinator earlier this month. The move gives Auburn coordinators with both college and NFL experience.

You may know Loeffler from his work at Florida, where he was Tim Tebow's quarterback coach for a brief stint. Loeffler also spent 13 seasons in the NFL before heading to the college ranks.

Edit: And it's official:

Chizik names Scot Loeffler Offensive Coordinator

— Auburn Football (@FootballAU) January 23, 2012

New Auburn Offensive Coordinator Could Be Named This Weekend, According To Report

The Auburn Tigers have taken their time in selecting a replacement for Gus Malzahn, who's taken his playbook and running back Michael Dyer to the Arkansas St. Red Wolves. They're apparently looking for a pro-style mind to lead a switch away from Malzahn's spread system, welcoming a true fullback from Illinois earlier in the week. (Less important for Auburn than choosing a philosophy is being good at whatever it is they end up doing, of course.)

Adding to speculation that the next OC could be a current NFL coach, WarBlogle.com reports the new man could be named this weekend:

@WarBlogle I've been told that Auburn's next OC has been selected. Could be on hold until after tomorrow's NFL games, could not, but he's on board.

Two non-NFL candidates, according to AuburnUndercover.com, have been Temple Owls offensive coordinator Scott Loeffler and Jacksonville University coach Kerwin Bell. The most-chattered names otherwise have been Houston Texans quarterbacks coach Greg Knapp and Baltimore Ravens offensive assistant Craig Ver Steeg. Ver Steeg, you'll note, has a playoff game still to play.

For more on the parties involved, visit SEC blog Team Speed Kills and Auburn blog Track 'Em Tigers.

Greg Knapp An Auburn Offensive Coordinator Target, According To Report

Texans quarterbacks coach Greg Knapp could be a candidate to replace Gus Malzahn on the Auburn staff.

Gus Malzahn Introduced As Arkansas State Head Coach At Wednesday Press Conference

Gus Malzahn met with the media at Arkansas State on Wednesday as he was introduced as the team's next head coach. For Malzahn, one of the highest-paid assistant coaches in the country, the move comes as a surprise in some ways, and not in others. He's a native of the state and was reportedly recruited for the job by Hugh Freeze, resulting in his decision to move from an SEC coordinator job to a Sun Belt head coaching job.

Malzahn called the Arkansas State job the right fit at the right time. He said he'd explored other head coaching jobs in the last two years, having got the bug to become a head coach, but wanted to wait for the right opportunity to present itself.

"This is where I learned football, from Arkansas high school coaches," Malzahn said. "I'm not a normal college coach as far as the progression goes. So, I've always looked for the right place at the right time. Guess what? This is the right place and the right time."

Just one minor bone to pick about Malzahn's introductory press conference. I'm not sure athletic director Dean Lee understands what Boise State plays.

"We can be the Boise State of college football," Lee said. "Coach Malzahn, we want to be the Arkansas State of college football, which is going to be better than Boise State."

Not sure Arkansas State can be the Boise State of college football when Boise State is already the Boise State of college football. Perhaps the Gonzaga of college football, or something like that, would've worked here.

Malzahn likely took a significant pay cut as part of his move from Auburn to Arkansas State, though financial terms of his contract were not released. However, Lee did reveal it is a five-year deal that will make Malzahn the Sun Belt's richest coach.

Gene Chizik Releases Statement On Gus Malzahn Leaving Auburn Football

Gus Malzahn's departure from Auburn's offensive coordinator role to take the reins at Arkansas State was sudden, but not one that Auburn coach Gene Chizik isn't respecting. Chizik released a statement on Malzahn on Wednesday:

"I’m very happy for Gus and the opportunity that awaits him at Arkansas State. Gus has always had the strong desire to become a head coach and the chance for him to return to his home state that he is so familiar with, will be very beneficial. He’s meant a tremendous amount to our program the past three years, helping our offense and our program achieve unprecedented heights, winning a BCS National Championship and setting countless offensive records. Gus has experienced success in each stop of his coaching career and I have no doubt that he will have similar results at Arkansas State. We look forward to having Gus stay with us through the bowl game and hope to send him out with a victory."

Auburn faces Virginia in the Chick-fil-A Bowl on New Year's Eve.

For more on Auburn, head to Track 'Em Tigers. For more on the 2011 college football bowl season, visit our dedicated section.

Gus Malzahn To Arkansas State Official, School Confirms

Guz Malzahn moving from Auburn to Arkansas State is now as official as it's going to get prior to Wednesday afternoon's press conference. What started as an odd and unconfirmed rumor has now been confirmed by the school.

Arkansas State posted a note on its Facebook site Tuesday evening saying that they would hold a press conference on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. to announce the new head coach. School officials issued another release on Wednesday morning confirming it was Malzahn they'd be announcing as the team's new head coach.

Malzahn's contract at Arkansas State has been reported at six years for $600,000, likely making him the highest paid coach in the Sun Belt Conference. It'll still be a pay cut for him, according to reports, but SB Nation's own Jason Kirk gave a bit of background on Tuesday night regarding that situation.

For many, the sticking point in all this ... how did Malzahn fall from turning down a $3 million-per-year offer with Vanderbilt to taking a pay cut just to land in Jonesboro, Arkansas, at a school that had never won six games in a year until 2011?

For one, we could be dealing with a man who values things beyond money. There are a few of those. He may also just really like the state. He's 46 years old, and as far as I can tell, has spent just five years of his adult life based outside of Arkansas. He went to high school and college there and coached there until 2006.

Either way, Malzahn is officially the new head coach at Arkansas State and desrves all the praise and recognition that comes with that sort of job.

For more on the Arkansas State coaching job, stick the the 2011 Coaching Carousel Tracker.

Gus Malzahn's Reported Arkansas State Salary Means A Pay Cut

If the Arkansas St. Red Wolves really are about to unveil Auburn Tigers offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn as their next head coach, much of the credit for breaking the news should go to Pete Roussel (in addition to Charles Goldberg), who tweeted the following around 5 p.m. ET Tuesday evening:

@coachingsearch I'm told that Arkansas State has put together a 6-year deal at $600,000 + for Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn.

Financial terms and everything. It sounds like the deal involves a little bit more money than that, but Roussel was certainly in the ballpark. Either way, the point here is Broyles Award winner Malzahn will be making at least half a million less than he was making at Auburn, and taking on greater responsibility in the process.

Whatever the number ends up being, it's something like three or four times what Hugh Freeze made in 2011 as ASU's head coach. Malzahn will likely be the highest paid coach in the Sun Belt. That sentence felt so strange to type. Try it yourself here: _____________________________________.

For many, the sticking point in all this ... how did Malzahn fall from turning down a $3 million-per-year offer with Vanderbilt to taking a pay cut just to land in Jonesboro, Arkansas, at a school that had never won six games in a year until 2011?

For one, we could be dealing with a man who values things beyond money. There are a few of those. He may also just really like the state. He's 46 years old, and as far as I can tell, has spent just five years of his adult life based outside of Arkansas. He went to high school and college there and coached there until 2006.

Another theory, if you don't buy that he would've accepted any head job that would allow him to return home: he'd thought he would've been able to do better than Vandy in 2011, but found that interviews at UNC and Kansas didn't go as hoped, which left only ASU (and, you know, the other ASU).

And, FWIW, some have speculated Kristi Malzahn's aggressively edited rant video may have harmed her husband's changes of landing a top job.

Gus Malzahn To Be Introduced As Arkansas State Coach Wednesday?

If the Arkansas St. Red Wolves have gone and landed Auburn Tigers offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, as is being reported, then I think we should be able to guess who they're talking about here -- since he'll probably have been introduced at this 3:30 press conference.

Please make plans to attend tomorrow night's basketball game... I think we are expecting a special guest! The game starts at 7:05 pm at the Convo. Spread the word!

However, there's more to Jonesboro than Malzahn rumors. I've also Googled up a list of famous Jonesboro natives, which includes John Grisham. It also includes playwright David Auburn. Jonesboro. Malzahn. Auburn. It's all connected, maaan. You do the math.

Malzahn is the former assistant coach of the year who reportedly had the chance in 2010 to take over the Vanderbilt Commodores for multiple millions of dollars per year. He also reportedly interviewed for the Kansas and North Carolina jobs.

For more on the Arkansas State coaching job, stick the the 2011 Coaching Carousel Tracker.

Gus Malzahn Accepts Arkansas State Job, According To Reports

Arkansas State has concluded their head coaching search with the hiring of Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, according to a report by AStateNation.com:

AStateNation.com's report has been confirmed by columnist and SI.com contributor George Schroeder. A press conference introducing Malzahn will reportedly occur Wednesday.

Malzahn had been rumored to be a candidate for the position, but many did not think he would accept it. Malzahn is from Arkansas, however, so there might have been something sentimental about rebuilding the program. As James Bryant of AStateNation.com notes, Malzahn spent 14 years coaching high school football in his home state.

Malzahn has been the offensive coordinator at Auburn University since the 2009 season. He helped call the nearly unstoppable Aurburn offense that was quarterbacked by now Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton. Malzahn originally hit the college ranks in 2005 as a wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator at Arkansas, when he came as a package deal with a group of prized recuits whom he coached in high school. After two years, left to become the offensive coordinator at Tulane, where he directed one of the nation's top offenses.

For more on the Arkansas State coaching job, stick the the 2011 Coaching Carousel Tracker.

Guz Malzahn To Arkansas State Rumors Gain Steam

Arkansas State lost their head coach Hugh Freeze when he accepted the Ole Miss Rebels coaching position. This lead Arkansas State to begin a coaching search of their own. Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn was rumored to be a candidate, then rumored to not be a candidate, and now it is being reported again that the rumors of Malzahn to Arkansas State "might have legs."

Malzahn has been the offensive coordinator at Auburn University since the 2009 season. He helped call the nearly unstoppable Aurburn offense that was quarterbacked by now Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton. Malzahn originally hit the college ranks as a wide receivers coach at Arkansas, when he came as a package deal with a group of prized recuits whom he coached in high school.

For more on the Arkansas State coaching job, stick the the 2011 Coaching Carousel Tracker.