Gus Malzahn, Auburn
For the past few offseasons, Malzahn has had arguably the hottest seat among SEC head coaches.
Recruiting isn’t an issue for Malzahn and the Auburn Tigers, and he’s consistently brought in SEC-caliber talent. But he doesn’t always seem to get the most out of that talent.
What has saved Malzahn the last three years is his 2-1 record against Nick Saban and Alabama.
In 2017, the Tigers were College Football Playoff contenders after ending the season with wins over Alabama and Georgia, but Auburn was blasted by the Bulldogs in their SEC Championship Game rematch and then lost to UCF in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl.
Last season, Auburn started off with a win over a top 10 Oregon team at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, but the Tigers’ offense hit a wall on the road against Florida and LSU and again later in the season against Georgia. They also lost the Outback Bowl to a much less talented Minnesota team.
Returning starting quarterback Bo Nix was just a true freshman last season, so some of Auburn’s inconsistencies and can be attributed to that. But with an entire season under his belt — a season where he showed flashes of greatness — it’s likely New Year’s Six bowl or bust for Malzahn’s 2020 Tigers team.
